Rivers: Amaechi Blames Tinubu’s Constitutional Breach On NASS’ Timidity

BY CHINYERE OBIORA – Former Governor of Rivers State, Rotimi Amaechi, has blamed the timidity of the National Assembly for President Bola Tinubu’s breach of the constitution in suspending Governor Siminalayi Fubara and declaring a state of emergency in the oil-rich State.

Describing the development as unfortunate and saddening, Amaechi expressed dismay over the ineffectiveness of the National Assembly in the matter, noting that the Red Chamber has continued to present itself as a weak institution that aided the president in instituting an illegal government.

The former Minister of Transportation, who spoke at the 9th Edition of Akinjide Adeosun Foundation (AAF), Annual Leadership Discourse in Lagos, with the theme: “Fearless Leadership: A Panacea for Sustainable Development”, challenged Nigerians to be proactive in reacting to poor governance

Amaechi also warned that docility was an enabler of bad leadership, adding, “Do you agree that there is nothing like a fearless leader and there is nothing like courageous leadership? Do you (Nigerians) need a courageous leader where the system works? Just push the button, and everything will give you the answer.

“It is only when there is a failed leadership that you begin to look at who is the courageous leader. There are different types of leadership traits, and fearless leadership is not one of them. There is the authoritarian leadership trait, which knows it all. Such leaders tell you what to do without consulting and expect you to obey.

“You can either have a fearless followership or a docile followership. Does Nigeria resonate here as per the docility of followership? Does it resonate here? Yes. Good governance is about constitutionality and the rule of law. It is also about the concept of the separation of powers. The absence of good governance and the rule of law breeds arbitrariness in governance. Arbitrariness here has to do with non-observance of the basic principles of law.

“For a governor or a president, who subscribes to such a concept, it is what he or she does that is law. It is not what is in the book that is the law. There is also the non-observance of the basic principles of law. This is where government is not by law, but by the whims and caprices of an individual leader. Like the current pronouncement of an illegal and unconstitutional state of emergency in Rivers State, aided by weak institutions like the National Assembly, which is very weak.

“What is even more alarming is that the breach in the situation is not even about the law. The president didn’t break any law. He broke the Constitution. Now, this breach of the Constitution is a breach of the sacredness and sanctity of the Constitution. The constitution of a country is the Bible of that country. And its sanctity must be protected. Can we say the same in Nigeria? The response would be a resounding no. The president looked at the whole of Nigeria and removed an elected governor in Rivers State and appointed a military man, yet the country continued, and nothing happened.

Meanwhile, in his remarks, the 2015 governorship candidate for the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Jimi Agbaje, however, said only an enabling environment would help in bringing about fearless leaders in Nigeria.

According to Agbaje, “Something happened yesterday where a whole state apparatus decided to leave their party for another. Is that fearless or fearful leadership? When you speak truth to power and your wife says: ‘small small, what is going to happen to us?’ What kind of environment are we creating to have fearless leaders?

“If I speak truth to power, my wife should know that in the worst case scenario, the children will go to school and that there will be health for them if they fall ill, not a situation where if you speak truth to power, health and education benefits would be withdrawn from your family.

“Sometimes, it is an enabling environment that would help us in bringing about fearless leaders. If you look at developed countries where they speak out, it is because they know that they will survive no matter what they say.”

Also speaking, the event’s convener, Akinjide Adeosun, said, “Our strategy at AAF is drawn from our mission of building great leaders. There needs to be a paradigm shift from bad to good, good to great, and great to excellent.

“The good behaviour of fearless leaders would stir the provision of good water, sustained availability of electricity, freedom from insecurity, and world-class industrialisation in an ecosystem. The bottom line is that the basic things of life will be assured.”