Nigeria lives not only on borrowed money, but also on borrowed time —Farotimi

Lawyer and rights activist Dele Farotimi speaks to DARE ADEKANMBI on the state of the country, presidential candidates, saying the death of Nigeria as a political entity is inevitable without restructure it.

We know that you have shown more than a passing interest in Nigerian affairs. What is your assessment of the state of the country?

There is nothing normal in the country right now. Our situation is dire and I don't think anyone needs to make a more informal observation of our situation to come to that conclusion. We just continue to hope that things will get better, not that there is any objective basis for hope. The situation calls for discouragement, but we must continue to hope. It is the basis of all faith and we Nigerians are pretty good with our faith. It's all that keeps us going. But in reality, there is nothing that engenders hope. Everything looks dark. The economy is grim and the security situation itself is grimmer. It doesn't take a genius to come to this conclusion. Our situation is obvious. I live in Lagos and grew up in Ibadan. I can't drive to Ibadan without heart palpitations, without worrying about what I might find on the road. A few weeks ago my people traveled to Ibadan from Lagos, I was busy praying for their safe journey. The Oyinbo travel everywhere in their country without having to hold vigils and prayers. But it's not the same for us here. It is only our faith that has kept us going and not anything physical that suggests we can get the best. Only the worst seems to happen here.

Do you see that any of the proposed presidential candidates can turn things around after President Muhammadu Buhari?

They even give more causes for depression.

How do you mean?

Is it Tinubu who excites me to be in the race or is it Atiku? When both major political parties have already offered you identical twins to choose from. One is as depressing as the other. Are these the people who will give a reason to hope? As things stand, no one can even speak with any degree of confidence that the elections will be held. I was reading in the newspapers of the Governor of Kaduna State saying that the terrorists had made it clear that there would be no elections in some places in the state. Seven local government areas are left to terrorists in Niger State and we are talking about elections. Our circumstances sometimes demand that we stop using our brains and just switch to our faith. If we start using our brains, it will be easier to embrace despair than hope in our situation and yet we have to hope. Without hope, what are we left with?

When you asked me to look at those jostling for presidential power, I don't see too much hope. I know that Peter Obi engenders hope in young people and then there are people who have hope in Omoyele Sowore. Beyond these two, who do you look to that will engender hope? I don't want to be a doomsayer, giving people reason to shiver and be afraid. But let's be realistic and tell the truth. Bola Tinubu has been the power in place in Lagos for 23 years. But Lagos State is worse today than it was in 1985 when I came to the state. It's obviously worse. How many people are sending their children to public schools in Lagos State today? I attended LASU from Ibadan where I grew up and came to LASU in 1985. How many people I attended in school will send their children to LASU today? The objective bases for optimism are simply not there. We can continue to embrace the illusions and delusions and then comfort ourselves with those multiple illusions that we could embrace. But that doesn't change the fact that when we objectively assess our situations, there is only despair.

Is there really anything fundamental that any of those you mentioned as inspiring hope among some Nigerians can do without something being done to the current structure of the country and even the constitution on which it rests?

When a people is bereft of hope, danger creeps into that society. That young people look to these two in varying degrees for hope is not because the situation itself, when critically examined, supports hope. But the thought is that it has to start somewhere. Perhaps if there is leadership that is interested in change, then there might be a change that they can propel or crystallize. But before anyone can make a fundamental change from Nigeria, there must be a fundamental restructuring of the country. The question of restructuring is no longer a political issue. I imagine it has become an existential problem. It's practically impossible no matter who wins even if it's between the apocalypse candidates, i.e. Tinubu or Atiku, neither...