1 week Ago By Joy Anigbogu
Hon. Wale Oshun is national president of the Afenifere Renewal Group (ARG), a splinter group of the apex Yoruba socio-cultural and political organisation and a chieftain of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC). In this interview, he speaks on President Bola Tinubu’s economic reforms, why Nigerians should focus on the revenue allocations to the state and local governments rather than fuel subsidy removal.
Oshun speaks on the need to rework the constitution, among others, JOY ANIGBOGU brings the excerpts. What is your take on President Tinubu’s economic reforms? Could the country have survived without removing the subsidy, particularly when allegations had trailed the subsidy management for two decades? I mean allegations of unlawful payment; a cartel that was taking advantage of the system. There is absolutely no way that any serious government would just look on and allow the subsidy mismanagement to continue.
Now that the subsidy is done what people should be talking about should be, with the increased revenue how the spending is done? We can’t keep talking about the removal, it has taken place, what Nigerians should be talking about now is with the increased revenue how is it spent? What is the government doing with the money? We are focusing so much on the Federal Government, yet the local government and the state government are the ones that take decisions that affect us the most. How judiciously is this money that should be in the interest of the public used now? I mean at all levels in Nigeria we are focusing more on the Federal Government and that should not be. That is why we have been talking about a reworking of the constitution, so that the Federal Government can be involved in a few things.
I mean things such as currency management, defence and security, scientist research, even secondary school, building of universities are things federating units should handle. The federal government should only lay the standard. Many things should be at those levels, the Federal Government does less.
Yes, subsidy is removed but this extra money is still being distributed according to the constitution and it has yielded more money for all tiers of government, but how is this money utilised? For me that should be the focus. But despite being an advocate of restructuring for years, President Tinubu appears not interested in a new constitution or reworking the one we have. Does it come as a surprise to you? One thing I know is that Nigeria as presently constituted can only survive when the constitution is reworked, otherwise we are postponing the doom day.
When the constitution is reworked it would solve a lot of things. You know most people in public office would say let’s buy time, but if the constitution is not reworked for all the federating units to have more control of their resources and pay agreed tax to the Federal Government we may not get out of our troubles. If for instance, security at the level of policing that we have is not shared we would just be wasting our time, talking and blaming each other, we would not leave where we are.
Is that the problem of Nigeria? That is the problem; I mean the problem of control. We have not been able to manage the diversity; this is a big country with diverse culture and religion. People with different habits and values and each federating unit would have to be managed based on its own perception of who they are.
Would the expulsion of Rauf Aregbesola not divide the party? APC communicates with itself, there is always a feedback mechanism within the party and this is highly respected. For me what is important is that within the party, whether you talk of the selection process of candidates, there is always a communication mechanism. Talking of fractions, there is no political party that does not have its ups and downs; there would always be interest which has to be contested, which has to be resolved one way or the other.
Because political parties are governed by human beings, there must always be interest, but at the end of the day, it would be resolved one way or the other. At the end of the day there is always recognition of group interest that serves the interest of the majority of us. So, you would always find people sitting up at the appropriate time to say no; this is not the way to go, this is the way to go.
APC would always protect himself and take the best decision. Aregbesola is in Osun State, I’m in Lagos State, but the truth is that he has been a good leader in the party. I don’t know what is happening in Osun State.
I don’t have the capacity to be monitoring what is happening in Osun. I just know that at some point all the crisis would be resolved to the benefit of the party and all the contestants in Osun. For me one thing is important and that is, we would always need ourselves.
Aregbesola is a founding member of APC. He has been in the thick and thin of politics in APC, even as an elder in the party it would be my wish that elders of the party in Osun and across the country sit down and resolve the issues for the benefit of all the personnel and group interest of all. What is important for me as an individual, I still believe that the leaders have to sit down and resolve the matter.
Aregbesola has been a very strong member of the political system that his interest over the years has been to the overall benefit of the party. But many people are surprised that the disagreement between him and President Bola Tinubu has dragged on for so long. Did this come as a surprise to you? But the interesting thing is that Aregbesola and Tinubu are five and six.
Do you mean before or now? The interesting thing is that, the tongue and the mouth bite one another, but they are still together. If there is little difference it is not for us outsiders to pour fuel on it, it is left for them to resolve. It would be resolved.
Confidently, I still believe they are five and six, because when you look at the relationship that was built in the past, it is what scientists would call the vesicular one. I believe it will be resolved. That is why there must be less intervention from those who did not know the story and where they are coming from.
The tongue and teeth confront themselves and still work in accord. For me, there is no end to such a relationship. You can only hit each other like the tongue and teeth, but they can continue to work together.
But it’s been more than five or four years now and they have not been able to resolve it. Don’t you agree when observers say there is need for intervention from a third party to resolve the dispute? There are a lot of misinterpretations in the open space that people rarely see. I do know their relationship is tongue and teeth they work together.
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