{UAH} I suggest we split Uganda into 14 states
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11:10 AM |
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The Federal Republic of Nigeria comprises 26 federal states. I had the courtesy of visiting Aqua Ibom state located in the coastal southern part of Nigeria. Aqua Ibom state was carved out of Callabar state in 1987, just a year after Uganda’s NRA/M revolution.
Aqua Ibom state has a population of 4.5 million and budgetary revenue of about nine trillion Uganda shillings, which is close to two thirds of Uganda’s annual budget. The state has a monthly local revenue collection of about Shs 30bn.
Aqua Ibom state is a model for a successful federal state in Africa and I bet in the next three years it will be one of the leading tourism destinations in Africa. The whole state is dedicated to God and every Monday all the civil servants and political leaders start the day with prayers and give themselves goals to achieve in the week.
I attended the routine Monday morning prayer where a sermon was delivered by the speaker of the state assembly, Rt Hon Samuel Ekon. The state has built the first underground water drainage facility in Africa, whereby a town like Bwaise was drained with drainage networks stretching 9km beneath the city, without any building having to be destroyed.
There is free health care for expectant mothers and the elderly. The state is building an international airport at Ibom, just 10 minutes’ flight from Callabar Airport. It has also constructed 290 new roads and built Nigeria’s first e-library.
Additionally, the state has completed a 191-megawatt power plant, built a 69km gas processing pipeline and embarked on comprehensive rural electrification linking 1,400 communities to the national grid. This has helped the state to achieve 85% rural electrification.
The Aqua Ibom government has also built a 30,000 ultra-modern stadium to be commissioned later this year when the governor, Chief Godswill Akpabio, is set to sponsor an international friendly game between Britain’s Arsenal and Manchester United in September. This game would be the first of its kind in Africa and it would boost tourism in the state.
Furthermore, the state is undertaking construction of an Olympic-size stadium, six fly-overs and massive housing projects for its people. In addition, the state offers free quality education and is constructing the eight-lane third ring road, among others.
Would the central government of Nigeria have achieved all this if all eyes were on President Goodluck Jonathan? Or, rather, has President Museveni achieved such success over the last 28 years?
Previous governments in Uganda made deliberate efforts to forge national unity. Our forefathers, for instance, had school exchange programmes whereby students from all over the country studied in different parts of the same country.
Nostalgia still runs high for old students of schools such as Sir Samuel Baker in Gulu, Sir Tito Winyi in Bunyoro and St Leo’s in Fort Portal [where my father studied]. However, this practice has been frustrated to the extent that today one can easily study from nursery to university without leaving his or her village. The cultural shocks and national divide are more profound today.
There is too much centralisation of power and heartbreaking competition for such power. And such power at the centre is very often abused and personalised to the extent of a leader calling the UPDF “my army” or a natural occurrence “my eclipse”.
The national cake has been used to develop certain “federal” districts at the expense of the whole of Uganda. Therefore, there should be a deliberate effort by the central government to consider a federal system of governance for Uganda.
Government and Parliament must come in to educate and sensitise the public about its advantages. We must all accept we are different yet we have to live together, just as a fruit salad is best with many other components.
Uganda can reconsider federalism by amalgamating the vast 117 districts into 14 federal states; West Nile, Acholi, Lango, Bukedi, Teso, Busoga, Bunyoro, Karamoja, Buganda, Ankole, Elgon, Kigezi, Tooro and Sebei.
Each federal state would have an elected governor and a council. This would go a long way in saving on the cost of delivery of social services and organising elections. The current governor of Aqua Ibom state, because of the two-term rule, is contesting for the position of senator and maybe, later on, the presidency.
In Uganda, a federal system would ensure that those who contest for leadership are pre-tested in their home regions. As the saying goes, charity begins at home. In addition, federal government resources and revenue can be used to develop international airfields, universities and business hubs.
The fear of federalism in Uganda is based on misconceptions about the Kabaka taking over all the land and non-Baganda being forced to leave Buganda. This fear is propagated by the enemies of federalism.
Does the Kabaka’ s power override the Constitution of Uganda and the Land Act? On the contrary, it would be in the interest of the Buganda state government to attract people to their state the same way the Nigerian states are doing.
There should be a deliberate effort by each state to market itself to the whole world and attract revenue for its own survival and that of its own people.
Bravo Nigeria! Bravo Aqua Ibom state!
otto_jr@parliament.go.ug
The author is MP, Aruu county, Pader district.
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