#PantamiMustResign: The National Assembly and the Facade of Representation

By Ikem Godspower Ujene (M.Sc., CIArb, IFRA, JSN)

I want to start by clarifying that this article is themed solely on the confirmation role of the Nigerian national assembly and the scorecard thereof. It will be overly assuming to read it within the context of general legislative representation.

Sometime in 2017, one could recall how the 8th senate yet again refused the confirmation of the immediate sacked (oh sorry, past) chairman-nominee of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), basing its judgement on background security checks and the report of the Department of State Services (DSS). At that time, the gesture could only be termed mere political witch-hunt since we still basked in the euphoria of the arrival of our messiah. Unsubstantiated or otherwise, the man would vacate the office three years later wearing the full regalia of the same accusations for which he was denied confirmation by the Saraki-led senate. In fact, the many battles, executive confrontations and (non)verbal fisticuffs that the 8th assembly faced in the process of nominees’ confirmation and/or rejection were so glaring that even the blind saw it.

Fast forward to 2019, the election had been contested, won and lost (a charade that is not scoped in this writing), the 9th assembly had been sworn-in and principal officers had been chosen. This time, the contumacious stone of executive impediment (the christen of the 8th assembly) had been rolled away. However, two years after the birthing of the complaisant 9th assembly, it may seem that national representation has lost its shine and shin. This is because in climes that prioritize public accountability, the thoroughness exhibited by the legislature in carrying out background checks vis-a-vis confirmation of executive nominees is at best next to none. But then some things are achievable only in Nigeria (as I wrote somewhere else).

In the interim, there is an ongoing social media hash-tag that is trending coupled with public outcry of #PantamiMustResign. For the grasp of the newcomers, Dr. Sheikh Isa Pantami is Nigeria’s current honourable minister of communication and digital economy (one of the few ministries with direct and unflustered access to the entirety of Nigerians and their personal data). By way of religion, Dr. Pantami is a salafi Muslim who is known for his unreserved romance with Islamic Jihadism. His vocal support for Islamic extremism and fundamentalism not just in Nigeria but the world over could best be read in his direct sermons such as “oh God, give victory to the Taliban and to al-Qaeda", “jihad is an obligation for every single believer (Muslim), especially in Nigeria" etc. Let us not forget other instances where he bewailingly mourned the death of Islamic terrorism masterminds.

To curb curiousity, Nigeria is currently bedeviled by not just heightened Islamic terrorism but acute religious intolerance aggravated by religious sermons archetypal of the ones above. It is with bewilderment therefore and however questionable how people like Dr. Pantami are confirmed by the Nigeria national assembly to administer a country with such religious and ethnic volatility given their bias and unapologetic favour for one religion against the other.

How about the most recent confirmation of the immediate-past service chiefs as ambassadors? Against the grueling cries of the public occasioned by allegations of human rights violations, the nominees were confirmed by the national assembly. At this point, one could only rhetorically ask; should we blame it on financial impediments? Could it be the dearth of political will? Is it sheer oversight? Could it be lack of technical know-how? Or could it be mere negligence? Whatever the answer may be, the national assembly (especially the 9th assembly) had faultered for too long on the ground of hasty political confirmation and needs a (re)trace. The Nigerian public did not break a sweat in digging out the religiously fanatical past of Dr. Pantami when the need arose and they have shown efficacy in doing that over the years (see the case of Kemi Adeosun among others). Therefore, if with the many resources at the disposal of the national assembly, it cannot carry out a thorough background check on people nominated for public offices, I then guess Nigeria is yet to fulfill the precondition for take off (according to W. W. Rostow).

To proffer a solution in a case like this may be mistaken for teaching honourable members “how to do their job”. Nonetheless I will suggest that before legislative confirmation of executive nominees, there should be the public call of “the banns”. By so doing, people of questionable characters, religious and ethnic bigots, economic malfeasants and moral decadents would be exempt from holding public offices. But then, who is listening in Nigerian politics?