THE IGBO GIANT STRIDES AGAINST ALL ODDS
9 years ago
TAKE BACK NIGERIA
...Reclaiming
Our Humanity/Nigeria for Social Justice and Social Transformation
Being the
Manifesto of the
FROM PROTEST TO POWER, STREET TO SERVICE
BACKGROUND AND CONTEXT
Our
party derives from a call issued to challenge activists to step out, take up
the epochal challenge of establishing a radical, left alternative political
platform to challenge the treacherous, treasury looting and kleptomaniac ruling
class for political power.
For a generation, the world has been passing through tumultuous and
chaotic times, defined and characterised by the most severe and all embracing
systemic crisis of the global capitalist system. The crisis is at once a food,
financial, economic, environmental/ecological, social and political one. And
rather than abate, it has continued to deepen with the food crisis of 2007 and
the epochal collapse
of the financial system in 2008. The Eurozone crisis has become the most
enduring emblem of this global crisis.
In Nigeria, this deep-rooted
crisis of neo-liberalism is compounded by ineptitude, political and economic
incompetence, as well as selfish pecuniary interests of parochial and looting
political elite.
The response of the
impoverished, unemployed, overexploited and politically unrepresented majority
of the citizens across the world has been a massive wave of resistance. The
wave has produced the Arab Spring in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA
region); the general strike and anti-austerity resistance movement in Europe
that led to the collapse of governments: Greece, Ireland, Iceland, Spain,
Portugal, Italy, France, UK, Netherlands, etc.
In Nigeria, the masses’
response was the historic January Uprising, the most widespread and national
mass street protests (across more than 55 cities for 12 days), the longest-lasting
general strike (one week), as well as most successful mass action in the
history of Nigeria.
Evident from the
experience of the Arab spring, the political convulsions in Europe, and the
January Uprising is that a definite and clear-cut alternative to deprivation,
autocracy and the political and economic brigandage of the global ruling class
must be built. This clear-cut alternative must be politically organised and
must seek political expression; this alternative must eventually take on the
ruling class and contest for power. This clear-cut political alternative will
reorganize society and implement an alternative economic policy framework that
will prioritise people over profits and wellbeing over growth.
This party is a
platform for every Nigerian, active and radicalized by the January Uprising, to
heed this call to action and join us in the journey to RECLAIM OUR HUMANITY,
REMAKE OUR COUNTRY AND TAKE IT BACK FROM THE ALLIANCE OF TREASURY LOOTERS AND
ROGUES! It is a call to reclaim our humanity and citizenship.
Together we can and
shall build this party and transform our country!
1. Name
The name of our party is DEMOCRATIC PARTY
FOR SOCIALIST RECONSTRUCTION (DPSR):
...‘Democratic’ because at all times the party shall promote and
actively encourage the full participation and involvement of members in the
constitution of party organs, as well as in the decision making and decision
implementation processes (internal democracy). Also, the party shall at all
times promote and actively encourage the full participation of all citizens not
only in the election of the leaders of state institutions, and in the
composition of state organs, but also in the formulation and implementation of
policies and legislations central to ensuring participatory governance at all
levels.
...‘Socialist Reconstruction’ because as a party we are committed to the
equitable redistribution of wealth; the promotion of social justice and equity,
the recovery of ill-gotten wealth and looted funds from the treasury; the
prosecution and punishment of corruption and treasury looting; the provision
and guarantee of access to basic social services and infrastructures by all
citizens regardless of status, origin, conviction, gender or age, etc. While promoting
wealth creation, we are committed to closing the gap between the poor, while
ensuring the all-round development and empowerment of every sector of the
population. This development and empowerment shall be of political, social and
economic nature.
2. Motto
The motto of the party is: Liberty,
Equality & Justice for Social Transformation.
3. Pledge
The pledge for the party is:
‘Nigeria never through me shall come to any harm;
the progress and development of every citizen shall I at all times
promote;
And to the reconstruction of a new nation based on social justice and equity
shall I be committed.’
4. Vision
The vision of our party is ‘A country owned by her citizens; where each
one can realise their full potential as human beings’.
