2023: Competency, capacity compromised by Nigerian system – Bishop Kukah

The Catholic Archbishop of Sokoto Diocese, Matthew Hassan Kukah, says the Nigerian political system has been rigged to turn out incompetent leaders due to an alleged long-standing culture of nepotism

Bishop Kukah who was a guest on a Channels Television political programme on Wednesday, reacted to recent comments by Buhari that he had done his best for Nigeria, said the President’s best was not good enough, drawing parallels between the “culture of nepotism in the public sector and the current state of the nation.”

According to the outspoken clergy, Nigeria has reached a crescendo where “integrity, competence, and capacity are being compromised.”

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Bishop Kukah argued that the most qualified and competent individuals are not given the platform to hold office due to an alleged long-standing culture of nepotism.

“I believe Buhari is a good man. He’s done his best, but his best was not enough. His best speaks to the quality and level of his preparedness, and his ability to assemble a team.

“The fact that we didn’t succeed suggests very clearly we didn’t prepare for this examination and the lesson we take away is that,” he said.

“Almost everybody contesting elections in Nigeria goes between two, three, and four political parties. So, what you have are just mere contraptions that people who are desperate to ascend this honeypot will climb anything to be able to get to power.

“So, we’re not even talking about a political elite that has a consistent ideological set of principles that they go by. How often have you heard politicians tell you, for example: ‘The manifesto of my party was written in my bedroom’?

“I can tell you these are the stories we’ve heard… suggesting very clearly that the kind of discipline that you require to build a political culture does not exist in Nigeria,” he added .