By Stephen Olufemi Oni, Ilorin
A Nigerian Civil war veteran and former Federal Commissioner for information and Culture from 1975 to 1977, Major General Ibrahim Bata Malgwi Haruna (rtd), has blamed Nigeria’s woes on series of bad leadership it has been subjected to over the years.
Haruna made the comment in Ilorin on Saturday while speaking to newsmen as a guest during the Retirement golf tournament held in honour of Hon.Justice Mudashiru Oniyangi, held at the Ilorin golf club and sponsored by Mallam Faruq Ismail and Momrota Pharmacy.
When asked to compare the state of the nation under the military and democratic rule, the war veteran lamented that while Nigeria didn’t experience good leadership under the military, it is also not getting any respite during the democratic era.
Lamenting that the horrendous state the country is in now amid the ravaging insecurity and corruption, is as a result of the cumulative failure of both the military and democratic leadership that have administered the country since its independence.
He said: “Have we had true democracy or have we had true military governments? I can only criticise both the military and democracy but the shortcut of it all is that the combination of both has brought us to where we are today.
“If they had succeeded, we wouldn’t have insecurity in the nation as we have today, we wouldn’t have unknown gunmen, we wouldn’t have public officers who connived to add N80billion to their budgets.
“What we are enjoying today is the combination of successes and failures of previous administrations but our fear today is that we shouldn’t topple the good we have earned and replace it with the worse.”
The octogenarian, however, suggested that the country can solve some of its problems with the aid of journalists and leaders of various institutions, saying that, “look at ASUU, we can solve their problem, our monetary value that is being eaten up by inflation, but the journalists and leaders of institutions are all therefore challenged.”
The Elder statesman also noted that the insecurity in the country can be blamed on the feeling of hopelessness that is growing in many citizens, especially the poor and disadvantaged, suggesting that the country can only get out of its myriad of problems through objective and committed leadership and patriotism and change of mind.
I.B.M Haruna, as he is popular known while he was the Federal Commissioner for Information and Culture, established the National Television Authority (NTA) in 1975 and the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), aside advocating the establishment of the Press Council of Nigeria and professionalization of the journalism profession.
He left the Nigerian Army as a Major General in 1977, the same year he was appointed the Chairman of Nigeria’s Participation in Africa’s Festival of Arts and Culture (FESTAC ’77).
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