Bishop Emmah Isong, Publicity Secretary of the Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria (PFN), has disclosed that though Nigeria has enjoyed uninterrupted democracy for 25 years, only about five per cent of Nigerians have enjoyed democratic dividends.
Isong made the assertion on Wednesday in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Calabar while reacting to the June 12 Democracy Day celebration in Nigeria.
It would be recalled that after a long spell of military dictatorship, Nigeria returned to democratic rule in 1999 and has had five democratically elected presidents since then.
The Publicity Secretary who doubles as the Presiding Bishop of Christian Central Chapel International (CCCI) said the five per cent that has enjoyed democracy in Nigeria are the politicians and those in the corridors of power.
He said although some of the Nigerian politicians have proven themselves to be different, the present democratic system in the nation favours the politicians, little wonder they are elected or appointed into office and they want to sit tight.
According to him, “The problem is not actually with democracy as a system of government but in the deterioration of morality and fear of God in the hearts of the leaders.
“Most Nigerian politicians who win elections today forget their manifestos immediately they take their oath of office.”
Speaking further, Isong said Nigeria needs a new kind of democracy with lots of constitutional adjustments and adaptability to suit its peculiar African culture.
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He said Nigeria cannot continue in a democracy where during elections, politicians arm thugs who go on rampage with weapons and people run into their houses to hide and at the end positions are filled with the worst Nigerians.
He alleged that many who get leadership positions in Nigeria are dropouts with forged certificates, the elections are rigged, the electoral umpires and judiciary are coerced and the security agencies are compromised.
“We must not deceive ourselves, the best Nigerians don’t go out during election days not to talk of contesting, it is the worst most hardened and corrupt of us that are emboldened and assimilated into the political system.
“Nigeria needs to go back to the report of the Sovereign National Conference of 2014 where all Nigerians came together to talk about issues like revenue sharing balance in region, equity, constitutional change and adopt its resolutions.
“If we must move forward as a nation, issues of equity and justice, immunity clause in our constitution among other issues need to be looked into or else we will continue to go around in a circle and not move forward,” Isong said. (NAN)
