We must domesticate our own democracy to suit our peculiarities and let us as citizens be patriotic ~HRM Oba Hammed Adekunle Oyelude Makama
“If our kits and kin in the north do not want beer or alcohol to be sold in their place then they shouldn’t share from VATs derived from it”
My names are HRM Oba Hameed Adekunle Makama Oyelude, Tegbosun III
The Olowu of Owu Kuta, chairman supreme council of Owu Obas and chiefs.
I hail from Owu Kuta Osun state. As you are aware, ours is aristocratic from generations to generations, a stranger does not aspire nor ascend the throne anywhere in Yorubaland so my fore-fathers founded Owu Kuta, I’m married, polygamous and blessed with kids.
Q: Looking from where it begun how has your experience being since ascending the throne of your fathers almost ten years ago?
A: Thank you very much, mine is divine not designed, I’m a direct descendant that is why I am Tegbosun III, Tegbosun the first was my great grandfather father who ruled, Oyelude Alabi Alagbon Obi my grandfather also ruled, and providence has thrown the throne on me so I’m a direct descendant which isn’t common in the Southwest, God has prepared me spiritually,materially for the throne, it has been a smooth sail all the way.
Q: What are the unexpected responsibilities you came across after ascending your throne?
A: The unexpected responsibilities, I used to hear that the community in the days of my fore-bearers fend for the Monarch but gone are those days, a Yoruba proverb says ‘somi laagbo lafin a ki gbo geru mi but in my own case gberu mi la ngbo laafin Olowu Kuta so those are the unexpected, rather than the community looking after the Oluwu of Kuta I have been looking after the community, so rather than the community looking over the monarch the monarch has been looking after the community.
Q: What are your assessment of Nigeria political scene since independence?
A: As you are aware we are not supposed to be politicians but we are all political actors, my assessment of Nigeria.political scene since independence is that we have not been fairing well, in many aspects we have not been fairing well because we don’t have politics of ideology any longer, you can belong to party A in the morning and in the evening if it doesn’t suit you anymore you join party B so no more ideology.
Q: What are your political assessment since Nigeria democracy?
A: Our democratic system is still evolving, we are evolving and we are trying new things and I think we have successfully seen the military remain in the Barack, despite our shortcomings and major incidents that could have led to military take over occurring in recent times but they did not, we appreciate them for that, I can rightly say that we are getting matured democratically Q: How do you assess the current political dispensation especially your opinion on the current President, Vice,National assembly, the economy and security of the nation?
A: I would rather want to talk about the security of the country, the president of the nation been a former ruler tried his possible best and he is still trying his possible best but what is happening now security wise, Nigeria is not in isolation, it is a global phenomenon, what happened in Libya the spill over the effect is what we are seeing, what affected Southern Sudan the spill over is what we are seeing, what happened in Syria the spill over is what we are seeing, so our politicians should be God fearing, and separate politics from security, the chaos, is not entirely new; we overcame civil war, we shall overcome this too.
Q: What are the peculiarities of the country Nigeria in your opinion?
Do you think Nigeria is practicing the right type of political system for its peculiarity considering the people’s history, culture and traditions?
A: Nigeria is different, we have diverse opinion, diverse region and we should not always try to practice the democratic norms the way America practice it even though it is the American system that we are practicing, we must domesticate our own democracy to suit our peculiarities and let us as citizens be patriotic enough to defend the interest of our country, it is not everything that we will call outsiders to come and do for us, look at what happened in Capitol Hill, it is was an eye-opener, when it happened that the former President of America called his mob followers to move to Capitol Hill and unleash mayhem, all social media banned him inciting, the guards took over the Capitol to Protect it etc. But if that had happened in Nigeria we will be told it’s their fundamental right to unleash mayhem, they will even create hashtag, create go-fund-me for the perpetrators. No outsider will come and mend this country for us but ourselves, we should remain patriotic.
Q: Between the 1920s and 1960s,Traditional Rulers were very influential and in charge of the Native Authority Administration. The Nigerian First Republic Regional Governments had bi-camera legislative arrangement with the Houses of Chiefs serving as the upper chambers to those of the elected Houses of Assemblies. The Sultan of Sokoto, His Eminence Muhammad Sa’ad Abubakar III,represented by the Etsu Nupe Local Government Reform Decrees.This is even as they presented a memorandum on their request to the Senate Committee on the review of the 1999 Constitution in Abuja. What is your take on that HRM?
A: Gone are those when we had powerful traditional rulers, we nolonger have powerful traditional rulers, what we have now are influential traditional rulers, because the colonial masters took away majority of powers of the traditional rulers and later our first republic politicians took the rest, traditional rulers are like toothless bull dogs, they have no mention in the constitution of this country but we are the first line in charge locally. Also gone are those days when Nigeria was peaceful, we took advantage of our diversity back then unlike today with so much divisiveness but I think some of our elders, the traditional institutions like the Ooni, the Sultan, others and the council of the traditional rulers presented a memo of late to the National Assembly to fashion out constitutional role for traditional rulers,if that is done in good fate, it is a good move, the timing is right and ripe if the National Assembly can exurburate patriotic zeal and consider giving the traditional rulers constitutional role, this will be one of the best achievements of this administration, because posterity will record them in the better part of history. I think insecurity in the country will be a thing of the past. Every security threat is local to a large extent.
Q: In which aspect do you think Nigeria need improvement and what are the positive changes you personally want to see in Nigeria going forward?
A: One I have a pro-establishment Monarch I don’t believe in divisive Nigeria, I believe in United Nigeria, whoever is calling for war has never seen war.
Two, I wish we have devolution of power, the concentration of power at the center is too much, we should rather have devolution of power.
Ditto: when you talk of Federation account, federal should not take the larger part, what is federal doing with it, state and local should have the largest share. If our kits and kin in the north do not want beer or alcohol to be sold in their place then they shouldn’t share from VATs derived from it and even pork, they should not, if OPC is not legally authorized to arrest bandits the Hisbah should not be authorized to arrest anyone that violates any sessional or regional law, true federalism should be enforced.