5. Mission
The mission of the
party is: ‘To enthrone participatory governance, accountability and
transparency, peace and justice, with integrity and merit as the bases for
leadership.’
6. Core Principles
Our core principles
define what we stand for as a party, and are the drivers of our party’s
strategic direction. These are centred on the following:
a) Accountability and
Transparency as
basis for trust
b) Social Justice
& Equity as benchmark for action
c) People &
Popular Participation at the centre of
every decision.
With respect to the foregoing, these core principles are defined in the
following areas:
(a)
Political
(i) Ideology
The party’s ideological
orientation is Democratic Socialism. We shall at all times promote popular
participation by all citizens; and we are a party for social justice and equity.
DPSR shall at all times promote equality of access to basic services, social
infrastructures, and opportunities. The party shall ensure not only the
redistribution of wealth that is socially created, but also the drastic
reduction in the gap between the rich and the poor. We shall at all times work
towards the construction of a society where no one is left behind, excluded, or
marginalised in a manner detrimental to the full realisation of their
potential.
(ii) Dealing with Diversity
Nigeria is an emerging nation
state that is an amalgam of different ethnic/national/socio-cultural entities
at various levels of socio-economic development. Given this reality, all
stakeholders must be given a sense of belonging.
Our party shall work
towards the convocation of a Sovereign Constituent Assembly (SCA), with
representation based on social formations of citizens, not limited to ethnic
formations, but also including Labour, youth, women, other disadvantaged groups,
etc. (‘Sovereign’ here refers to the manner of its composition with the
citizens as the source of all political powers.) This SCA shall also include
representations from independent delegates’ conferences (IDCs) of social
formations which shall also be convened at state levels. The recommendations of
the SCA shall be validated in a national referendum, and shall then constitute
the basis for a new Federal Constitution for Nigeria.
Managing this crisis
and tension amongst the “federating units” has also thrown up many initiatives
including federal character, and the necessity to achieve a balance with merit.
Our party shall promote the transparent implementation of the Federal Character
principle on the basis of merit, and in conjunction with merit. Federal
Character as a principle to ensure balanced representation and development
among constituent units of the federation can only lead to the achievement of
its stated goal if it is seen as a time-bound affirmative action principle. In
this regard, our party shall ensure that there is a time frame for the
achievement of the lofty objective of balanced development, while putting in
place mechanisms to track and monitor progress towards meeting the stated goal.
In its implementation, our party shall ensure that merit shall form the basis
of the implementation. Only qualified persons from the areas to be represented
through the Federal Character principle shall be considered. Where it is
difficult to meet the basic criteria defining merit, then the most qualified
will be considered and put on special development programme to enable such
persons fulfil the merit criteria within a reasonable time frame.
(iii) Constituent
Units and the Centre
In the face of the many
military-created states that are now mere expenditure centres without any capacity
to undertake development initiatives, there is a very urgent need for a radical
review of the present structure. Most of the resources going to states are only
enough to cover administrative cost. This, taken together with the crass
corruption in governance at all levels, leaves little or nothing to pursue
development projects, which is the ultimate reason for the existence/creation
of these structures. Hence, we shall rigorously pursue the restructuring of the
Nigerian federation, to achieve equity, balance, and fiscal autonomy, as part of
the integral process for reconstructing a Nigerian nation-state.
(iv) Local
Governance
We are committed to a
comprehensive local government reform that will lead to the emergence of
effective governance at that level. Core elements of this reform include a
minimum tenure length of two years for one term and not more than four years
for one term. The second element will be fiscal autonomy. One of the core
elements of this reform would also include promotion of establishment of formal
democratically elected community governments and integrating this into the
local government administration.
(v) Electoral Process
and Selection of Candidates
Our party commits to
the development of such basic minimum criteria and guiding principles for the
observance and enthronement of internal democracy in political parties. We
shall lead by example. All party members shall be able to fully participate in
decision making and implementation processes of the party, as well as in the
election and appointment of party members into party organs, and in the
selection of party members for external positions in which the party is seeking
to be represented.
