Our Reporter, New York
Renowned journalist and political commentator, Dr. Chido Onumah, has delivered a scathing critique of Nigeria’s political class, likening them to “birds of migration” who move from one political party to another in search of personal gain rather than national progress.
Speaking during an exclusive interview with Rudolf Okonkwo on 90MinutesAfrica to mark his 60th birthday, Onumah argued that Nigerian politicians lack ideological commitment and cannot be regarded as true elites in the classical sense.
Citing views earlier expressed at his birthday symposium by former minister Oby Ezekwesili, he noted that politicians in the country frequently switch allegiances ahead of elections, driven largely by access to power and resources. According to him, this pattern undermines the possibility of meaningful reform within the political system.
The author of the book “We Are All Biafrans,” described the political elite as “bankrupt and indolent,” accusing them of depending almost entirely on state resources while lacking the capacity to drive production or development. He added that many leaders fail to address even basic issues such as education and healthcare, often opting instead for foreign alternatives for their personal needs.
“Nigerian political elites are perhaps the most bankrupt and indolent anywhere in the world,” the author noted.
“They live off the resources of the state. They neither have the capacity to produce nor to induce production. All they’re interested in is political power every four years, and they will gravitate to any platform that gives them that opportunity to grab power. Even enlightened self-interest has no meaning to the Nigerian political elite. These people can be in power for years and won’t be able to fix the most basic dysfunction within their immediate environment.”
Reflecting on Nigeria’s historical trajectory, Onumah, the co-publisher of Ikengaonline, suggested that the country might have evolved differently if it had emerged as separate nations at independence. However, he acknowledged that despite its complexities, the prospect of breaking up Nigeria today remains highly impractical.
He traced many of the country’s structural challenges to the aftermath of the 1966 military coup, arguing that military intervention disrupted the federal foundation agreed upon at independence. According to him, the shift toward a centralized system weakened regional autonomy and continues to affect governance.
“Unlike in other countries where military coups happened, the Nigerian military took over and changed the configuration of the country from a federal republic to a unitary state with command and control at the center. If the military had not destroyed the foundation of the country, we would have picked up after they left and continued our development as a nation on that trajectory. Today, we wouldn’t have been talking about whether to go back to regionalism or to reorganize the country based on the current geopolitical zones. This is something we can hold the military responsible for,” he explained.
Onumah also highlighted longstanding imbalances in state creation, noting disparities between regions. He pointed out that while some zones have more states, others—particularly the Southeast—have fewer, raising concerns about equity in representation and resource distribution.
Also, while addressing the structure of governance, he criticized the constitutional arrangement that places local governments under federal control. Using examples from Lagos State, Kano State, and Jigawa State, he argued that the current system creates disproportionate advantages in resource allocation.
“Nigeria is the only country practicing federalism where local governments are created by the National government and enshrined in the Constitution,” Onumah said.
“You have a situation where Lagos State, that has over 20 million people has only twenty local governments. On the other hand, Kano State, with fewer people, has 44 local governments. Jigawa State was carved out of Kano State and has 20 local governments.
“So, 64 local governments have come out of the old Kano State. This is a deliberate attempt at internal colonization. And since resource sharing is based on local governments, Kano will receive multiple times more resources than Lagos, which has more people. All of these have to stop with a restructured and reconstituted federal republic.”
As a way forward, Onumah called for a fundamental restructuring of Nigeria into a more functional federal system. He advocated granting greater autonomy to states, including the ability to operate under their own constitutions and symbols, while limiting the central government’s powers to core national responsibilities such as defense, foreign policy, and currency management.
