On PDP, Power Rotation and Federal Character

Power rotation or call it ‘zoning’ has become a very topical issue in Nigeria’s polity. The view held by some political elites is it that, ‘rotation’ is the only way to maintain political balance in a nation like Nigeria that is divided along religious and ethnic lines.


This same view was shared by the US Under-secretary of State, Johnnie Carson, when he said recently that “the United States supported the rotation principle as a guarantor of stability in Nigeria, a country of 140 million split between the Muslim north and predominantly Christian south”.

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) remains the only party in Nigeria whose party constitution supports power rotation/zoning. Section 7(2)C of the PDP constitution states:

“In pursuance of the principle of equity, justice and fairness, the party shall adhere to the policy of rotation and zoning of party and public elective offices and it shall be enforced by the appropriate executive committee at all levels”.

This confirms that the PDP power rotation policy is more than just a ‘gentleman’s agreement’ as we’ve been made to believe by “AGIP” (Any Government In Power) political sycophants.

But in spite of the PDP constitutional provisions, many within the party believe that the power rotation policy has outlived its usefulness, and that it should be jettisoned altogether. Considering that these calls are coming at a time when a non-Northerner is occupying the seat of power sounds quite suspicious. In the current prevailing circumstances, the sincerity of the anti-rotation supporters within PDP will always remain questionable. I will say that the jury is still out on whether such calls are been made in the public interest or just serve the personal benefit of President Goodluck Jonathan, to remain in power beyond 2011.

It beggars belief that same political jobbers and sycophants calling for the abolition of rotation policy, after they themselves have been a major beneficiary, are same people scouting for the next Party Chairman from a particular region of the country. So why haven’t they declared that anyone can run for the post of PDP Chairmanship instead of ‘zoning’ it to the Southeast. If zoning is bad for the presidency, then why is it good for political party offices?

The hypocrisy in the PDP was further exposed by the recent announcement that Ogun state 2011 Governorship slot has been zoned to Yewa/Awori. This decision according to the party officials is in the spirit of “equity, justice and fairness”. So on one hand, we have some National Party leaders saying the power rotation should be dumped to pave way for Goodluck Jonathan, but on the other hand, we have a state chapter of the party announcing that it has zoned its Governorship slot to a particular ethnic tribe. Again, this begs the question, if zoning is not good enough for the Presidential slot, why must it be forced down the throat of state party supporters?

For how long will these Papas Deceiving Pickin continue? A Yoruba proverb says “eniyan meji ko ni padanu iro”. Which literally means, “two people cannot fall victims of lie or deceit”. Whilst the ‘deceived’ could be genuinely’ ignorant, the ‘deceiver’ definitely knows what he/she is doing.

Social and political commentators argue daily that power rotation is unconstitutional, and should not be taken seriously as it only binds members of the PDP. But that statement is not entirely true. Whilst the constitution may not be explicit on power rotation, it clearly supports the principle of federal character. Section 14(3) of 1999 constitution states

“The composition of the Government of the Federation or any of its agencies and the conduct of its affairs shall be carried out in such a manner as to reflect the federal character of Nigeria and the need to promote national unity, and also to command national loyalty, thereby ensuring that there shall be no predominance of persons from a few State or from a few ethnic or other sectional groups in that Government or in any of its agencies”.

For me, there’s no fundamental difference between Section 7(2)C of the PDP Constitution and Section 14(3) of the 1999 constitution. Whether you call it power rotation, zoning, federal character principle, are all aimed at the same purpose. The single purpose, as we are made to believe, is to prevent the predominance of a particular ethnic group or tribe in political office.

Whether such a provision/clause is good or bad is a different argument altogether. In my opinion, Section 14(3) is one of the fundamental errors of 1999 constitution. Any legislation or policy that aims to restrict political office to a tribe, religion or sex only breeds mediocrity. There’s enough evidence to show that rotation, zoning, federal character principle or whatever name you call it, has contributed immensely to the paucity of development in the country. No region in Nigeria has benefitted from zoning or federal character principle. For example, Ex-Pres. Obasanjo ruled the nation for almost 10 years both as civilian and military Head of State. But I don’t think Abeokuta is any better developed than Benin.

Yes we hue and cry about how bad power rotation is. We say it’s PDP policy and no one else. We say people should be free to seek elective office irrespective of tribe or religion. But the reality is, the political landscape and machineries of government are guided by medieval and retrogressive constitutional provisions, which in fact transcends individual party policies.

It is such medieval constitutional provision that has given political parties like the PDP, the audacity to adopt a rotational policy. And until we expunge such provisions from our constitution, changes in presidential power base would only mean very little in reality.

Thoughts on Nigeria Federalism - By Kayode Ogundamisi

Federalism is described as the system of government built under the understanding and foundation that those who make up the federating unit will share power and also recognise, accommodate, preserve and promote the distinct identities of the ethnic nationalities that make up the larger political union, their rights to resource control, freedom, justice and equity amongst many other, heated debate on the issue of federalism is ounce again coming up amongst Nigerian political elites, discussion forums and the media.

