By Professor Ndubuisi Ekekwe

I wrote that the US, the UK and the EU made a very big mistake when they brought Western democracy to Africa, without the PROCESS to democracy. I posited that a component of that Process is having a free and fair election, and where they’re unable to deliver such, their unalloyed preaching of democracy in Africa is weakened, before citizens. I cited the case of Gabon where people seem to have given up on democracy as they jubilated when the military took over.

Then, this comment dropped: “Your bias is obvious and still pained that your candidate lost the last election in Nigeria... If the last election in Nigeria is conducted again in a free and fair environment, Tinubu will still win. ” That piece did not mention Nigeria and Tinubu. My case study was Gabon. But, unfortunately, someone cannot just get away from our fault lines in Nigeria. Last year, 90% of my “negative” comments came from the Northern part of our nation; today, the Southwestern part has taken over.

When I write that our currency is losing value (a fact), someone will comment that I hate Tinubu. But the same person used to agree with me in the past (I reminded him). What has changed? A new tribe now controls Aso Rock and allegiance to Tribe becomes supreme over everything. That is the Nigerian way! Yes, under Goodluck, Aso Rock was like an Ijaw and Igbo club!

Where am I going? Nigeria has a major fault line: we hate corruption, cheating, etc only when it is not our tribe that benefits. But once it benefits us, it is fine. Solution? I believe in ONE Nigeria and I have proposed a Nigeria Union which is structured around six nations. Think of how Europe handles many European nations with a population smaller than Oshodi Lagos (Iceland, 400k people). With that, Europe removes the demons of identity so that Ade can read Kemi, Kanu can write Eze, Usman can read Adamu, etc, and then harmonizes all at the continental level. Magic!

If Southeast/SS/SW... is a nation within Nigeria Union, and is autonomous, and only connected to the Nigeria Union, under a rotational presidency which is largely ceremonial, that my post would not have been viewed as being “biased”. But because it is written by “Ndubuisi”, it must be against Southwest. That mindset is our weakest point and a Nigeria Union as I have explained will solve it. We’re irredeemable on our national fault lines because we’re the same.

Alchemy528:

🤔