These falsehoods form the deceitful foundation upon which the Nigerian constitution was constructed. Furthermore, the constitution originated from military decree 24 of 1999 and was neither sourced nor certified by the people through a referendum, further solidifying its questionable legitimacy. Consequently, the document remains fundamentally floored.
It is widely acknowledged that the Nigerian constitution is built on a foundation of lies and dishonesty. Not only did it plagiarise the United States constitution by starting with the phrase “We the People”, but it deceitfully added that the “people firmly and solemnly resolved to live in unity and harmony as one indivisible and indissoluble and sovereign nation under God”.
These falsehoods form the deceitful foundation upon which the Nigerian constitution was constructed. Furthermore, the constitution originated from military decree 24 of 1999 and was neither sourced nor certified by the people through a referendum, further solidifying its questionable legitimacy. Consequently, the document remains fundamentally floored.
The dishonest foundation of the constitution has fostered a culture of deceit that has permeated the governance and individuals shaping its implementation over the past 24 years. The constitution’s dishonesty is evident in its omissions and commissions. For instance,the people of the Southeast did not agree to have only five states while the other five zones have six states or more, each. Similarly, the people of Lagos did not consent to have fewer local councils than Kano state, despite Lagos having a larger population.
One of the most glaring defects of the 1999 document is the omission of a ban on ex-military officers from running for the office of president or governor. It is apparent that the military would not exclude themselves as actors or beneficiaries of the falsehood they propagated. This omission has allowed the emergence of two civilian juntas, with the current junta (currently completing its tenure) leaving much to be desired. If there were a one-off pause button in life, most Nigerians would have utilised it during the Buhari civilian junta.
The dishonest foundation of Nigeria’s constitutional document has directly and indirectly conditioned Nigerians to be a dishonest people, with the degree of their dishonesty seemingly increasing with higher educational attainment. Nigerians all over the world are often initially perceived as dishonest until proven otherwise. As a Nigerian, the burden of proof lies on individuals to demonstrate their integrity, rather than on their accusers to establish their corruption or dishonesty. Thus, Nigerians are often pre-emptively condemned as corrupt and dishonest until they can prove otherwise.
The Nigerian constitution operates as the second layer of a pyramid of corruption, nepotism, bigotry and hatred. The first layer of this genealogy of lies and dishonesty embodies the British legacy of divide and rule, coupled with approximately twenty-five years of military regimes predominantly led by northern elements.
The greatest weakness of the Nigerian entity lies in its ethnic diversity. The entity’s diversity tends to act as a centrifugal rather than a centripetal force. The concept of one Nigeria, often portrayed as a unifying ideal, is more illusory than substantive,. Ethnicity and religious bigotry have proven to be the most portent weapons of the political class and their supporting masses.
Consequently, the military-inspired decree 24 of 1999 is not merely a product of lies, both through omission and commission, by untruthful individuals, but even its most basic contents have become subjects of duplicitous and dishonest interpretations.
For instance, according to section 134, 2(b) of decree 24 of 1999, “a candidate for an election to the office of president shall be deemed to have been fully elected where, there being more than two candidates for the election, he has not less than one quarter of the votes cast at the election in each of at least two-thirds of all the states of the federation and the federal capital territory, Abuja”. The provision may seem straightforward to the uninitiated, including some legal writers and interpreters, but alas, it is now a subject for lay and legal masturbation.
The phrase “and the federal capital territory, Abuja”, has remained unchallenged within the dishonest Nigerian constitution since its inception in 1999 mainly because all past presidents elected under the constitution had easily secured one quarter of the votes cast in the territory. However,, the recent pronouncement by INEC Chairman on March 1, 2023, declaring Bola Tinubu as the winner of the presidential election, despite not securing twenty-five percent of the votes cast in FCT during the February 24 election, has sparked a wave of interpretations and debates. This innocent phrase has lost its innocence and has become a target for various legal, dishonest and political manipulations.
In the English language, the conjunction “and”, is a simple connector used to join related ideas, words, phrases, or clauses. In legal contexts, “and” universally signifies an additional requirement or condition that must be fulfilled. For instance, if a university’s governing rules state that a candidate must score 140 in the UTME and be at least 18 years old to gain admission, both conditions must be met i.e., conditions of 140 in UTME and being 18 years old. The meaning is clear and straightforward in an honest and transparent environment, requiring no further interpretation.
However, within the framework of a dishonest document like the Nigeria constitution, the phrase “and the federal capital territory, Abuja” has become susceptible to dishonest interpretations from lawyers, politicians, professors, and the masses who are entangled in their own subjugation. In the coming weeks and months, this innocent conjunction, “and,” will likely be subjected to distorted interpretations, further undermining the truth.Let me put it in another form. In the coming weeks and months, the word “and”, shall be a target of lay and legal darts shot from the aperture of satanic jaws oozing dishonest interpretations of an innocent conjunction found in a dishonest document known as the Nigerian constitution.
Critics may argue that one needs to possess specialised knowledge to understand how constitutions are interpreted. However, it should be reminded that constitutions are meant to be interpreted literally. Even if some choose to adopt the golden rule or statutory interpretations, the underlying truth remains constant. Unfortunately, considering the track record of the Nigerian judiciary, doubts arise as to whether they will uphold the truth or join the dance of shame by aiding the distortion of facts. Previous instances in states like Imo, Yobe, and Akwa Ibom have shown that the judiciary can contribute to the erosion of truth.
These Independent National Electoral Commission’sinduced electoral