Daniel Richard
The name, Daniel Richard, is not new in the Nigerian media.However, he has remained an enigma to many who have come across him. It is widely held that he commands respect from top politicians, businessmen an security authorities. In this interview with DailyPost, Richard has revealed that he is not a card carrying member of any political party. Maina Maina sent in excerpts:
Q: Six months to the next round of politicking, nothing seems to be happening, candidates do not seem to be coming up, and at the national level, it ends at the realms of speculations. What do you foresee for Nigeria in 2015 elections?
A: , I want to first of all tell you that, god-fatherism politics is very unfortunate. In fact, it is what has killed politics in the country. It is what has killed democracy, because now, every politician is waiting for his godfather before he or she can make a move. 2015 is around the corner and 2015 would be by next week, next month or by next year, but I think what you did not realize is that last week there was a stakeholders meeting that was held by PDP elected officials, governors and members of National Assemblies, and a gentleman from Sokoto PDP raised a motion, endorsing Jonathan for a re-election. I think it was accepted by the whole elected officials; that is one, which means PDP has already taken a position. They have said, Jonathan will contest the coming election.
But critically, unless we change from this position of godfatherism politics, we can not go anywhere. I do know that, there are people who printed their posters and hide them in their houses waiting for their godfathers to give the go ahead; and like I said, this is a very dangerous trend. That is why since 1999 to date, hardly have we seen a politician and elected official that concluded without going to court. It always end in court or a tribunal. Now, if you take a statistics of the class of politicians of recent, the class of 2007 to 2014, surprisingly, 89 percent of them all go through the court to get their mandates. In the class of 1999 and 2003, we had 94 percent, the second class was 91 percent. The best that we have so far now is this 89 percent. Each and every elected official that I know in this country go through it through the court process, which means there is no future for democracy in Nigeria as far as I am concerned. As I am talking here now, I am not a member of any political party, I don’t have to register and I am not a card carrying member of any political party. I now follow candidates, because it is a futile exercise for you to say ok. I mean look at the current dispensation, somebody that ran election on a platform of a party would one day wake up to join the other side. We are running a very dangerous politics.
I was in the US and somebody was saying we have democracy in Nigeria, and I said, no, we are having civilian government in Nigeria. We are not doing democracy for now. I do not feel that since 1999 to date, a Nigerian can tell you that he is under a democratic dispensation. He is under a civilian rule, it is not military but civilian rule. This is a country that, from counselor, state House of Assembly to the governors, national and the presidency, everybody is just printing posters to go and get five votes and head to court or tribunal.
Q: You are not a politician, but I know most of your friends to be politicians, and they are you saying that, you do not believe in them and you do not believe in what they are doing as they they do not offer any future to this country?
A: I said it here, I said, I am not a politician, I am not a card carrying member of any political party.
Q: But they are your friends.
A: Yes. Friendship is different but when they are at their political meetings or when they are at their political rallies, you don’t see me there. But when they finish, we are together. That is friendship, and I have friends all over. I have them in the Police, Military, politics and in Business environment. I am not saying this base on what I have seen but based on my own understanding of politics.Politics normally should be run based on idea. It is your own idea and my idea that would form what should be our position. If politics is not driven by ideas, it is not politics. For me, it is just a business and I do not have the capacity to do that kind of business. I do not have the capacity to go and gather people to tell them a story, they elect me in PDP and tomorrow I am in APC. I do not have that capacity, that is why I did not even bother to join any political party. But of course, they are my friends.
Q: With the trend of impeachments in the polity and PDP’s continuous effort to unseat decamped Governors, is it likely that the fear of people that we are going to have a one party state coming to pass?
A: You see, you don’t seemed to realise that in the same political party, they oppose each other. There is internal opposition within the same political party. But importantly like I said, they were talking that Nyako was impeached and that whether it is democracy or no democracy, and I asked them on how Nyako even emerged as governor in the first place. If a governor emerge through a court process and got thrown out the same way, it is nothing like impeachment because the way he came is the way he was thrown out. I think Nyako himself has gone to the Supreme Court three times in six years, so, I ask the Adamawa people, I said did Nyako get the governorship of your state through a democratic process, and the answer is No. So, when you are talking of impeachment, it’s a different thing. In this case, the way they came is the way they left. I do know that PDP themselves are even their own enemies, they have been fighting within the PDP hierarchy as well as within the APC hierarchy. So, why do you even bother to know whether due process or democracy is followed? What I am saying is that, a democracy or a party structure that is not driven by idea are just organisation. They are like organised crime and not a political party where everybody will hatch his own plot on how to put this or remove that. I think we should begin to think beyond this idea of democracy we are practicing in Nigeria.
