A combination of military and civilian misrule has brought Nigeria to this sordid pass, ex-federal commissoner of Information and Culture Major Gen Ibrahim Haruna (rtd) has said.
Gen Haruna painted a grim picture of the north, saying that “the situation in the northern part of the country is challenging.”
The civil war general told reporters in Ilorin, Kwara state capital on the sidelines of gulf tournament organised by friends and associates to commemorate the retirement of Appeal Court Judge, Justice Mudasiru Oniyangi.
Said Gen Haruna: “Nigeria has not had true military rule neither has it had true democracy. A combination of both military and civilian misrule has brought the country to where we are currently are. If democracy had succeeded, we would not have banditry and insurgency in the north. We would not have unknown gunmen in the east. We will not have public officers conniving to steal N80 billion.
“What we are judging today is the failures and successes combined of previous administrations, but our fear today is that we should not topple the good we have earned and replace it with the one that we don’t know that is coming.”
On the situation in the north, the retried general added that “we have created the insecurity we are facing in the north. Based on the fact that we have not succeeded in creating those values that will inspire our growing population of poor and disadvantaged people.
“The hopelessness is challenging and calls for objective and patriotic leadership and a change of mind. We should work for a system we can trust. A system that will be managed by people we can trust; a system that will enable us to trust one another because a better and United country starts with the people.
“Our children in the north don’t seem to ambition. It is disappointing because 60 years ago or thereabouts we had leaders who had ambition; leaders who wanted to free us through nationalism, from colonialism. But succeeding that we did not seem to have pursued some positive policies that will get us together as having common objectives and values.”