How can we use the law to create change?

John F. Kennedy said ‘those who make peaceful revolution impossible will make violent revolution inevitable’. If Nigerians continue to be passive about changing the affairs of State, change will come violently.

A few weeks ago the youth in Zaria protested the fact that they had not had electricity for weeks and what started as a peaceful protest turned violent. According to news reports, their anger and frustration spilled over to their conditions in Sabon Gari Local Council and they attacked the convoy of Governor Sambo of Kaduna State who was there to commission some projects.

Earlier, in May, the citizens of Borno State showed their displeasure at the governance of their State by throwing stones and sand at the Governor’s father who is alleged to be a strong influence on him.

Now we are embroiled in a full scale war in the Niger Delta which has been a long time coming, with years of litigation, Oil Mineral Producing Area Development Commission (OMPADEC), petitions, executions, the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), protests, the vandalisation of pipelines and oil producing equipment, kidnappings, Ministry of the Niger Delta, murders and now the end…after all it cannot get worse than this. Or can it?

For over six months, the Pedestrian Lawyer has tracked some of the atrocities done in the name of law, by lawyers, law makers and law enforcers and the impact on Nigeria’s socio – economic and political pulse. Slowly a consistent pattern has emerged from the response. Many readers say, “Thanks for the information, entertaining as well as enlightening but now what? What would you like us to do?” Good question but no one answer. Law is not magic…law cannot change the way people behave and create change but people can use the law to change the way people behave and create change.

I think if things are going to change in Nigeria, then the leadership has to change. If the leadership is going to change in Nigeria then the quality of those who participate in elections and serve in public office has to change. If the quality of those who participate in elections is going to improve then the electoral process has to improve. For the electoral process to improve we have to have people in the executive and legislature who have the will to make changes to the electoral law and process. If we are going to have executives and legislators with the will and decency to make the necessary changes to our electoral law and process then we have to have the right people in these positions of leadership…which brings us back where I started: for leadership to change, the quality of those who participate in elections has to improve.

So my response, to those who want to know what we can do, is: if you think you have what it takes and mean well, then run for political office. 2011 is around the corner and our newspapers are filled with reports of the preparations of those who currently have the controls of the bus and are driving the country closer to a precipice to retain their hold on the steering wheel.

The first step in the journey to gain some control over our country is to register a political party under the provisions of the 2006 Electoral Act.

First incorporate a limited company in the name of the political party and register the party at the Independent Nigerian Electoral Commission (INEC) at least six months before elections. Since we do not have the 2011 election timetable, register at the latest by June 2010. Upon submission of all the documentation and fees required you will receive a letter of acknowledgement; keep it safe. If thirty days after you submitted the registration application you have not been registered by INEC, Section 78(3) says if the party meets all the conditions of the 1999 Constitution (Sections 221-229) and the Electoral Act, then the party shall be considered as registered. This is tricky – look out for INEC using this presumption to trip you up later. Some of the constitutionally provided conditions to party registration include adhering to federal character in the composition of the party officials and having the head quarters of the party in Abuja. If INEC refuses to register the party, party promoters have only thirty days from the receipt of the letter of notification to challenge the decision in court.

Avoid those who come late in the game to preach consolidation of resources because a potential landmine could be a merger with another party which INEC must approve and must be notified of at least six months before elections.

Once registered there are other rules for political parties to adhere to such as not holding funds or assets outside Nigeria and providing INEC with records of election expenses and twenty one days notice of any party conventions for either the election of party officials or the nomination of candidates.

On party financing it is interesting that the Electoral Act recommends the maximum amount to be spent by candidates in the elections: five hundred million naira for presidential elections, one hundred million for gubernatorial elections, twenty million for Senators and ten million for members of the House of Representatives. No wonder politics is a duel to the death in Nigeria, anyone who has ‘invested’ this much in winning an election will want to secure the investment and ensure it yields competitive dividends. Parties are also supposed to refuse anonymous donations and disclose donations of one million naira and above.

Once registered, you can start campaigning, raising campaign funds and trying to raise the awareness of your constituents and your target audience. A million and one underdog stories abound, most recently and amazingly, the story of Obama.

A sad truth is that getting involved in elections is risky, especially if you want to do it the right way; without political godfathers and dancing in shrines. Apart from possible financial ruin, mental and physical upheaval and the strain it will place on your relationship with family and friends, there is the very real danger of paying the ultimate price as Funsho Williams and many other Nigerians have done.

However, the alternative which is to do nothing but keep grumbling to ourselves and prepare our children for a future outside their country is not acceptable. Why? Because all those risks and dangers listed above are already being lived by those in the Niger Delta. Because the violence we fear for getting involved, might still probably come because we did not get involved.

Despite Ekiti and the lip service being paid to electoral reform by the current government, I feel encouraged by the judiciary to think the 2011 elections could be the start of the change we all want. If the judicial renaissance and independence we have witnessed over the last two years, starting with the Supreme Court decisions in the Ladoja impeachment case and Amaechi vs. PDP, continues, then there is hope. But this hope lies not only with the judiciary but with believing individuals who start this journey and who must continue to the identified destination. The Supreme Court judgement would not have been possible if Amaechi had given up his mandate and knowing Nigeria, the pressure must have been immense for him to do so. We have to keep working within the law and the processes which guide us and then, only then can we truly understand the limitations, appreciate the weaknesses and then make the changes that we need before change is forced on us.