Look at PDP since 1999 all their candidates are appointees now if you are appointed and somebody remove you, do you called that an impeachment? After all, it is appointment that you got and the man that appoint you can remove you. If the President or any of the governors can remove the party chairman of his state, it is because they appoint them. I cannot appoint you and you go against me. You see, what is happening in PDP for instance, every chairman that came and they remove him, they have where they will take him to. Railway now has become the final bus stop of former PDP chairmen. At least, I understand by now that four of them have been there. A political party thrives on appointment, not by election, that thrives on exclusion not inclusion. PDP is just doing what they are doing because they have the muscles and they just take what they want. APC too can do the same if they have the muscles, so, this is nothing.
For example, like I told you what happened in Adamawa is not an impeachment, the governor came through a process and left through the same way, you can not call that an impeachment. I am from Adamawa state, I know that he was not elected, at least I did not elect him because I know I did not elect him. I also know that the people in Garkida did not elect him. After the whole count, we knew that, we did not elect him but he emerged as governor. The people challenged that election and they went to the Supreme Court, finally, whether he has good lawyers and he was able to fight his way, he became governor, so the departure is the way he came.
Q: Now on the issue of insecurity in the northeast region, particularly, there is the tendency that given the activities of these insurgency in some communities, certain political activities may not take place. Do you foresee the possibility of holding election in any of these communities?
A: How did we arrive here? I keep asking the question. You did not plant a good seed, then at the end of harvest, you want to harvest a good fruit, the question is how did we arrive at where we are now? What were the things that we did that we arrived at this point? This is a complete sustained misrule. This is a sustained short-change of people that subsequently resulted into this difficult situation. If you look at what is happening, for me, I predict that we would end up where we are now because there was nothing we have done right that . Is it not in the same country that we have OPC? We have Mend? We have southern People Assembly? So, the question is why wouldn’t the other side do their own? It is a trend! This thing started and everybody was looking at the other side, now it has caught up and is catching fire widely and people are now surprised. Why are they so surprised? What did we do right? Appointment is made by either religious inclination, tribal sentiment and in a society like this, you say you want security? How are you going to talk about security when you short change me? If I have the capacity to take arms, I will take arms against you for short-changing me. You take the national cake and you give one person and refuse the other, a governor takes his state wealth and he gives certain people while refusing the others and you are talking about insecurity? What insecurity? And like I said time and again, we are now talking aout Boko Haram. This Boko Haram they said were young people that found their ways into the polytechnic or University and they can’t get a job. Now if it is true, the issue was that they don’t have opportunity. I think the least response the government would do is to say okay, fine, instead of all this money we are spending buying arms, we should put this money into job creation.
If you know the sum total of money that is spent on these so called kangaroo insecurity, if you want to pay every graduate at least N40,000 to N50,000, it will round for up to ten years. It can pay graduates N40,000 to N50,000 doing nothing for up to ten years. For example, if you create one million jobs in Borno state, where are you going to get one million graduates? But no, we are using the money to buy arms. I don’t agree that citizens will just take arms against his own fellow citizens just for the purpose of being outlawed. I think something must have hurt these young people and I believe there is a way we can do this thing other than the way we are going about it.
Recently I heard that, they are going to spend N150 billion on insecurity. one hundred and fifty billion Naira is a lot of money! If you put N150 billion in the northeast sub-region alone and say you are creating job, I don not think there will be any young man that will say he will go and live in the bush, carrying arms to go and kill. That would not happen, but this is Nigeria. It is unfortunate that our government will borrow N150 billion to buy arms against its own people. N150 billion, call any labour institution and ask them to design job for young people with N150 billion, I can guarantee you that before Christmas, there would not be one young man remaining in the bush fighting anybody but this is Nigerian, because somebody has interest. There are people that have interest in this so that this N150 billion, you would see how they would share it. People will carry this money and this thing will continue. And I can tell you that this is just a fraction of what had been going on. Nobody has a budget now on this insurgency, and we know that, even the develop world are very conscious to the issues of youths. So, they always have a window to solving the issues of youths. But in this country, N150 billion, everybody is thinking of how to get his own share but if you put these into road network, and provide social service in the northeast for example, and I see if there is one person that will remain in the forest.
Q: what you are saying sir, that the situation in the northeast is a creation of misgovernance rather than the attitude of these youngmen that are involve in this activities. What would say to the attitude of our leaders to the assistance that came from the Federal government or to fellow leaders in terms of collaborating to resolving this crises?