(vi) Other Arms of Government
A sampling of the
legislative arm across the country presents a costly and inefficient structure;
we need to review the permanent nature of the legislature from local to federal
level. This will require delineation of wards and constituencies, with
considerations given to not only geography, but also other criteria, including
social formations (Labour, for instance), demography, gender, disability, and
marginalisation. The legislative arm at all levels shall be composed of elected
legislators who shall be on part time basis. Legislators shall sit for approved
number of days in a year for which they shall be paid. All elected legislators
must not only have operational constituency offices, but must also hold regular
constituency forums with constituents. Our party shall ensure that the
legislative arm is reformed along these criteria to enhance performance and
participation and reduce the tendency towards inefficiency and unsustainable
overheads.
Our party shall also
introduce as part of a comprehensive reform and restructuring of governance
aimed at ensuring accountability and real representation, the community level
tier of government. Communities shall be encouraged to have democratically
constituted community governance structures which shall be formally recognised
by the constitution.
(vii) Citizenship
& Indigeneity
Everyone who is given
birth to in Nigeria, or who has Nigerian parents shall be a Nigerian citizen
entitled to all the full benefits of citizenship anywhere in Nigeria. Our party
shall not only promote this doctrine, but shall also actively discourage the
dichotomy of citizenship and indigene-ship status introduced by self serving
elites.
However, for political representation
of an entity such as a state/constituent unit shall be on the basis of origin (including
being born in the territory of such a state or entity) as well as on a proven
continuous residency in such a state/entity over a period of 3 years in the
minimum. This criterion of three years residency may be varied depending on the
particular level of governance or on the particular arm of government or state
institution.
(viii)
Fundamental Human Rights
Our party shall promote
the full realisation and guarantee of all human rights, be they civil and
political, or economic, or socio-cultural rights. We shall operate from the
principle that human rights are indivisible.
In this regard we shall
as part of the constitutional reform process, work towards making all
fundamental human rights justiceable, subject to the demonstrated efforts of
governments to ensure their progressive realisation.
(b) Economic
Our Party shall promote
economic policies based on its ideological orientation of democratic socialism.
We shall promote and ensure not only adequate and conscientious state
regulation of the economy, but also the active and proactive state
participation in the economy under the framework of state leadership. This enhances
democratic self management of the economy through promoting democratic
participation and representation of all critical stakeholders in the overall
management of the economy as well as in the management of each sector of the
economy.
Promoting democratic
participation in the overall management of the economy and each sector of the
economy means that our party that shall work towards the realisation of active
stakeholder and citizens’ participation in the management and regulation of the
economy. Stakeholders including communities where economic entities and
processes are located or take place will have real opportunities to participate
in decisions which would or are likely to impact on them as owners,
shareholders, workers, management, consumers, community residents, etc.
It is important to
point out and emphasise the global historic failures of both the undemocratic
state-run economies (epitomised by the dramatic collapse of the USSR and
Eastern Europe at the beginning of the 90s) and their economic cousins, the
undemocratic private-sector led economies (also epitomised by the economic and
even political crisis of global capitalism since 2007). In this regard, it is
of great significance to our party that any modern economy should draw from and
integrate the lessons of the collapse of the two extreme variants of economic
and political organisation of society: without democratic participation and
involvement of citizens in their various roles and functions in the overall and
sectoral management of the economy and polity, societies will evolve
authoritarian and mono-(even oligo-)polistic structures, with the attendant
marginalisation, exclusion and exploitation of the overwhelming majority of
citizens. The resultant effect will be increased poverty (for example, in
Nigeria as at 2011 over 69% of the population, more than 100 million people
live in abject poverty); widened gap between the rich and the poor (for
example, Nigeria, a country of over 160 million people, have 10 out of the top
50 richest Africans, and more than 100 million very poor people); as well as
economic collapse (Soviet Union, Eastern Europe, Greece, Ireland, Iceland,
Italy, Spain, Portugal) and severe political crisis (the Arab spring, the
global Occupy Movement, the waves of general strikes across Europe, The January
Uprising in Nigeria, etc).
i. Agriculture and Agro Allied
While the Federal
government shall be responsible for setting minimum standards for all sectors
of the economy and polity, the full development of the realisation of the
potential of the agriculture sector shall be within the exclusive preserve of
the federating units/constituent units of the federation; subject only to the
criteria of employment generation, support to farmers to access both the means
of production and of distribution, and providing the basis for ensuring food
security and securing raw materials for industrialisation, among others.
