 Former Ekiti Governor Kayode Fayemi asserts that despite 26 years since 1999, Nigeria has only achieved civilian rule, not true democracy, urging further efforts to build a fully functioning democratic system
Nigeria democracy status remains a work in progress, according to former Ekiti State Governor, Kayode Fayemi, who asserted on Thursday that while the country returned to civilian rule in 1999, it has not yet attained true democracy.
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Speaking during a Channels Television special June 12 event, ‘Nigeria’s Democratic Journey: An Inter-Generational Conversation On Building A Better Nation,’ Fayemi emphasised that although Nigerians regained the right to elect their leaders, much more remains to be done to establish a fully functioning democratic system.
“What we mustn’t do is to conflate elections with democracy. What we got was to reestablish the right to vote for our leaders into office in 1999; what we are yet to get is real democracy, in my view,” Fayemi stated.
He further elaborated, “We got civilian rule, we are proudly on the journey — we now have a semi-democracy, but now we don’t have full democracy.
The effort that the previous president and now President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has put into it, we all must build on that.”
The former minister also recounted his perilous role as a pro democracy activist operating Radio Kudirat during the struggle against the regime of former military dictator, the late Sani Abacha.
He disclosed that he and his colleagues who ran the clandestine radio station were fortunate to have escaped being killed by the military government at the time.
Fayemi recalled taking significant risks without fully comprehending the enormity of their actions in the face of the oppressive military regime.
What we mustn’t do is to conflate elections with democracy. What we got was to reestablish the right to vote for our leaders into office in 1999; what we are yet to get is real democracy, in my view.
“It’s not that we were not afraid or we were aimlessly bold, we just didn’t fully think of the enormity of the threat it constituted beyond wanting to do the right thing,” he confessed.
He vividly described a specific instance of danger: “I mean, I carried the transmitters of Radio Kudirat on an Air France flight that was destined for Cotonou in the Benin Republic and made a detour to Lagos in the heat of the crisis. I could have been picked up on that flight, I would have been history by now, as many found themselves to be. During the Oputa Panel Commission, some of the characters who were mandated to eliminate leaders of the struggle came up with their stories.”
Fayemi urged a sober reflection on the past, adding, “So, we shouldn’t make light of what happened, and I don’t by any stretch of imagination want to create the impression that we were invincible in what we did.I think some of us are just fortunate that we are still alive. Those who lost their lives were not stupid in what they did; they were following their convictions.”
The former governor, however, commended President Tinubu for recognising some of the key actors in the democracy struggle with national awards on Thursday.
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Nonetheless, he urged that more individuals, including the operators of Radio Kudirat, should also be duly recognised for their sacrifices.
