Poor welfare: Delegates’ aides to stage fresh protest

May 31, 2014

Kutigi and Bayo Ojo

Despite threats by the Chairman of the ongoing National Conference, Justice Idris Kutigi, to arrest aides of delegates who were plotting to disrupt proceedings, indications have emerged that they will take to the streets on Monday, June 2, when plenary resumes.

Already, the aides, including drivers, security details and other domestic staff members have planned to stage a protest against non-provision for their welfare during preparations for the confab. The protest will be the second in the series to have been planned.

Although it was not clear how much each delegate would receive at the end of the exercise, it is being speculated that each delegate would earn a minimum of N12m. But nothing has been said of what they will receive with the recent four weeks extension.

Kutigi had alerted the delegates that there was a report from the Department of State Security indicating that their aides were warming up for a protest over welfare issues.

In a note he read to the delegates, he said the aggrieved aides had also written a letter to the Presidency and copied same to the conference secretariat.

He said, “We just received a security alert from the DSS stating that your (delegates’) aides are holding a meeting in which they plan to protest and disrupt our conference. Let me re-emphasise that there is a budget meant for this conference and it does not capture the aides of delegates; so delegates are supposed to personally take care of their aides.

“They said they have written a petition to the Presidency and copied me, though I have not seen a letter to that effect. I would like to appeal to you to talk to your aides to leave us alone to conduct this conference successfully or in the alternative we would get them arrested if they do not conduct themselves properly.”

But in a statement sent to Confab Gist, the aides, under the aegis of Forum of Aides and Drivers of National Conference 2014 Delegates, described the next protest as “legitimate and unequivocal.”

According to them, they are reacting to threats by the conference to clamp down on them because of their alleged illegality.

They said, “We find it appropriate to refute such allegations and state clearly that our requests to government for allowances to assuage our sufferings and our resolve to hold a peaceful protest on Monday, June 2, 2014 are legitimate and unequivocal.

“We have, therefore, issued this statement to clarify these issues. We have attached herewith scanned copies of our correspondences with conference management, Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, police authorities and the Presidency on the subject for your evaluation.

“These letters are attached to enable you draw reasonable conclusions to absolve the forum of any wrong doing concerning the issue of plans to disrupt the conference and to appropriately evaluate the moral questions raised by the refusal to pay allowances to aides and drivers of delegates at the National Conference.”

During the commencement of plenary on March 18, a day after the conference was inaugurated by President Goodluck Jonathan, one of the initial motions which had been raised by some delegates was a clarification seeking to know who should foot the allowances for their aides. But Kutigi had explained that the budget for the conference only covered the allowances of 492 delegates and feeding for the three months period the conference would last.

The aides had, in a letter dated April 28 to Kutigi, said they had evidence that payments were made to support personnel of similar appointees in the past.

 IBB in confab

Barely two weeks to the 21st anniversary of the June 12, 1993 presidential election which was adjudged by international observers as the best in Nigeria’s political history, former military president, Gen. Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida (retd), has again, resurfaced in the confab, not as a delegate but yet in another controversial circumstance. The election which was said to have been won by late business mogul, Chief MKO Abiola, was annulled by Babangida.

A delegate at the ongoing National Conference, Dr. Maryam Abdullahi, stoked a fresh controversy when she stated that the relationship between Christians and Muslims in the country became worsened when Nigeria was admitted as a full member of the Organisation of the Islamic Conference.

She said the former military president, who pushed for Nigeria’s full membership of OIC, embarked on the decision to manipulate religion in order to perpetuate himself in office. She added that this was the beginning of mistrust between the two faiths because of mutual suspicion of possible Islamisation of Nigeria.

Abdullahi representing the Civil Society Organisations, spoke while making her contribution to the debate on the report of the conference Committee on Religion.

She said, “The relationship between Christians and Muslims deteriorated when Nigeria was admitted as a full member of OIC. This made Christians to start resisting any move that would portray Nigeria as an Islamic state.

 State creation: What do Okun people want?

Although the agitation for state creation in Nigeria is said to be easier during military regimes, ethnic nationalities are using the opportunity of the ongoing National Conference to table their various demands.

About 31 ethnic nationalities across the six geo-political zones have submitted a memorandum to the National Conference Committee on Political Restructuring and Forms of Government, demanding state creation. The Okun-Yoruba of Kogi State is one of them. But the question begging for answer is: What do they want?

The Convener of Okun Agenda Global Network, Mr. Rufus Aiyenigba, believes that marginalised ethnic groups across the country must be given due attention.

He said, “We should be allowed to exercise our inalienable right to self-determination. Our people desire that we should be given our own state along with the Yoruba of Kwara State or be merged with South-West through boundary adjustment.”

Aiyenigba added, “The marginalised and deprived Okun-Yoruba of Kogi State passionately look up to this conference for liberation. To him, agitation for a political unit for Okun people and that they should be re-united with their kith and kin in the South-West is stronger now than ever.

He said, “It is with the South-West that we share affinity, a cord of similitude in culture, history, communal identity and common values. We have a position paper to that effect already submitted to the conference and we have a strong conviction that we will get justice as well as other such marginalised groups across the country.”

Aiyenigba added, “We were happy and satisfied before our forced inclusion in Kogi State where we are at present. In fact, it is on record that our people were resolutely against being moved into Kogi State in 1987 when the then Military government of Gen. Ibrahim Babangida attempted creating new states.

“Our people came together from across Okunland and issued a memorandum to the government objecting to the attempt to include the people of the then Oyi Local Government Area in the proposed Kogi State.”

 ‘Confab may not navigate to successful conclusion’

A member of the Ondo State delegation in the ongoing National Conference and Vice-Chancellor of Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba-Akoko, Prof. Femi Mimiko, is worried over what is going on at the confab.

Mimiko has, therefore, called for caution among fellow delegates and in particular, the conference leadership.

He said, “With the way the leadership of the conference handled proceedings on the Land Use Act and Pilgrims Welfare Board respectively, I doubt if it has the capacity to navigate this conference to a successful conclusion. And this has nothing to do with the merit or demerit of the case, but largely with courage and procedure.”

According to him, the tendency to pander to a particular interest group, “which people had complained about, is now unmistakable.”

Mimiko, a political scientist said, “It is quite unfortunate, with this tendency and this Napoleon-is-always-right mentality, I have begun to have my doubt about the conference. Moving back and forth like a yoyo, or what the Americans call flip-flopping will not get us anywhere. It is rather unfortunate!”