ii. Industrialisation and Sustainable Development
Our party shall promote
a focus on some core areas. These include, but are not limited to the following:
(a) Auto (including Aeronautic and Maritime)
Our party shall
actively promote the development of a robust auto industry as a basis for the
realisation of its programme of developing basic road/land (including rail),
air and water transport infrastructure and facilities. No economy can become
successfully integrated and positioned to realise its full potential without
transportation and communications development. For the party, a robust auto
industry means not only the manufacture and distribution of cars, trucks,
railway engines and coaches, aircrafts and sea-crafts, but also the provision
of the basic infrastructure to make possible their full utilisation for the
benefit of the economy. This will also be part of a massive job creation
programme.
(b) Heavy Equipment
No economic development
can be achieved without a heavy industrial basis. It provides the needed basis
for any industrial take off. Ajaokuta, Oshogbo, Aladja, Katsina
steel/industrial complexes are all laudable initiatives, but have remained
comatose in the face of inept, corrupt, incompetent and confused leadership.
Our party shall undertake programmes to revive and expand the heavy industries,
not only as a means of laying effective foundation for industrial development,
but also as a means of generating employment and drastically reducing poverty
and the gap between the rich and the poor.
(c) Military Industrial Complexes
For a country
recognised as regional (ECOWAS & AU) leader and aspiring to UN Security
Council permanent membership, it is a sad commentary that our country cannot
produce light arms. We cannot afford as a nation continue to be complacent in
this vital area for both international respectability and economic development.
Our party shall take appropriate steps to radically reform, restructure and
reposition the military industrial complexes primarily starting with the
Defence Industries Corporation.
(d) Energy & Power
The provision of
energy, as well as the generation and distribution of power is central to overall
capacity of the economy. In this regard, our party shall carry out a radical
overhaul of these twin sectors, routing out and punishing the corruption and
ineptitude that has been the bane of the development of the sectors and the
realisation of our real economic potential. It is important and decisive that
power generation and distribution capacity be rapidly and consistently
increased and improved over the shortest possible period of time; while the
product and service is also made available, and accessible to Nigerians.
With respect to energy,
and given the central nature of petroleum to the nation’s economy, similarly
the party will carry out a drastic, radical, open and transparent
reorganisation and reform of the sector. We shall ensure that within the
lifespan of a single tenure in government that our nation achieves adequate
self sufficiency in petroleum products refining capacity and distribution; while
also prioritising the development of a robust petrol-chemical industrial
complex for the production of chemicals, fertilisers, plastics, paint, etc.
(e) ICT
In the era of global
digital connectivity/interconnectivity, Nigeria needs a robust ICT sector and community
deliberately supported and promoted by government intervention. Our party shall
encourage this by promoting and ensuring access by all citizens, regardless of
location or status to the active utilisation of the internet and mobile telephony
technologies; while actively supporting and promoting the enhancement of popular
participation in governance through development of e-governance processes.
iii. Rural /
Urban Planning
The bulk of productive
economic activities happen in the rural areas. It is also in the interest of
the country to halt rural-urban migration. A clear policy on how to achieve
this is urgently needed.
Our party shall ensure
the full integration of rural life into the national life, polity and economy
of the country. It shall be a basic policy of governance for basic services
health, education, housing, and nutrition], as well as basic infrastructures
[roads/transportation, electricity, internet/ICT, storage, markets, etc] to be
provided and extended to rural communities and urban slums.
Our policy of promoting
local participatory governance through introduction and strengthening of
primary and formal community level democratic governments will go a long way in
ensuring the realisation of these goals and development objectives. A formal
democratic and representative community government means that there will be
certain aspects of revenue generated within a community that is directly
collectable by the community government to resource its activities. It also
means that local government budgets will be articulated on the basis of
aggregated community government needs and plans. Our overall goal in this drive
is to reduce the disparity in the conditions between rural and urban life.
Our party will also actively
promote, encourage and support the development and reform of master plans for
all towns and cities, including even villages, for a systematic and balanced development.
