Former Governor of Anambra State, Mr. Peter Obi, has said Nigerians are yet to experience good leadership in the country because the country was not designed to succeed in the first place.
Obi who spoke as a guest lecturer at the 4th Adada Lecture organized by the Association of Nsukka Professors (ANP), at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN), said Nigerians have been made to believe that their problem is lack of good leadership, but in reality, no President no matter how good, will ever succeed because the whole system is faulty.
The Vice Presidential Candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the 2019 general election, however, said restructuring the country may enable give room for good leadership to emerge.
A statement from the media office of the former Anambra State Governor said he spoke on ‘Restructuring, Security Challenges and Development’ and noted that without restructuring the system fundamentally no effort can come out of the struggle for Presidency in 2023.
“All over the place people have been urging me to go for President in 2023, we will vote for you but I say to them, the vehicle called Nigeria has no brain box but people are talking of changing the driver only.
“What can a driver of a knocked engine or car with a faulty or no brain box do? Absolutely nothing until the vehicle goes for complete overhaul.”
He said those opposed to restructuring are ignorant of the benefits therein and would do everything to enable the unworkable status quo to remain.
Meanwhile a recent report by Global watchdog, Amnesty International, raised similar concerns, saying since the organization began its operations in Nigeria on June 1, 1967, nothing has really changed despite Transition to civilian government.
The rights organization made the disclosure on Thursday as it marked its diamond jubilee, and is away from its 54th anniversary of operating in Nigeria.
It said there has been countless rights violations in the country since it began taking records, and added that it could not tell the difference between military juntas and democratically-elected leadership in Nigeria because no leader for the past 50 years did enough to improve the wellbeing of the people.
The organization said Nigerians deserve to live with dignity and to enjoy the right to due process of law, but sadly, they have non of it as perpetrators of injustice are not prosecuted.
“From the days of military’s heavy-handed rule to the years of civil rule and up to today violation of human rights by both state actors and abuses by non-state actors continue to be matters of concern.
“Not much has changed about human rights in Nigeria since 1967 and the concerns remain flagrant disregard for human rights, failure of authorities to protect the people, threats to human rights, including the right to freedom of expression, suppression of dissenting voices and lack of accountability.
“The organisation will continue to insist that authorities respect the rights of everyone. People deserve to live with dignity and to enjoy the right to due process of law. Our research work from 1967 shows a pattern of disregard for human rights. This must change,” the report reads.