When Nigerian Professors Broaden Public Discourse

A new chapter in broadening public discourse for the advancement of Nigeria’s development was unveiled on Monday this week when Nigerian professors, under the aegis of the College of Professors in Nigeria (CoPIN), led by its national president, Professor Otoabasi Akpan, formally displayed the manual for the short-and medium-term development of Nigeria, particularly from 2024 to 2032.

Tagged “The Abuja Papers,” the manual contains 40 items on policies that could help move Nigeria’s development forward. Nigeria is currently engaged in “writing its history steadily backwards in all ramifications since independence.”

Addressing a press conference to formally present the first edition of the college’s publication, titled: “The Abuja Papers: Manual for Short-and Medium-Term Development of Nigeria, 2024-2032”, Akpan, who is at present the deputy vice-chancellor (Academics), Akwa Ibom State University, said his colleagues were moved to launch CoPIN,  “After watching the ugly situation in which Nigeria is writing its history steadily backwards in all ramifications since independence, we have concluded that if we come together as professors to shape decisions and policies of governments of Nigeria, the country would excel in all of its undertakings, including vision and mission.

Professors As Torchbearers

Membership in the CoPIN is not restricted to professors in Nigeria’s ivory towers. Academics in research institutes of professorial ranking for national and international development are also welcome in the forum, which was initiated in 2016 and registered in 2023. The essence of the professorial group is to broaden public intellectualism by offering political leadership research-based studies for national development.

The newly formed body, according to Akpan, believes that Nigeria possesses all traits for development “in superfluous quality, but there are observable critical gaps that have made the country not become a strong state. These can be attributed to a lack of agreement on common fundamentals, principles, statesmanship, executive capacity, knowledge of the evolution of the Nigerian state, and ideas on the future of Nigeria. Added are the questions of the absence of elite consensus and inability to spice up democratic traditions with traditional Nigerian models which had been effective in the pre-colonial era”.

Describing present-day Nigeria as engaged in “operating its history backwards”, the professors are of the opinion that the jinx that holds Nigerian down the valley of underdevelopment should stop with the Tinubu-led administration to replace it with a “progressive rhyme” to avert the “continuation of the previous norms and misfortunes such that it should no longer be observed further that Buhari rule was better than the Tinubu leadership.”

Reversing and strangulating the jinx that holds down the growth of Nigeria can only be possible through a research-based intervention devoid of ethnic, religious, political and social divides, among others. Using time-tested research, CoPIN, according to its national president, shall be primarily concerned with contributing knowledge through “The Abuja Papers”, “where issues concern the Nigerian federation as a whole and where they concern any particular state or local government area, the publications shall go by the names of the state capitals or headquarters of the local government areas in question.”

30-year Plan

Under the dream of the CoPIN for the next eight years for the country, the professors envision the retooling and ensuring the stability and social harmony of Nigerians between 2024 and 2032; enthronement of justice and enthronement of enduring economic development. Crucial to political stability, CoPIN national president added, is invocation of “the spirits of statesmanship and citizenship in Nigerians such that they can rise like one man to change the present narrative, and this implies payment of appropriate taxes, in addition to keeping in the Nigerian banks, tens of billions of foreign currencies that they keep in their homes, offices, portmanteau, shops and foreign countries.”

Advocating for a 30-year plan of action to develop the capacities, the professorial body is convinced that the “approaches would facilitate the development capacities of Nigeria’s resourcefulness, insisting that if all the tiers of Nigerian governments, with all ministries, department and agencies (MDAs) are compulsorily directed to partake in the vision of 30-year Plans of Action as provided by the manual provided by the forum of the professors, all tiers of government shall cease to depend or partake in the proceeds of the federation account and internally-generated revenues (IGRs) in Nigeria”.

CoPIN identifies, for effective governance, four instruments, namely Executive Order, Doctrine of Necessity, Political Solution, and Disruptive Strategy, that the federal government can deploy to fast-track development. Apart from advocating a split of the Supreme Court, the Nigerian professors called for the introduction of what they call the “Unexplained Wealth Act” and the establishment of the “Anti-Corruption Court of Justice”. They also called for an act that shall make it mandatory for all legal proceedings and judgements in any Nigerian court not exceeding a maximum of 30 days.

Advancing Novel Ideas

Some of the novel ideas suggested by the eggheads include turning all of Nigeria’s 9,555 political wards into National Development Districts (NDDs), where every year, the sum of N10 million is given to them as loans on low interest to inhabitants for capital formation and personal development. Against the backdrop of hullabaloo caused by the deliberate dominance of state governors in local government affairs, CoPIN suggests that INEC should be allowed to conduct LG polls in the states.

In order to douse the flames of separatism from various parts of the country, CoPIN called for the expansion of the geo-political zones from six to 12 to align with the 12-state structure created by General Yakubu Gowon, with their headquarters as capital cities of the new zones.

The vision as encapsulated in “The Abuja Papers” by our professors is novel. However, those who have benefitted from our flawed federal system due to corruption remain the big elephant in the room. In the years to come, hopefully, CoPIN could serve as the engine room for national development.