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| Hon. Babatunde |
Honourable Kolawole Gabriel Babatunde represents Akoko Southeast and Southwest in the House of Representatives. He is a member of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
In this interview, he says for peace to return to the House, the warring factions should shift ground. He also believes the current
Boko Haram onslaught will fizzle out with time as President Muhammadu Buhari puts in place measures to confront it even as he says the president did not promise to perform magic to get rid of the terror group.
It appears that the APC government is failing the masses as it cannot handle the security challenge in the country especially on Boko Haram. Is the government overwhelmed?
Nobody should say that APC has failed the country. One thing that we have not adjusted to is the spirit of patience.
This is a new government, we just came on board, so all the problems cannot be solved just in a day. The problems on ground are so enormous.
Mr. President is taking his time. If you rush into taking some actions, then you may make avoidable mistakes. Presently, there is need for us to build our image and I know he has been going round meeting with world leaders, discussing areas of collaboration.
It is not a fight we can fight alone, we need the support of our neighbouring countries; even the international community, we need their support.
And for us to get that, we must build that confidence and that is what Mr. President is doing right now. Recently, there is an order that the military command should be moved to Maiduguri.
We know that in other countries, it is not done that way; actions can be taken from a
central point, but here we don’t have what it takes, we don’t have the technology, we don’t have the wherewithal, we don’t have the enabling environment; so the military command has to be moved.
This issue of insurgency has been there before now and you cannot get rid of it in a twinkle of an eye. It is something that will take quite some time.
How long will Nigerians wait as the Boko Haram sect is killing people on daily basis?
That people are being killed does not mean that government is not doing anything, it is just a matter of time, I am very sure Mr. President is very focused and the issue of security of life and property is sacrosanct to this government. In due course, the issue of insecurity will be a thing of the past.
President Buhari promised that the issue of Boko Haram will fizzle out immediately he takes over government. Has his magic failed him?
I was part of the campaign train as a stakeholder, but there was at no point I heard that he said a magic will be performed within weeks or months. But then if that had been said, I know Mr.
President is not sitting down doing nothing at the moment.
He is on his toes and that is what is important; he is already proffering solution, he is already consulting; he is meeting with world leaders; he is already seeking collaboration with other nations and I think he should be commended for this.
What is the best way to tackle insurgency in the country?
Well, the issue of dialogue, the issue of negotiation, the issue of ensuring that there is equity in the distribution of our resources. The issue of corruption too which is a major problem confronting this nation.
If these issues are addressed, especially corruption, I can assure you that insecurity would be reduced to the barest minimum.
How do you negotiate with a group that has taken arms against the nation, killing and maiming innocent people?
It is not as if that we are recommending negotiation with the terrorists; what we are saying is that it happened in the Niger Delta when militants were called and today they are repositioned and, whether you agree with me or not, you discover that youths restiveness and crisis in the Niger Delta has reduced.
But I think there is a way you can just extend this hand of fellowship; even though they are faceless, I know they are humans beings and I know they have been getting back to us and to the government. Meanwhile, if there is improvement in the present decay in infrastructure, high level of corruption, etc, it is not a mountain that cannot be in surmounted.
What is the relationship between a female suicide bomber and corruption?
A female suicide bomber did not wake up one day wanting to be a suicide bomber. Probably she was introduced to it by a male terrorist or a cabal. But I know that there are some people behind the scene fuelling the terrorism is happening.
The person you called female bomber did not metamorphose from somewhere. She was introduced to it, probably she was captured or worked on to become a suicide bomber.
But when you look at the source, you look at the nitty gritty involved, you will discover that it still boils down to bad governance. Let’s trace it to the origin, when there is a particular problem, look at the foundation. When the foundation is weak, certainly the building will not stand.
So, it is an all-encompassing thing, there is a way all these things link. So if you say corruption has no link with the terrorists attack, I will disagree with you.
Niger Delta people said their environment was being polluted because of oil exploration and nothing was done about it. What is the demand of Boko Haramt?
From the little understanding I have, suicide bombing has to do with religion. The sect is against Western education and they are promoting Islam.
But then, I have seen Muslim clerics, I have seen the leaders of the Muslim community telling us that Boko Haram has nothing to do with Islam.
That the religion is a religion of peace and it is a religion that believes that Nigerians should co-exist regardless of diverse backgrounds. I have never see them make any major demands that has to do with the development of that area, the North outside the issue of the Western education thing.
Leadership tussle in the House of Representatives has taken a frightening dimension since the inauguration of the 8th assembly.
Why can’t members embrace peace for the sake of the country?
When we were inaugurated, we decided to hit the ground running, the aspirants started indicating interest to contest for the position of speakership and, in the course of doing this, many of our members, particularly the ranking members, came up to show interest in the speakership and, at he end of the day, two major contenders emerged: Hon. Yakubu Dogara and Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila.
I think one major thing that members were clamouring for then was the issue of independence.
Members said they needed an independent Speaker, one that would ensure that every member in the House is given equal chance to express his views or push whatever issue that is needed to be addressed.
The issue of welfare too was equally paramount to members. So, among other issues, these were the two that were mentioned. But the major issue was the independence of the very person that will emerge as Speaker.
You also saw what happened on the floor of the House when voting was done, Honourable Dogara emerged and, in every contest, there must be a winner.
But what we are expecting in an ideal environment, especially in a democratic setting like this, it has happened before, now and we have seen this happening in the 8th assembly, we expect both sides to come together in the interest of the nation and see how we can move this country forward. I am an advocate of the fact that the masses that we have come here to represent are more important than the interest of any individual.
So, if we agree as members of this hallowed chamber that the interest of this country is important as the country has to develop, then we should put it at the front burner.
But immediately after the election, so many issues started coming, individual interference and party interference from the beginning of the whole exercise, preferring particular candidates and this has actually caused a lot of problems in the House.
But I believe if at the end of the day, this 8th assembly, God forbid, is unable to deliver, they will be held responsible, the party will not be held responsible. My constituents will not listen to any excuse whatsoever that these are the reasons I have refused to deliver on the mandate.
If this is important, it simply means that both sides must shift grounds, they must come together as one indivisible body for the sake of this country, for the sake of Nigerians and even for the sake of the generations to come. Because whatever we do in this 8th assembly will be written against our names.
Source: vanguard
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