Such plans shall take into consideration the diversity in means and capacity of
residents of such towns and cities, and ensure the development of conditions
and processes and systems that make towns, cities, and even villages, places of
comfortable abode for every strata of the citizenry and residents.
iv. Human Capital
Development
In the era when our elites
now more or less shamelessly send their children to schools overseas to get
quality education; and where the same elite go abroad to seek medical attention
and care; we must have a robust strategy to revamp our education and health systems.
Our party commits to the open, transparent and participatory development of
such a strategy. In the first instance we shall undertake the radical reform of
the sectors, while also undertaking the rapid rehabilitation, of the education
and health facilities at all levels. Our goal is to ensure that every Nigerian
has access to compulsory basic education up to secondary school level (including
adult education for those above school-going age), as well as to basic health
care delivery services. In the realisation of these, location, status, gender,
demography (age), religious orientation, cultural orientation, ethnicity, etc
shall not be allowed as obstacles to the implementation of the policy.
As a way to ensure the
commitment of government and citizens, in particular the elites, to the
realisation of these goals, our party shall promote the banning of overseas
basic schooling and basic medical treatment for all officials of government (elected
and appointed, including in the civil service) and their relations.
v. Transport and
Transportation
As part of the
development of basic infrastructure that is accessible to the citizenry, our
party shall prioritise rail and air transport for long distance travels through
deliberate policy initiative that will actively develop rail and air travel
systems and operations. In riverine areas, this shall include the development
of river/maritime transport systems and facilities.
Our party shall
furthermore promote maritime, rail and air transport for the distribution and
carriage of heavy cargoes. In addition, road, rail and air networks will be
developed in a manner to integrate the entire national economy, promote
national unity, and promote active interaction among peoples across the
country.
vi. Financial and
Ancillary Services
Our party shall promote
deep-rooted reform of the financial sector, towards enhancing access to
adequate and qualitative financial and ancillary services by all citizens.
New financial services
products that encourage the integration of the rural economies to the national
economy as well as the integration of the informal and formal sectors of the
economy shall be promoted and actively supported.
Lagos is a natural hub
for financial services in West Africa; it could claim such pre-eminence in
Africa with proper policy support and strategy. We need to revive and review the
Lagos Mega City Plan not only for Lagos, but for all our major cities.
vii. Tackling Poverty and Employment Generation
Our party shall undertake a massive works programme aimed at
rehabilitating and extending basic social services and infrastructure across
the country and to ensure access by all.
Such a program will necessarily involve the massive mobilisation and
human, material and financial resources to achieve. Open, transparent and
participatory implementation of such a policy will not only lead to the laying
of solid foundation for national economic and human development, it will also
lead to creation of employment opportunities for many millions of unemployed
Nigerians. The overall outcome will be reduction in poverty levels, and drastic
reduction in gap between poor and rich through the redistribution of national
wealth.
(c) Social
i. General:
The challenge is how to create and enduring social cohesion in the face
of lingering crises emanating from the exploitation of existing cleavages.
Nigerians now relate to themselves from point of hatred instead of love.
Our party will actively
promote national social cohesion through its economic and political policies
which shall be based on participation and inclusivity. By promoting enhanced
and balanced development, by tackling poverty and ensuring access to basic
services and infrastructures, and by employment generation, coupled with a new
anti impunity culture of participatory governance, we are sure that the
necessary building blocks for national social cohesion would be constructed.
If we ensure that no
one lacks the basics of existence, and no one suffers the loss of self esteem
that comes with poverty, marginalisation and exclusion; we would be laying the
foundation for social cohesion.
Our party commits to
the introduction of a social security system that will safeguard the vulnerable
against poverty and exclusion, and that will include social protection safety
nets appropriate for each type of exclusion or vulnerability.
