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THE paradigm shift occasioned by the Russia -Ukraine conflict in the international order has resonated the call for United Nations Security Council (UNSC)’s reform in order to adequately respond to the challenges across the globe and adapt to the geopolitical realities of the 21st century. This raises a prospect for the African continent in the quest for permanent membership of the council. However, the possibility of Nigeria ascending this position is a concern that continues to generate questions putting into consideration the current state of the country. President of the United States, Joe Biden, had before the 77th session of the United Nations General Assembly on 21st September, 2022 affirmed the support of the United States (US) for an expansion in the number of the permanent and non-permanent members of the UNSC, particularly, the inclusion of countries from Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean to the council.
Admitting more members from Africa will bring the organisation closer to the people and reduce the feeling of marginalization of the continent on the global stage. However, the question begging for an answer is: which country from the continent has the capacity to ascend and join the US, United Kingdom (UK), France, Russia and China on the permanent seat of the UNSC? For several years, Nigeria has been contributing to the UN peace keeping mission across the globe. Its contributions to peace and security in Africa cannot be overemphasised, especially in the restoration of peace to Liberia and The Gambia, among others. In 1990, Nigeria led a joint military intervention force, the Economic Community Monitoring Group (ECOMOG) deployed by ECOWAS to help restore peace, and order in Liberia. Out of the 6000 troops that were sent to the country, Nigerian troops accounted for the 84 per cent. Between 1991, 1992 and 1993, when the ECOMOG standing troops rose to 12,000, Nigeria alone contributed 10,000 troops. The same was replicated following the conclusion of the second civil war in the country when Nigerian peacekeepers were deployed to monitor a ceasefire agreement established under the UN Mission in Liberia (UNSMIL) in September 2003.
This Big Brother spirit was made manifest in the struggle that led to the collapse of apartheid regime in South Africa in 1991 and prevented the “democratic recession” that would have resulted to a great catastrophe in Africa when the then president of The Gambia, Mr. Yahya Jammeh, decided not to hand over power to his successor, president Adama Barrow in 2017. Without the contribution of Nigeria, most of the successes recorded by the ECOMOG within the West African sub-region and beyond would have been a mere dream. That is why some have argued that Nigeria is the salt of Africa, a country set on a hill which can not be hidden. Unfortunately, the country that is described as “the salt of Africa seems to have lost its savor” with the worsening insecurity, poverty, economic backwardness among other malaises spreading like a whirlwind across the country. These have created an impression that Nigeria is only “beautiful abroad but ugly at home.” This seems to be the best description of Nigeria looking at the “staggering war” against Boko Haram terrorists in the North East and the expansion of the terrorist web in different forms, sizes, and styles across the six geopolitical zones of the country.
In the North-West, for instance, there are bandits, while at the North-Central there were herder/farmers clashes that graduated to kidnapping. In the South-East, there are the unknown gun men while in the South-South, insecurity is manifesting in the form of oil theft and in the South- West, it is seen as ritual killing. This is further worsened by the chronic poverty pushing the country towards the path of a failed state. Poverty seems to have eaten deep into the fabric of the country’s image with the continuous rating of Nigeria among the top poverty infected countries of the world. Not too long ago, Nigeria was named the poverty capital of the world despite the promise made by President Muhammadu Buhari to uplift a hundred million Nigerians out of poverty in ten (10) years. The funniest part of it is that the more the money is pumped into poverty alleviation and empowerment programmes the more people fall into the “pit of poverty.” Currently, more than 40 percent of people living in Nigeria are living below the poverty line. This is likely to increase because of the growing inflation rate that has drastically reduced the purchasing power of many, particularly, the underemployed people in the country.
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The inability of the government to tame this has crumbled many small and medium scale businesses, thereby aggravating the crisis of unemployment and serving as “supply chain for the work shop of the micro nationalists and war lords masquerading as messiah.” The more the budget on security, the more news of insecurity and agitation for secession continue to dominate the media space. Though this seems not to be peculiar to Nigeria alone looking at the vortex of crisis across the globe, what seems to be different is the in ability of the government to bring to justice the perpetrators in most cases. This abysmal performance could reduce the chances of Nigeria ascending to the permanent seat of the UNSC by giving opportunity to countries which ordinarily wouldn’t have contested Nigeria’s interest in the permanent seat of UNSC the opportunity to do so. This can be deduced from the display that followed the adoption of the Ezulwini Consensus by the African Union in 2005.
The Ezulwini consensus is a proposal designed by the African Union to project the common position of Africa on the UNSC’s reform. It demanded at least two permanent seats and five non-permanent seats for the continent. Shortly after Nigeria unofficially showed interest in representing the continent should the proposal be accepted, South Africa that Nigeria contributed greatly to its independence in 1991 started showing interest. Though this is not strange because all states are believed to be equal at the international system regardless of their shapes, sizes, strength and years of existence, the display ought to have caused the Nigerian government to look at the past, evaluate the present and intensify efforts towards the diversification of the country’s economy; wage serious war against corruption, rejig the security architecture, and invest heavily in education and advanced technology so that Nigeria could have something to present when the time comes for the reform of the UNSC.
- Oluwasanmi writes in from Ibafo, Ogun State.
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