IFEANYICHUKWU AFUBA argues the need to hold our leaders accountable in an organised and consistent manner
It surely sounds radical to say that the legislature is not there, yet, in the Fourth Republic democracy. And this is not implying that the legislature was impactful in the first and second republics. The defence for the low performance of the Legislature is that it had always been a casualty at each turn of coups and counter coup; denying it the strength of cumulative growth and experience. However, after 25 years of unbroken democracy since 1999, this exoneration can no longer hold. Sadly, today, the situation has not changed. The average Nigerian barely knows that the Parliament exists. And this is not necessarily about being literate and informed. Even among educated Nigerians, there’s little consciousness about the contributions of the institution to the democratic order. Nigeria’s democracy struggles on, not because of the legislature, but in spite of the legislature. Has the legislature as an elected arm of government added value to governance in Nigeria? What return does Nigeria get for the fortune it spends on the federal and state parliaments? When our legislative houses go on their quarterly recesses, do Nigerians miss them? What can Nigerians do to make the Legislature responsive? Or will reforms give the institution the required push? What kind of reforms?
In the core area of parliamentary mandate, we see the third arm of government lagging behind on crucial issues of State. Yes, the federal and state legislatures have passed some Bills and amended some laws within their jurisdictions. But how important were these enactments? Besides the routine appropriation and supplementary appropriation Acts, could the bulk of the legislations be adjudged essential or appropriate for people – oriented development? This is a democratic dispensation – a long, hard – fought gain. An assessment of contributions of the legislature should centre around our democratic fortunes. And for the added reason that this arm of government is considered as the sanctuary of democratic culture. But as we all know, the grundnorm of this process, in this case the 1999 Constitution (amended) is a product of military coercion. The provisions of the Constitution were arbitrarily determined by a few dozen Nigerians and the ensuing document was never subjected to a referendum. In the face of this faulty foundation, the legislature was expected, as a matter of priority, to embark on remedial measures to produce a legitimate and popular Constitution.