II. Women
Empowerment
The DSPN commits to
promotion of women empowerment through affirmative action. Specifically, we
shall promote political representation of women in elected and appointed
positions of governance, and effective ownership and management structures of
businesses by women. In this regard, we shall be bound to an immediate
implementation of the resolutions from the Beijing Conference, and commit to
ensuring the legislative and policy frameworks that enable this. We will chart
a measurable pathway to achieving parity over a period of time.
iii. Youth
Empowerment
Our party commits to
the empowerment of youths, both politically and economically, given the reality
of the population demography, with a preponderance of youths under 35 years of
age. The national youth policy shall be reviewed in this light. Unemployment
among youth shall be actively combated, while the education and acquisition of
necessary skills and competences among youths shall be actively promoted.
iv. Corruption, Crime and Insecurity
Our party is firm in its conviction regarding the dialectical link and
dynamic between mind boggling corruption, endemic poverty, pervasive
unemployment, and crippling crime and insecurity.
We know that the shear scope and scale of a corruption that because it
is carried on with impunity has become systemic; engenders a situation that
constitutes a an obstacle to national development, improvement in the
conditions of living of citizens, as well as any chance of improvement of the
national economy.
In the short to medium term, our party shall undertake immediate and
comprehensive security sector reform, encompassing the police, armed forces,
and other security agencies, aimed at making them more responsive, and
repositioning them as instruments for the promotion of the security of the
citizenry and their protection.
We shall, in particular reinforce community policing, and put in place
mechanisms to strengthen and improve civil-military relations and collaboration.
We shall ensure that intelligence gathering based on the restoration and
nurturing of a relationship of trust between citizens and security agencies,
shall be at the heart of crime fighting and the prevention and mitigation of
violent out breaks and social disorders.
We shall work towards a situation where the security forces will operate
under the oversight of citizens and communities.
In the medium to long term, we shall implement socio-economic and
political policies which shall address the grinding and excruciating poverty,
alienation, impunity in governance, and crushing joblessness that are the
social roots of crime, violence and insecurity. It is these conditions which
lead impoverished and psychologically traumatised citizens into crime,
criminality and acts of social violence.
Our guiding principle with respect to security sector reform and
tackling insecurity shall be a paradigm shift from an emphasis on state
security to one on human security; with the mantra that the guarantee of the security
of citizens is the basis of the guarantee of state security, and the
legitimising of the state.
7. Membership Guidelines
We are building a political party of a new type. Only aspiring members
who share our principles as well as our ideological orientation shall be
admitted into membership.
Known and active members of the Nigerian political elite, who are all
implicated in the mess that has become of our nation, and in the dragging of
our nation to the edge of the precipice, shall not be admitted into party
membership.
The party shall operate at community/neighbourhood, local government,
state, zonal (geo-political zones) and national levels, with corresponding
structures and organs. The primary membership unit shall be at the community
level.
Without prejudice to the above, party membership is open to all
Nigerians, irrespective of location, ethnicity, religious faith, gender, age,
status, or condition (with respect to persons living with disabilities).
On our part, as a party, we shall actively canvass membership among
workers (in both formal and informal sectors), youths, women (in particular,
disadvantaged women), and from civil society (including organised social
formations and citizens groups).
8. Fundraising
Since it a movement-based
party, it must be a membership organisation with the ownership in the hands of
members. In the same vein funding would be so structured. Members would
contribute to its running in terms of regular membership payments dues, levies,
registration, etc. Donations, with clear conditions will however be accepted
from time to time; while specific fund raising activities within the ambit of
existing legislations will also be undertaken.
9. Campaign Strategy
The campaign strategy (both
for membership and for elections) shall primarily be based on and rooted in
this document (the party manifesto) as well as on the party constitution.
A full fledged campaign
strategy shall be developed by the party, and for this purpose there shall be a
Party Campaign Strategy Committee, to lead on the development of the strategy
and also manage the party’s campaigning activities.
10. Core Areas of Intervention
There are five core
areas of immediate intervention for our party. These five core areas shall be
the foundation from which we shall seek to implement our full party manifesto.
They constitute our 5 Cardinal Programmes. These include;
(i) Integrated Rural
Development
(ii) Free public
education at all levels; and in particular access to compulsory and qualitative
basic education up to secondary level, and addressing the issues of rights to
and rights in education.
(iii) Social Cohesion
(iv) Full Employment
(v) Access to Basic
health, basic nutrition and basic housing.
Our core areas of
intervention derive directly from the basic thrust of our party manifesto. In
order to realise each of these basic core intervention goals, the party shall
develop fully fledged policy and strategic frameworks for their implementation
and actualisation.
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