The orchestrated misunderstanding of “federalism” in Nigeria is in the propagation of corrupt practices in the ranks of the ruling elite. Thus mechanisms such as “rotational presidency” “quota system” and others are put in place to guide their tendency to plunder, enrich and entrench their caprices.

The symbolic gesture of a “Yoruba presidency” for instance did produce General Olusegun Obasanjo who in practical terms represented the interest of the core of first the “Hausa-Fulani political elite” and then the “Yoruba political and economic elite” and Obasonjo delivered his promise not to the suffering oppressed class of the “Hausa-Fulani nor the suffering oppressed class of the Yoruba or any other ethnic group in Nigeria. He created billionaire friends leaving the vast majority of all the ethnic nationalities be it Yoruba, Fulani, Husa, Nupe, Igbo, Ijaw, Ibibio and other Nigerians in worst situation as they were under a Hausa-Fulani presidency. In the same vein former Hausa-Fulani Presidents General Sanni Abacha, General Ibrahim Babangida and others - did not make life any better for the average people in all parts of Nigeria and Northern Nigeria is worst off in socio, economic and infrastructural development. Thus Federalism should be viewed from a class perspective.



Whilst the average Nigerian discusses federalism vis-à-vis the competitiveness of the geo political zones, the promotion of development in all regions of the Nigerian federation and what can enhance good governance, the Nigerian political elites are thinking of federalism in terms of how to enhance their greed, ambition and lust for power.



The first step in our quest for true federalism is for politicians, policy makers and opinion molders to first understand the importance of federalism as it relates to good governance rather than how it facilitates equitable access to the infamous opportunity to plunder the national resources amongst the elites of the ethnic nationalities that make up Nigeria . Thus there must be an alignment of understanding between the rulers and the ruled



Nigerians can not shy away from the obvious need to renegotiate the bases for our nationhood. Running away from the issue keeps our country roaming around the orbit of a treacherous infamous vicious cycle of political infamy and economic profligacy. The “we the people “inscribed in the Nigerian constitution should be expunged forthwith.



A renegotiation of Nigeria is the first step towards a truly Nigerian Revolution. We should be courageous about the reality that all the various constitutions operated from the moment the British packaged us together till date are nothing more than reinventions of the conquest document imposed on the people before Nigeria was created. Before then, it did not matter if you were from the North, South, West or East; pre colonial Nation-States had sovereign relationships, fought wars, resolved crisis and related as equal partners.



The Kingdoms in the North, South, West, East are what in modern days could be referred to as States with sovereign rights, distinct borders and constitutional governments either in a parliamentary form as in the Old Oyo Kingdom, or the Oligarchy in the North or the collegiate system in the east. The fact that the British Colonial masters characterized our system as “crude” and “native” does not make an amalgamation without consultation with the people right. We must renegotiate our nationhood but with the resolve that Nigeria must not disintegrate.



If the Soviet Union can renegotiate with her federating units, South Africa dealt with her post apartheid era, we can tackle our problem head long. I do not see any reason why we cannot honestly seat down as a people and re-negotiate Nigeria on the bases of equal partnership; a partnership that must be in the overall interest of the poor people of our Country. Our constitution is a unitary document disguised with misrepresentations of federalism and it should not come as a surprise because even as students of history we know that the people who make Nigeria were never and have never been genuinely consulted when those documents are drafted and imposed by the rogue minority in power on the hapless majority.



And yes it’s been a chequered history of constitutional experiments first from the colonial masters, to the post colonial civilian government and then series of military regimes through to post military civilian governments. All that’s been done at each point in time has characteristically been to service the machinations of the various ruling elites. Indeed the four constitutions written by the colonial masters reflected the intentions of those in power, thus, we refer to the Clifford, Richards, McPherson and Lyttleton constitutions’ as travesties that were all crafted to subjugate the ethnic nationalities that make up Nigeria; none reflected the needs, aspiration and unique diversity of our people.



A hurriedly drafted independence constitution failed under three years, You are all familiar with how the different military regimes, danced from unitary to federal and so on and so forth but none with the honest mission of resolving the National Question. Over the years, as we continue to shy away from reality, Nigeria predictably heats up to the boiling point. We’ve had the Biafra/Nigeria Civil war, series of religious and cultural riots and mass killings in the north, the OPC crisis in the west and its attendant deaths, the emergence of groups such as MASSOB, the introduction of Sharia Law in the North and the militancy in the Niger Delta amongst every other conflict flash points nationwide.



Sadly, our inability to re negotiate the way forward is as a result of the bankruptcy amongst our political leaders, thus we label anyone who raises the issue of True Federalism as wanting to break up Nigeria . It is clearly not a crime to call for the restructuring of Nigeria along the geo political divide. In as much as I personally feel that we may not be able to compromise our indivisibility, we have come a long way as a Country. Our long enforced marriage does not preclude the need to look at long term progressive revolutionary options that will weaken the centre, turn off opportunists and bring governance close to the people.



