By Boluwatife Ezekiel Olaleye
Chairman of the Presidential Advisory Committee Against Corruption, PACAC, Itse Sagay, has stated President Muhammadu Buhari’s second term will be similar to that of 1984.
Sagay said this is because Nigerians are suffering from gross indiscipline from the ruling elites.
He said this when he fielded questions from Independent newspapers at the weekend.
He said, “It is not that I have consulted him but I believe that his second coming will see a firmer, stronger type of leadership, a bit closer to what he was in 1984.
“I think that is what Nigerians should expect because this country is suffering from gross indiscipline of the ruling elites. We have seen a whole lot of impunity in the system.
“We have seen a whole Senate being closed down because one of them is going to a Tribunal before which he is charged. That to me is gross indiscipline.
“You do not stop the whole process of legislation just to show solidarity with a person charged to court and to intimidate the court.
“That is gross indiscipline and it is unacceptable. We have other things like that in other sectors. It is indiscipline for a group of judges to give a judgment that no matter what crime they commit, they cannot be tried unless the National Judicial Council (NJC) gives the go-ahead through the institutions created by the constitution to fight crime and prosecute those charged with crimes. That is indiscipline.
“So, we have a situation in this country where everybody is doing whatever he likes. Very soon, you will find the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) prescribing that if they commit any offence, they should be brought before the NBA Disciplinary panel before they can be charged by the police. Various professions that have disciplinary panels can bring that in.
“Even the policeman can say before you can charge me for bribery or any other offence, let the Police Service Commission (PSC) decide. That is chaos and anarchy. So, I think all these things will be brought under control in his second coming.
“Also by then, we would have started feeling the benefit of the groundwork they are doing now and life will be better for Nigerians. We will begin to appreciate the government more for how they have been able transform the country. Nigerians have short memory.
“They have forgotten that this country was wrecked and ran aground by the PDP. They have forgotten that the PDP government looted everything that was available and left an empty treasury at a time when money that was coming in was limited by cost of barrel of oil and reduction in production.
“So, this government has gone through extreme difficulty to keep Nigeria afloat. However, that era is coming to an end and an era of prosperity is coming. So, one is really looking forward to the second term of Buhari and Osinbajo.”