Azie proffers a way forward for Ndiigbo
· As he bags a coveted award in USA
Acho Orabuchi
Dallas, Texas
Friday, June 4, 2004
Nigeria, after five perfidious years of democracy, still faces a bleak future primarily because of the culture of corruption that has permeated the entire society. Amusingly, it is even more difficult to find a less corrupt public official in Abuja or to stumble on someone who is bold and willing to rattle the center than to find a dilapidated road in the entire country.
Chief Vincent Azie, the legendary auditor general
of the federation, who wrote and presented a report that indicted the three arms
of the government on corruption, received the coveted PNF USA Platinum award
recently in recognition of his integrity, transparency, probity, and impeccable
character in public service. The Igbo in the Diaspora recognized Chief Azie’s
boldness and outstanding—unparalleled—public service performance.
As a keynote speaker during the Pan Igbo Conferences, under the theme, ‘Realigning Our Economic Political and Socio-Cultural Agenda: A Panacea for Economic and Political Empowerment," Azie touched on numerous issues concerning Nigeria, particularly the Igbo. He began by paraphrasing a part of the objectives of PNF USA, which states, ‘Pan Ndi-Igbo Foundation is a platform for the Articulation, Development, Promotion and Protection of the common/political interests of Ndi Igbo in particular and Nigeria in general.’
Vin Azie proceeded to define the Igbo man in relation to location, language, and characteristics with both positive and negative aspects. He defined the Igbo positive characteristics as nationalistic, aggressive, enthusiastic, amiable, friendly, and reliable. Other positive characteristics of the Igbo he enunciated were: credible, trustworthy, extrovert, focused, risk seeker, patriotic, open minded, selfless, objective, firm, courageous, forthright, and dogged fighting spirit.
He pointed out that the Igbo negative characteristics lay in our gullibility, egocentrism, money minded, individualistic, and republicanism. These characteristics could also be found in our streaks of extremism in fraud, robbery, felony, and cheating. As a result, it is essential to stress or put the explanation and import of the word re-alignment in perspective.
Chief Azie stressed that Ndiigbo should realign in a manner to freely discuss, analyze, criticize, previous/current performance in each of the under listed areas to highlight failures, inefficiencies, personalized graft, lost opportunities, etc.
Economic
· Business horizon, opportunities, tactics, ethics
· Response to government policies deemed adverse e.g. import bans/restrictions on textile, used clothing, stockfish
· Infrastructure
· Federal presence in the Southeast viz industries
Political
· Governors
· Senators
· House of Representatives
· Igbo Presidency project
· Federal character principle
Socio-Cultural
· Town development unions
· Ohanaeze
· Pan Ndi-Igbo Foundation USA Inc.
Others
· Media (electronic/print)
· Governance
· Accountability including overview/experience as Federal Auditor-General
Chief Vincent Azie listed the following as the overriding impairments toward Igbo success:
1. Disillusionment and frustration occasioned by failure leading to lethargy on the part of prominent Ndiigbo already in good stead to continue any struggle.
2. Lack of enthusiasm by the frontline movers / participators arising from apprehension that the resultant prime benefit may not eventually be theirs personally.
3. Potential threat to life, limb and property from constitutional authority
4. Perception of hopelessness arising from lack of firm support base or even a shoulder to lean upon to continue the pursuit of a just cause.
5. Subterranean understanding geared towards excluding the Igbo from attaining the peak of a political or economic pursuit.
6. Lack of a strong, supportive, dedicated pressure group.
7. The perception of the Igbo person by other compatriots is an ad-mixture of admiration and awe. These instigate them at every pedestal to strive for a head start even before the Igbo becomes conscious that he is being viewed as a threat.
8. The Igbo as at now undeniably have the least efficient strategy for group empowerment and pay no commendable attention to cultivating effective diplomacy.
9. Informal interpersonal contact is highly stratified and restricted thereby limiting timely access to valuable, sensitive information that may prove useful to those in positions of authority.
10. The adverse consequences of an ill-prepared and/or selectively executed national budget.
THE WAY FORWARD:
Azie proffered the following solutions to our lingering problems:
1. Remain unshakably focused on the objectives desired and pursue them with the greatest vigour.
2. Business Moguls/top flight industrialists should pull their capital and human resources in any form of arrangement that would push them to the apex of the key sectors of the economy.
3. There should be a shift away from the molecular (one-man) business enterprises which, render the entrepreneurs insignificant and therefore victims of any irrational economic policy.
4. The rules governing fair competition should be allowed to hold sway in any operating business environment, so that only viable units can survive. Any sinister manner or unorthodox method employed to eliminate competition should not be tolerated.
5. Any political platform on ground including its machinery/organs should be re-assessed, revitalized and generously funded to reinvigorate its modus operandi cum efficiency towards attaining the desired goal.
6. We shall mellow our republican tendencies (posture) so that an adopted political shelter would be able to accommodate very many thereby guaranteeing the numerical strength necessary for achieving success in a democracy.
7. Every individual should re-appraise his egocentric characteristic using the principle of ranking and rating to convince himself as to when to bow to a superior profile. This will ease the emergence of the best candidate for a political/executive position.
8. Each Igbo man / woman should strive to sustain the already flourishing inter-personal relationship cultivated over the years thereby oiling the trust that Nigerians from other tribes have in us as a people which could be converted to advantage at any opportune time.
9. We should not hesitate to seek legal redress (whether as individuals or state governments/socio-cultural organization acting on our behalf) for any constitutional breach(es), which would have adverse effect on our people.
10. The engineering media (both electronic and print) should be quick in exposing / attacking glaring cases of injustice, inequity and lack of fair-play in the polity pointing out that right ideals if sustained, remain sine-qua-non to peace and peaceful co-existence between the multi-ethnic nationalities in a united Federal Republic of Nigeria.
11. Caveat: People who control the instruments of state power must behave rationally and responsibly, keeping the machinery of governance functioning in the best interest of the citizenry while ensuring that equity and fair-play prevail even in circumstances where they have vested interests.
12. Even if the strategy proves to be right, patience should be exercised.
Chief Azie, former auditor general of Nigeria, used his keynote speech to beckon on the Igbo to mitigate their republicanism inkling, individualism, and dishonesty in order to achieve their political and economic strength in Nigeria, including accomplishing their 2007 political objectives. He emphasized that the Igbo should realign in many fronts and pursue a consensus agenda for posterity.