A: I said it already, I said is misrule. It is the misapplication of national or state wealth that few individuals have decided to convert to their pocket. If governments are sincere, and if job is the issue, a sincere government will do everything to provide jobs and say okay, lay down your arms, job is provided or we are preparing to create jobs, but please lay down your arms. Every month, we would give you N20,000 each as sustenance allowance before the jobs are created. I mean like I said, there is systematic decay of infrastructure in the northeast, it is the worst region in the country. Now, if government say, okay, fine, all the roads would be fixed, all the schools and hospital would be renovated and so on, you will definitely generate a million and a half jobs for the people. But I did not see such coming with N150 billion because the governors are beginning to make moves on how to get their shares from it already.
The issue of insecurity and this Boko Haram is the biggest scam that will go on and on because it is the conduit for most of these governors and leaders to continue to enrich their pockets. This insurgency is the biggest scam in the history of Nigeria, if there is any scam in this country, the Boko Haram is the mother of all scam now, if anybody has been a scammer in this country, Boko Haram is the godfather of all scams. Everybody is ‘chopping’ from it. We have a detachment in Garkida, and I have seen and I have talked to them and I know exactly which page they are in containing this scam. I have seen where even the right things they are supposed to get, they are not getting it. Even the arms they are suppose to be given they don’t get, so, this is the biggest, in fact, we have scam before but this is the biggest. This is the mother of all scam, and everybody is partaking in it. In fact, people like me are at least complaining now, I wish I were a governor now in the northeast zone. This is the first time I wish I was a governor now because I would have made a lot of money. In fact, the governors are making it, and nobod making this kind of free money would want to end the insurgency, a conduit that is pumping money free into his pocket. This thing, as long as it continues, will continue for ever.
Q: Now in Adamawa state, some government officials are being accused of corruption and detained by the EFCC. In Borno state, some eight Commissioners and top government officials have been invited and questioned, many more may be coming, Yobe is on the line, Nassarawa is on the queue, and several other states, there has been allegation of fraud to which the Federal government is planning to crop as a way of fighting corruption. Do you think the Federal government has the capacity to correct this scam that you talk about in name of Boko Haram?
A: I don’t know if you know the history of Mafia. You know Mafia has stages from boy to the ‘Oga’, which is the Capon. The Capon is the ‘Oga kpatakpata’ in the business. If you arrest a Commissioner who is answerable to a governor for instance, and you tell me that Commissioner has stolen five hundred million, I laugh, because they can only arrest them to spend a weekend and they are released. Arrest the Capon first! Don’t carry the small boy, who is only answering his masters call. You know and I know that what is happening in the states. Carry the Capon first if you want to get to the bottom of the thing. But, nobody is doing that. I have said it in an interview in London, if you stop corruption in Nigeria, this country will collapse. This Nigeria as you see, like the light you are seeing now, if you switch it off, and by tomorrow morning, there is no corruption, Nigeria will collapse, because the whole structure, the whole fabric is decay. So, all these things you are seeing is just a way of pushing it further. Corruption in Nigeria is our way of life, and if anybody tells you that there is no corruption, it is like telling you that there is no Nigeria. I want to be a Nigerian, therefore, let corruption thrives, let corruption continue, we will get to a point like I said. This Boko Haram started long time ago and we thought it was a joke, now, we know it is not a joke. So, don’t stop corruption my brother, this corruption is good for this country. I don’t want to discuss that matter because for me, it’s a very sensitive issue. You cannot stop that, I think we can even go further to legaleize it because this corruption is part of our life. I don’t believe that, Nigeria is fighting corruption, or are you telling me that they are fighting themselves? Nobody will fight himself. If you see somebody fighting corruption, maybe they are going to come from somewhere but not from this country.
Q: You have spoken a lot about leadership. You have not said much about the followership. What last word would you have for fellow Nigerians.
A: first there is sustained decline of qualities of leaders.You see, we have seen from the first leaders, we maybe young, but we heard stories about our first founding leaders. I see their nature of competition. When the regions were expanding, the competition was very calculative. By the time Chief Obafemi Awolowo finished a radio station, I remember in 1958, by 1962, Sir Ahmadu Bello (Sardauna) ensured that radio Kaduna was also on air. By the time they finished the University of Ibadan, ABU Zaria was already on ground and when they built Cocoa House, we built NDDC, they built Premier Hotel and we built Hamdala, so, it was healthy competition and it was good, not these clowns now parading themselves as our so called leaders. The competition now is who is going to steal the highest amount of money or which governor or which minister has stolen N10 billion or N20 billion. That is the competition now, if the governor of Yobe for example goes to their meeting and said I have stolen N10billion, they would laugh at him and say, you are still stealing N10billion when this guy here is talking about N50 billion.
