Nigeria Trapped In Elite Capture

 By Dan Onwukwe

The halls of politics and power in today’s Nigeria are littered with the remains of politicians who had desperately sought and acquired power not to use it for what it ought to be: power for great purposes, that’s, to serve the people. Rather, they are deviously determined to make politics and government run like a money-spinning business.

*Akpabio and Tinubu

This is the reason our present democracy has failed to deliver the much-expected dividends because, serving the people is of secondary importance to our politicians. The problem here is that, without vision beyond their own advancement, Nigerian politicians are paralysed once that selfish interest is achieved. Our pain is their gain. Nigeria is trapped in an inescapable situation.

Last Tuesday was a heartbreaking moment for me. I watched in  disbelief and pain as two labourers who were engaged to fix a broken sewage system in my neighbourhood in Lagos, went into a scuffle over a loaf of bread. The struggle between them was who will have the bigger portion of the bread. In the process, the bread fell on sandy ground, yet they picked it up and ate it. Passers-by watched in astonishment. How did we get to this sorry situation.

If you look around your neighbourhood, you may see the same grim spectacle. It happens quite often these days. If care is not taken, poor Nigerians may be pouring into the streets, fighting themselves. That’s what hunger can cause. Recall that when he was the bulldozer of  Nigerian politics, late Chief Anthony Anenih was quoted to have said that Nigeria would be on a keg of gunpowder when the citizens start fighting themselves because of starvation. Nigeria is dangerously careening towards that turning point. As a nation, we are at a crossroads right now. The signs are everywhere.

There’s no doubt anymore that poverty is ravaging millions of our people. Many are looking like their faces are carved from a stone. The irony is that this is happening amid obscene luxury lifestyle by our politicians. You see, nothing creates bitterness and a sense of hopelessness in a nation when the gap between the rich and poor has become too wide. That’s the trouble with Nigeria, right now, to the extent that almost always, news about our nation is never uplifting. No cheerfulness. In all of this, a disturbing pattern is emerging: Nigeria is trapped in elite capture. Economic inequality in the country is provocatively widening.

The clouds of controversy that trailed trailed the 2023 presidential election in which Bola Tinubu was declared President of Nigeria, would have cleared by now if he had committed himself to governing and sensitive to the welfare of the majority of the populace, making things better than he met them, trust in his government would have been restored. But, the opposite is the case. Do you know why the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission(RMAFC) chaired by Mohammed Shehu has defiled public outcry against the commission’s plan to hike the salaries of President Tinubu and that of other political office holders as well as that of Judicial officers across the country?      

The commission has commenced the first step in that regard with a retreat in Kano, last Thursday. All the reasons that Shehu has given, including the illogical argument that the President of Nigeria, would not continue to earn a monthly salary of N1.5 million, and ministers at N1 million, are all a ruse, a trick to justify the huge allocation to the agency in 2025 budget. It’s also part of plans to perpetuate state/elite capture and the widening divide between the rich and the poor. Former senator representing Kaduna Central, Shehu Sani, disclosed few years ago that a federal lawmaker in Nigeria earns about N13.5m monthly as salary and allowances.

However, Chairman, RMAFC clarified that, saying the commission has “no constitutional power to enforce compliance with proper implementation of Renumeration package” of members of the National Assembly. The salaries of the president, the vice president, and other political office holders are nothing compared to the huge allowances and other perks of office they receive every month. The mere thought of proposing such a pay hike for political office holders and judicial officers who are allegedly already compromised, at this time that millions of Nigerian are in poverty trap, and struggling daily with soaring food prices, high fuel and electricity costs, as well as grossly inadequate minimum wage, are indicators of complete disregard and disdain for suffering Nigerians who don’t know where their next meal is going to come from.    

If this is not an elite and state capture, what else is it? Elite capture emerges from the political economy of the country, resulting in the appropriation of state institutions and resources by few powerful individuals or groups – not for your own gain, or public service – but for their own advancement and that of their cronies. This ugly phenomenon has got worse under the present administration, manifesting through corrupt practices, embezzlement of funds, manipulating and inflating of contract figures, all of which weaken state institutions and hinder development and perpetuate inequality. Imagine the federal government saying it has allocated a hefty N142bn for the construction of six bus terminals, while less than N100bn budget is allocated to  all teaching and psychiatric hospitals in the country. In the current government, shame has become a passé – nothing to be ashamed of anymore. As Mr. Peter Obi said last week, that is a clear evidence of a deficient leadership.

The negative impact of elite capture is responsible for the present culture of impunity. It also leads to the decline in the effectiveness and legitimacy of state institutions that have become tools for private interests, rather than public good. That’s the point former President Olusegun Obasanjo made last week, when he alleged that, Nigeria’s judiciary has been “deeply compromised”, and the judges turning the courts “into courts of corruption, rather than courts of justice”. The electoral umpire(INEC), Obasanjo also said, has “undermined the electoral process”, making Nigerians to lose confidence in its ability to deliver  transparent elections. The recent by-elections across some states, may have vindicated Obasanjo’s claims.

The Sultan of Sokoto, Muhammadu Sa’ad Abubakar summarises what elite capture can do, a situation where a powerful few have successfully manipulated the political and economic landscape to serve their own selfish interests at the expense of the broader public good. Speaking at the Nigeria Bar Association Conference in Enugu on Sunday, he said, “in Nigeria, justice is increasingly becoming a purchasable commodity, where the poor are victims and the rich evade accountability”. This trend will get worse as 2027 elections approach. How did we get here? Why is our political leaders behaving  in a heartless manner without remorse? Is Nigeria cursed or are we the cause?

An attempt to answer these questions leads to more troubling questions. It is largely due to the fact about 10 percent of Nigerians controls 90 percent of the country’s wealth, according findings by Oxfam, a British-funded non-government organisation. Oxfam’s Country director in Nigeria, John Makina was genuinely worried when he revealed the report recently in Abuja. The report shows a  disproportionate wealth distribution in Nigeria, where majority of the population survive on a meagre income, meaning not having enough money for food, education, healthcare and other necessities.

Also, another report by Development Finance International(DFI), puts Nigeria last in the list of 150 countries ranked by their “ non-commitment to reducing inequality”. That’s the reality that continues to hold Nigeria down. Despite decades of economic growth, no inclusive growth. That has made Nigerian youths to remain excluded from decision-making process in their country. The system is skewed to favour the rich against the poor.  Exactly seven years ago, former British Prime Minister Theresa May, spoke in the same vein during her visit to some African countries, including Nigeria. Her words, “in Nigeria, few are enjoying the fruits of a resurgent economy, while over 87 million of its people are living below $1.90 a day, making Nigeria home to more very poor people than any other nation in the world”.

Between 2018 and now, the situation in Nigeria have gone from bad to worse. While the economy has stagnated, few powerful individuals are stupendously wealthy. And source of their wealth is questionable. It’s all because of inept leadership, a leadership bereft of compassion and good conscience. It has never been this bad for Nigerians. Taken as a whole, it will not be unkind to say that, why it was arguably possible for Tinubu to be successful when he was Governor of Lagos state(1999-2007), he needs reminding that he’s on a different, larger canvas now. 

He should also recognise that the very patterns of behaviour and belief responsible for his previous successes, contain within them the seeds that could prove his ultimate failure as president if he does not make amends now and tack back to the centre. That’s where millions of suffering Nigerians are. President Tinubu should reject whatever new salary RMAFC may recommend. He should also cut cost of governance. He will have himself to blame if he continues to turn a deaf ear to the challenges confronting the country.

*Onwukwe is a commentator on public issues