Dr Abiola Oshodi, a member of the Presidential Campaign Council of the All Progressives Congress and spokesman for the party’s Canada chapter, in this interview with PETER DADA, speaks about the forthcoming presidential election, among other political issues in Nigeria
The Nigerian electoral system is not yet there; you are based in Canada; with your experience there, what do you think is the way forward?
To ensure the sanctity and transparency of our electoral system, we need to keep deepening and strengthening our democracy through innovations and the right investments. So, the 2022 Electoral Act is a good step in that some electoral processes were upgraded and made technologically compliant. For example, voter accreditation and voting via the BVAS machine will eliminate the temptation to snatch ballot boxes, though the challenge of voters buying ballots remains real. The way forward is to keep believing and keep pushing until we get things right in the country.
Many Nigerians abroad are not allowed to vote. What can you say about that development and what do you think can be done to help the Diasporas exercise their civic responsibility in their homeland?
It is disappointing and very upsetting but we believe that the Asiwaju Bola Tinubu administration, if elected, will initiate the legislation that will enable Diasporas to vote, and we can contribute our quota to shaping the future of our country.
Even if Diasporas are allowed to vote, do you think their votes can have any substantial effect on the outcome of the election?
The Nigerian diaspora is an integral part of Nigeria, even though many of us left the country for different reasons. The bigger truth is that all of us dream and wish for a greater Nigeria that we can call home. It’s against this background that many of us are very much involved in the Nigerian political process at different levels. We are stakeholders in the Nigeria project, and we remit over 25 billion dollars annually to Nigeria, and we can remit more, especially if there are very clear developmental pathways, as enunciated in the renewed hope manifesto of Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, where we can partner with the government under different business partnership models.
Many of us also have substantial leverage over our family at home who look up to us and also listen to us so that they can make the right decision. We can sensitise our people, educate them, and mobilise them to the polls come February 2023 to elect Asiwaju as the next president of Nigeria.
Yes, if we are allowed to vote, we will become a significant voting bloc in Nigeria’s political trajectory. Someone like me wishes to be one of the great minds willing to help birth a new Nigeria under the leadership of Asiwaju Tinubu. This influenced my decision to join pro-Bola Ahmed Tinubu support groups.
A commission, NIDCOM, is specifically formed for those in the Diaspora; can you give us your view on the commission’s performance so far, concerning Nigerians in Canada?
The Nigeria Diaspora Commission came into existence in May 2017 when President Muhammadu Buhari signed the bill establishing the commission into law through the then-acting president, Professor Yemi Osinbajo following its eventual passage by the eighth National Assembly.
The formation of NIDCOM through an Act of Parliament, the appointment of the first Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Hon. Abike Dabiri-Erewa, as the pioneer boss of the Commission, and the ratification and final approval of the National Diaspora Policy by the Federal Government.
The diaspora commission as it is currently structured has achieved a lot within the few years of its creation in tackling some of the challenges confronting Nigerians living in the diaspora, for example in the areas of advocacy, organising and hosting investment summits, simplifying the process of applying for a Nigerian passport abroad, or even being able to travel home with an expired Nigerian passport.
Among other accomplishments of the diaspora commission in its few years of existence, I would like to see the commission upgraded into a full-fledged diaspora ministry and gain traction in ensuring that the Nigerian diaspora community is enfranchised and able to vote in any Nigerian election and contribute meaningfully to the development and evolution of a new Nigeria.
I would like to see a full-fledged Nigeria government-diaspora investment partnership, with the Nigerian diaspora organised into formidable investment partners capable of taking on some developmental projects, such as build-operate-transfer or public-private partnership arrangements in the telecommunications, technological, education, health, transportation, and or banking industries, among others.
As a Nigerian in Canada, I would like to see the Nigeria Diaspora Commission function as a full-fledged ministry, engaging the organised diaspora community to contribute their experiences and expertise much more meaningfully, as well as invest in some developmental projects in the country.