We are now talking about the governor of Adamawa state, they are saying, oh, if you go to Abuja, he has bought a house of N900 million and if you go to this and that, he has this and that. By the time we have finished counting as we are collecting what he has stolen now, if I discover that he has stolen less than N50 billion, I will be so disappointed, because I want him to excel, I want my governor to excel and be the best governor that has stolen more money than any other governor because we are collecting the money now like I said. So, you see, there has been a sustained decline on the qualities of leaders a society normally have, but with all the calculations and miscalculations and finally he found himself there, and people are having expectations. How can you have expectation from somebody who is not prepared to lead you?
We all saw how our President becomes President, we are all having expectations, the thing is did you participate in bringing him?No, now that, he has emerged, did you go and offer credible advise? No, so, why are you expecting to be good. So, what I am saying is that the quality of leadership has gone down. People that are holding offices of public trust either as chairmen or governors, they could not have become counsellors thirty-five years, forty years ago. Their quality could not have fit into a counsellor thirty-five years ago. If you know how our DOs and Secretaries are before, their worth or class are higher than a governor of a state. The way he conduct himself, the little resources he can dispense and what he can put on the ground, you can not compare to what is happening today.
Nothing is wrong with Nigeria, but it is the quality of leaders that has gone down. Everything then was about quality but the office holders today have no quality and so everything has gone down. We are not looking at it, we are not taking congnisance that it is the quality of leaders we have now that has gone down. It is not about the psyche or the mentality of the people. You can not be leading me, and you are supposed to be thinking for me and expect that I do the thinking myself. These are what is expected of a leader to think and to lead, but when you are leading me, it is for me to follow. When as a leader you take the wrong road, it is not my business to tell you that we are lost, my business is to follow. So, it’s better to make an emphasis that the quality of our leaders has gone down to the level where we are now.
Q: You did mention Borno state, but I am aware that you also contributed to the processes that brought in the governor and you are saying today that he has failed to meet up the expectation of his people. Don’t you see that, there is contradiction here?
A: You know what I told you about godfatherism. I will tell you that, Ali Modu Sheriff should be held responsible because he is the culprit. Like I said in Yola, I said, Adamawa people should hold Atiku Abubakar responsible for their plight in politics, he brought this one and this one brought that one and we ended up where we are now. Now, if Ali Sheriff has opened the political landscape in Borno state and insists that due process should be followed, Borno people wouldn’t have ended up today with this disappointment. But that time he was busy pursuing his own agenda by trying to impose somebody of his own choice. That was what happened and eventually Kashim Shettima emerged. When Kashim Shettima was brought, I did not have time to scrutinize him looking at his background as a youngman, Iwent against my candidate from the southern Borno thinking he (Kashim Shettima) was going to make a good leader. I saw qualities which Iiked, I am not a magician and there is no way I would have read his own mind.
Q: Now do you regret, what you have done?
A: It is not a matter of regret. I told you clearly that, I had a presentation. When you are talking of regret, it is not a matter. I can talk to my community and everybody would understand my position. I told you I was looking at supporting the younger generation when I decided to support him (Kashim Shettima), I believe that was a good judgement at that time, you can’t fault me on that chapter for us to open a new one.
Q: There is the clamour for power to shift to Southern Borno. Do you see any hope of producing a governor from the Southern Borno?
A: When people tell me, power shift, I do not understand it. I have not seen where power shifted by talking. Power will shift if you want it to shift. But the only way power will shift is when you that was saying you have been shortchange decide to stick your neck, take your cross and fight your course. Le’st give you a classical scenario, the Southern Borno has about nine local government, now predominantly they are Burah speaking people, Garkida is just a ward in Adamawa state, and they too are Burah speaking people. In that one ward. they have produced members of House of Representatives, Senators, Governors and Presidential Aspirant as well as Chief of Airstaff. This is one ward. Today, a Burah man in Garkida can go and print posters and run for the President of Nigeria. Daura Birman did it at one point. Our biggest disappointment is this Southern Borno Burah people, I am so disappointed and there are times sometimes I even disown them because they have not represent the Burah people. The image of Burah people is so dented because of Southern Borno. Garkida is just one ward but achieved so much, a Garkida man has run for the Presidency of this country, so, governor is a small matter. We have run for House of Reps and own, We run for Senate and won. If you are giving appointment, as a Garkida man must become a Commissioner. This is just in one ward, sometimes we get two commissioners in one ward. This people are the same clans with those in the southern Borno side and are not effective. If you ask them they complain ‘oh, we have issues’. What issue? I do not believe in wishful thinking but taking position. If they are not going to stand to take what is their right, let them continue under bondage. As a Burah man from Adamawa, said I am so disappointed. If in one ward we can push an agenda, we are still saying there is imbalance, one ward. One ward cannot even win chairman of a local government but we wielded so much influence. So, the issue of cowardship is their biggest problem. If they are waiting for things to come their way it will never happen.
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