Acknowledging that we have a flawed Nation-State is the flag off point for the Nigerian revolution. Issues such as corruption, lack of transparent credible elections, poverty, mistrust, bad governance and others vices are bye-products of a people who care less about the character of the Nigerian state but more about their selfish interests.



The campaign for the convocation of a truly Sovereign National Conference that will resolve issues of, Resource Control, creation of Local Governments, State Police, ceding of overbearing federal government control of state Resources to the States and federating Units, a confederation that will work and strengthen the diverse nature of our Country is must continue.



We need a federal system that works for all Nigerians irrespective of tribe, religion, race or creed. Thus the energies of groups/alliances in opposition should be channeled not just to capture political power and perpetuate more of the same failed tendency of ignoring the core of our problem but adopting the PRONACO document with a view to expanding it and involving the Nigerian electorate.



Rejection of all the negative aspects of the constitution that first of all reflect the thinking of our colonial masters, the military and also the greed of the ruling elite that does not have the interest of the people of Nigeria is an emergency.



The federating state governments should continue to challenge the overbearing power of the federal government; the introduction of Sharia legal system by the states of Northern Nigeria was one of such steps. The creation of local governments by the Lagos State government and its continued challenge in court is a welcome development at enriching our federal system even as we look for that constitution that will truly reflect our unity in diversity.

Meanwhile, resolving the issues surrounding true federalism will not suddenly resolve the issues of corruption, bad leadership, electoral fraud, crime, marginalization just to mention a few. No it won’t, but at least we can localize the issues and resolve them side-by-side our nation building efforts. We cannot let our moment pass us by. It will only take a brave leader with vision to tackle the founding root of this macabre dance we call living.

Federal Character Principle

The Chairman of the Federal Character Commission (FCC), Prof. Oba AbdulRaheem, was quoted recently as saying, “18 states are not currently benefitting from the ‘federal character principle’ of the 1999 Constitution”. The states were described as having low representation in appointments into Federal Ministries and Agencies. According to the Prof. AbdulRaheem, each of the 36 states is expected to have about 2.5 % and 3.0% representation in appointments made by Federal Ministries and Extra-Ministerial Departments. A source from the FCC was also quoted as saying “the implication of the current irregularity is these states may not have civil servants from their states in the hierarchy of the Federal Civil Service in the next few years”.

One of the major fundamental errors in the 1999 Constitution is principle of ‘federal character’. Section 14(3) of the 1999 Constitution states that “The composition of the Government of the Federation or any of its agencies and the conduct of its affairs shall be carried out in such a manner as to reflect the federal character of Nigeria and the need to promote national unity, and also to command national loyalty, thereby ensuring that there shall be no predominance of persons from a few State or from a few ethnic or other sectional groups in that Government or in any of its agencies”. While some might disagree, it is my opinion that the inclusion of this provision within the constitution has contributed immensely to the paucity of development in the country. It is time we begin to challenge some of these principles. Firstly, we need to ask ourselves, what can be defined as our federal character?

Unfortunately, this principle has been used to accelerate the promotion of mediocre and incompetent civil servants into top government positions. The same can also be said about Ministers. People get handed ministerial portfolios not because they are competent but because they are representing the interest of particular state or ethnic group. I agree that ministerial appointments are political, and in most cases the President has to satisfy his electorates. However, what about Director-General of federal ministries and parastatals? Why can’t appointments be made purely on individual merit?

We seem to have dug ourselves into a big hole by having such a ridiculous provision in our constitution. And by the way, I can’t seem to understand the rationale behind what is considered as the ‘federal character’. The fact that a state is properly represented in the civil service doesn’t mean that an ethnic group within that state is not marginalised. Nigeria is a very diverse country. We have states with more than four ethnic groups. To say that the principle of federal character satisfied because Ogun state has 5.8% in the top echelon of the federal civil service is misleading. I can count five different ethnic groups just in Ogun State. Tell me, how can you represent 140 ethnic groups in the top echelon of the civil service? And now that we have started towing the path, where do you stop? So the more states we create, the more we have to represent. Does someone think this is the solution to the inherent ethnic problem in the nation?

This problem is also further compounded by the recognition of just three languages in Section 55 of the 1999 Constitution. So are you telling me that there are only three languages in Nigeria?

The principle of federal character is similar to policies of equal opportunities in the western world. While sections of the community that are deemed to be underrepresented are actively encouraged to apply for jobs, it does not mean that they will be handed a job if there are incompetent. But in our case, the primary concern is the state of origin, while skills and ability are secondary.

These are fundamental issues we need to address. It is time we start looking beyond ethnic divide. The diversity in our culture and ethnicity should be seen a strength. Election into leadership position should not be based on ethnic sentiments. I wouldn’t vote for someone just because he his Yoruba. For example, what did the Yorubas benefit from eight years of Obasanjo rule? Has Katsina developed any better than Lagos since President Yar’Adua assumed office?