Senator Dahiru Kuta (PDP, Niger East), is the chairman of the Committee on Federal Character. He explained to journalists in Abuja recently the Committee's programme of action. According to him, attention will be focused on correcting the imbalance in location of Federal Government projects and gender discrimination in top civil service positions. JOHN-ABBA OGBODO was there. Excerpts:IS there any plan by the Committee to intervene on the issue of federal character in government organisations' The Senate President has stated strongly that our mandate requires a lot of work and that we are supposed to go to all government parastatals, agencies, ministries and departments, to ensure that they perform. We have had a lot of problems because many people felt marginalised and that they have not had the opportunity to aspire to the highest office in the land status. So, beginning with the Federal Character Commission (FCC), which is the main agency that we oversee, we will ensure that there is a balance. What we are preparing to do is to first, meet with the FCC and get details about the work of the commission. We also want to go round the country and see which of the agencies are functioning and which are not. We propose to see that they computerise their activities and by extension, ensure that all ministries and parastatals are computerised, particularly, their nominal roles. At any given time, we may break up into sub-committees to take cover the ministries, parastatals and agencies. We would go in there without notice to ask for staff list of ministries so that at least, from Salary Grade Level 08 and above, we will ensure that there is a balance. We would see the number of staff they have, what they require to ensure that each section of the country is carried along. The only innovation we are bringing in and we are going to be very particular about is the issue of gender. In appointment of officers, we would ensure that there is equitable distribution, especially as it affects women. We want women and the physically challenged to be well represented. Each group must be given a sense of belonging and the opportunity to take up appointments, where they are qualified. As we do that, we will go on to the second mandate of the Commission, which talks specifically about proportional distribution of infrastructural and socio-economic amenities in the country. We are going to involve the Ministry of Works. We want to find out how many of the roads and other amenities are in particular sections of the country, how many are being constructed in a particular part of the country, the amount of money involved at the stages of completion. We also will want to ensure that there is equity in the scope of roads constructed or else it will be injustice to be constructing 1000 kilometers of road in a zone and in another you have not been able to capture 200 kilometers. This is one of the committees in the heart of the FCC that believes that even the distribution of amenities must reflect federal character. Section 14:3, 14:4 of the 1999 Constitution implies that in whatever is done in this country, all sections must be positively represented.We have told them that we are not going to sit here and invite people; we would rather go to agencies and parastatals and see on the spot the problems and challenges before working out where we can come in. We are also going to have a pre-budget meeting with almost all the parastatals to see that they key in to the transformational agenda of the administration. We would look at how they have gone on with their budget, whether it is in consonance with the focus of the administration.Do the present security challenges feature in the programme of the committee' The security matter is hydra headed. You cannot talk of security without going to the root of the problem. One of the root causes is unemployment. Our university graduates are unemployed. But even when some are considered half-baked in terms of qualification, when they are employed, they can undergo training. We have a very good programme for the Niger Delta youths. They sent so many of them overseas for training but if the power problem is not fixed, how would you guarantee their self-reliance on their return' If they have nothing to do on their return, they will become a threat to the nation's security.So, when you talk about the security challenge and the level of corruption in the country, you hardly know from where to start. The unemployment that leads to insecurity is a very serious matter that anybody can hardly tell the direction to move. Now that people are talking about minimum wage, I think N18, 000 is still inadequate in Nigeria with the high cost of living. Under this situation, affected civil servants will look for avenues for survival. Even with the collapse of electricity, they would also want to live comfortably like their neighbours by buying a electric generating set out of their N18,000 monthly income. So, they will go out of their ways to look for money in their official capacity in order to make ends meet. When we put these together, there is no way we can get it right as far as security is concerned. The original idea of Boko Haram is that people are educated but when they come out of the university, they don't get work. Why should they acquire western education' Acquiring western education is waste of time; illegal and therefore haram (sin) but that is just the micro aspect of it. Generally speaking, people are using religion out of frustration to push home an idea that they could not get jobs after graduation and that they are frustrated. In the Niger Delta, what we asked was for about 10,000 people to be trained abroad for wielding. Up till now, they have not trained up to 1,000. Apart from N50,000 they get as allowance for the amnesty programme, they will use other means to survive.The other means might not be consistent with a civilised society. Anybody who says he is tackling this matter without going to the root is telling lies. Look at Suleja bombings; it was the first time the peace of Suleja was threatened. We were happy to have given two-third of what we have to the Federal Capital Territory on the promise that if we can give our land for the relocation of the federal capital, the Federal Government would dualise Suleja/Minna Road and take over provision of most of the social amenities. The population of Suleja is now 10 times the original population. Different kinds of people come there to settle and with unemployment, they came in contact with real frustration.Over 1 million people now share the water supply that was meant for about 47,000 people. The drainage system we have was for about 50,000 people but it is now over stretched by about 500,000. The Suleja hospital that was meant for about 37,000 people is not taking care of 500,000 people. Once you are not comfortable, you get frustrated, when you get frustrated you try your hand in other things whether positive or negative. That is the reason I believe that the people locally produced explosives used in Suleja.Why do you think that the issue of Federal Character is almost always associated with mediocrity' I said it at the inauguration that the federal character principle must be strictly adhered to without sacrificing merit and standards. According to the Senate President, there is nowhere in this country that we will not get people with the required qualifications for specific positions. So, we would ensure that we balance all appointments and in such a way that people are qualified to occupy that position.Comment on the present revenue formula The Federal Government is taking more than its fair share by taking 52 per cent. I think that the state should take 52 per cent, local councils about 25 percent while the Federal Government takes the balance. Most of the works are at the state level followed by the councils before the Federal Government comes in.How have you managed to strike a balance between radicalism and the sort of responsible politics you need to play in the Senate' Politics is our game. We travel to emancipate the masses. A civil servant cannot do what I am doing, which is to ensure full emancipation of the down trodden. That is why we are there. I can talk freely; go to the floor of the Senate to drive home my demand. In 1982, people said I was getting too active in politics while I was still a civil servant and that I should be posted from the Niger State Civil Service. They felt my work was becoming a centre for anti-government activities. The moment I heard that, I resigned my appointment and joined politics. Instead of going with the government of the day, I joined politics and went to the House of Assembly as a member of the All Nigerian Peoples Party (ANPP). If I was not in politics, I would not have got the chance to start fighting the government of the day and telling the people the ills of the government. So, anybody, who wants to be in politics, should be an activist. That is the best thing to do. As a civil servant, you can only be seen, you cannot be heard but in politics, you can be seen and heard. The struggle has been my life.
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