A chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party in Kwara State, Mr. Kale Belgore, speaks on national issues in this interview with SUCCESS NWOGU
How do you view President Goodluck Jonathan’s conferment of a national honour on the designer of Nigeria’s flag, Mr. Taiwo Akinkunmi?
It is good to reward contribution to national development in any way. The flag is a symbol of our nation and sovereignty. The man who designed the national symbol should be honoured. We also need to let the people know that you don’t have to be rich or be a politician for your contributions to be acknowledged and no matter how long it takes, the nation will acknowledge any contribution to its development. I really appreciate that gesture. It gives room and hope for Nigerians in all spheres of human endeavour that whatever they contribute to the country, no matter how big or little, the nation will acknowledge it. It is a good thing.
What is your reaction to the perception that Jonathan’s administration has not been seriously fighting corruption?
Tackling corruption has to involve all tiers of government; it has to involve local, state and the federal governments. The Federal Government is one arm of the government. We have 774 local governments, 36 states and the federal capital territory. I think if we put much emphasis on what the Federal Government can do or did not do; it may not be the right approach. If we put the right structures on ground, we would be able to minimise corruption. We should also put a lot of emphasis on preventing corruption. No matter how one person tries, the enormity of corruption in Nigeria is so high. Yes we can set standards, but if we want to reduce or curb corruption in this country, we have to find ways to prevent it. That is why I always emphasise on system-building. When the right system is put in place, then it makes it easier for things to work. When the right system is in place, it makes it difficult for corruption to thrive. It makes it difficult for wrong people to get into right places.
Building institutions is much more than the activity of one person. We have seen what certain people did when they were in government because as individuals they did a lot but as soon as their tenures expired, because the system is not prepared for change or for normal development to occur, we got back into haphazard life. Also the institutions to fight corruption, the police, the Independent Corrupt and other Related Offences Commission, and the Economic and Financial Crimes Corruption have, to a reasonable extent, been autonomous. I have not heard any of them saying that the President has interfered in its activities. If we build institutions and they do the right thing, we do not need the President to be directly involved in the fight against graft.
So are you satisfied with the level of development and progress in the state?
The day I am satisfied with the political developments in the state, I will withdraw my participation in politics because I would have no use. The local government administration has not been effective as it should be. I intend to make the local government much more effective. I intend to make the council chairmen persons that are qualified to even be the governor because if we run the local government administration well, there would be less pressure at the state level.
Also at the state level, the gap that exists between the government and the people has to be bridged. Government has to be demystified. It has to be seen to be part of the people and vice-versa.
People have said that the Federal Government has not been decisive in the fight against terror and insecurity?
I will take you back to my position on building institutions. The security network we have in Nigeria has performed creditably well at international levels, but what we have on the ground now is a different thing from what we used to have. An international terrorism is not a fight of one country. It is a multinational fight. At the beginning, the interpretation was that it was a local problem, but now it has been discovered that it has an international dimension. Since that discovery, I think the approach has been better and that is why you see better collaboration among neighbouring countries. A lot of successes have been recorded. I believe that we will soon get over it. With the approach the Federal Government has put in place now and the collaboration with neighbouring countries, we will get over it.
How do you view President Goodluck Jonathan’s conferment of a national honour on the designer of Nigeria’s flag, Mr. Taiwo Akinkunmi?
It is good to reward contribution to national development in any way. The flag is a symbol of our nation and sovereignty. The man who designed the national symbol should be honoured. We also need to let the people know that you don’t have to be rich or be a politician for your contributions to be acknowledged and no matter how long it takes, the nation will acknowledge any contribution to its development. I really appreciate that gesture. It gives room and hope for Nigerians in all spheres of human endeavour that whatever they contribute to the country, no matter how big or little, the nation will acknowledge it. It is a good thing.
What is your reaction to the perception that Jonathan’s administration has not been seriously fighting corruption?
Tackling corruption has to involve all tiers of government; it has to involve local, state and the federal governments. The Federal Government is one arm of the government. We have 774 local governments, 36 states and the federal capital territory. I think if we put much emphasis on what the Federal Government can do or did not do; it may not be the right approach. If we put the right structures on ground, we would be able to minimise corruption. We should also put a lot of emphasis on preventing corruption. No matter how one person tries, the enormity of corruption in Nigeria is so high. Yes we can set standards, but if we want to reduce or curb corruption in this country, we have to find ways to prevent it. That is why I always emphasise on system-building. When the right system is put in place, then it makes it easier for things to work. When the right system is in place, it makes it difficult for corruption to thrive. It makes it difficult for wrong people to get into right places.
Building institutions is much more than the activity of one person. We have seen what certain people did when they were in government because as individuals they did a lot but as soon as their tenures expired, because the system is not prepared for change or for normal development to occur, we got back into haphazard life. Also the institutions to fight corruption, the police, the Independent Corrupt and other Related Offences Commission, and the Economic and Financial Crimes Corruption have, to a reasonable extent, been autonomous. I have not heard any of them saying that the President has interfered in its activities. If we build institutions and they do the right thing, we do not need the President to be directly involved in the fight against graft.
So are you satisfied with the level of development and progress in the state?
The day I am satisfied with the political developments in the state, I will withdraw my participation in politics because I would have no use. The local government administration has not been effective as it should be. I intend to make the local government much more effective. I intend to make the council chairmen persons that are qualified to even be the governor because if we run the local government administration well, there would be less pressure at the state level.
Also at the state level, the gap that exists between the government and the people has to be bridged. Government has to be demystified. It has to be seen to be part of the people and vice-versa.
People have said that the Federal Government has not been decisive in the fight against terror and insecurity?
I will take you back to my position on building institutions. The security network we have in Nigeria has performed creditably well at international levels, but what we have on the ground now is a different thing from what we used to have. An international terrorism is not a fight of one country. It is a multinational fight. At the beginning, the interpretation was that it was a local problem, but now it has been discovered that it has an international dimension. Since that discovery, I think the approach has been better and that is why you see better collaboration among neighbouring countries. A lot of successes have been recorded. I believe that we will soon get over it. With the approach the Federal Government has put in place now and the collaboration with neighbouring countries, we will get over it.
The Punch
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