13 hours ago
12 ARTICLE AD
Obi Prof Epiphany Azinge is the 14th Asagba of Asaba. In this interview with MATTHEW OCHEI, he speaks on his emergence as the traditional ruler of the Delta State capital, the controversial statutory allocation sharing formula between his kingdom and Oko, tax reform bills and more
What is your New Year message to the people of Asaba community and how far has it been since you ascended the throne three months ago?
The purpose of this engagement is for us to appreciate and underscore what had transpired since I ascended the throne on the October 5, 2024, I had been able to hit the ground running, with the interest of the community and the well-being of the people and the trajectory we tried to move and of course our projections for the future, the peace that has prevailed in this land of ours, and how fast our city is growing. I often say that Asaba remains the fastest-growing capital city, not just in Nigeria but in Africa. And we plan to engage the government of Delta State, to partner and support them in order to make sure that our state capital is one that remains the pride and the dreams of all. So far, we have be able to keep the ball rolling, our primary consideration is putting Asaba first, promoting their interest to the best of our ability, ensuring that infrastructural facility are in place and making sure that the welfare of our people is paramount in all that we do.
As a legal icon and former Director-General, Nigerian Institute of Advanced Legal Studies, your predecessor had canvassed for recognition of traditional institution, will you toe that line?
It is important to look into the role of traditional rulers both constitutionally and otherwise so that a pride of place can be created for them under the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. That has been the vision, that has been the clamour from my predecessor in office and it is one that I have also keyed into and I believe the time has come for us to eloquently push that and make sure that we set it to be in the front burner of national discourse at this point in time and it is one that I am prepared to drive to the best of my ability. To move into traditional governance, that is very key to us in this regard we are also trying to explore the opportunities trying to put in the front burner the traditional administration of justice system. Incidentally, this is something that I championed the research into while I was Director-General of the Nigerian Institute of Advanced Legal Studies. Research has shown that almost 80 per cent of disputes are settled at the traditional level and the remaining is just at the court system that we have. So, we want to see how we can elevate that to a pedestal a traditional administration of justice and to encourage people to appreciate the fact that there is a lot of virtue in a traditional administration of justice and to also make people appreciate and understand that what we have now as Alternative Dispute Resolution is more or less a flow over from our traditional administration of justice. We want to bring this to the forefront and encourage our people that not all matters should go to the court system that we inherited, that there’s a lot of virtue and a lot to be achieved if we reduce and accept the traditional administration of justice system that is part and parcel of us. I was asked recently, ‘when there is a pronouncement from the courts and there are pronouncements from Otu Ihaza, which is the governing body in Asaba, which one is to be adhered to?’ I quickly told them, ‘I will adhere to the court because I am a product of that system.’ But I said the court cannot come to the village to implement their judgment. So, it is something that people should bear in mind, that the court system can rule, but can they implement, can they enforce? We have to be wary how we navigate and chart this path between a blend, between our traditional administration of justice system and of course, the judicial system, the inherited legal system that we operate. Incidentally, this is something I championed a research into while I was Director-General of the Nigerian Institute of Advanced Legal Studies. The research has shown that almost 80 per cent of disputes are settled at the traditional level and the remaining is what we see at the court system. We want to see how we can alleviate the traditional administration of justice system and encourage people to appreciate the fact that there is a lot of virtues in the traditional administration of justice. We also make people appreciate and understand that what we have now as alternative dispute resolution is more or less a flow from our traditional administration of justice. We want to bring this to the front burner and encourage our people that not all cases should go to the court system that we inherited. There is a lot of virtues and a lot to be achieved if we accept the traditional administration justice system that is part and parcel of us.
We learnt that some contenders for the kingship went to court challenging your emergence, how true is this?
When an exercise had been completed and overwhelmingly and unanimously concluded, it remains the prerogative of anyone not satisfied with the outcome to exercise the next right of option. While a host of the contenders for the throne sent in their congratulatory messages after my selection and coronation, a few others considered it necessary to go to court, which is understandable and acceptable to me. My legal team is prepared to engage them in court and pursue the case to the highest level, the issues raised by them as spurious and discordant to the popular decision of Asaba people, who unanimously chose me to succeed the late Asagba, Prof Chike Edozien, on August 18, 2024. I hold no grudge with anyone, and happy with my peaceful and transparent emergence and coronation as the 14th Asagba of Asaba, those who lost in the contest have the right to feel differently
We also learnt that the court had stopped stipends from local government to the palace from the reign of your predecessor. What is the position now?
On the sharing of the five per cent statutory allocation for traditional rulers from the Local Government Council, which had been an issue between the late Asagba and the traditional ruler of Oko kingdom, and had now been extended to me, all attempts to agree on the sharing formula had failed. A proposal of 80 per cent for Asaba and 20 per cent for Oko had been made, Oko insisted that it should be 70 per cent to 30 per cent, but the latest proposal of 75 per cent to 25 per cent was made at the end of a meeting with representatives of Oko on December 31, 2024. I’m sure most Asaba people will be hearing this for the first time because it was a meeting that held recently, and I am ventilating it for the first time to the public. So, that’s where we are, and we hope that superior reason will prevail, that people will accept it on both sides of the divide, and that will form the terms of settlement and that will bring to a conclusion the matter in court.
Governor Sheriff Oborevwori personally presented the Staff of Office to you, instead of his deputy, who is saddled with such responsibility…
On the presentation of Staff of Office to me by Governor Oborevwori, instead of his deputy, Monday Onyeme, which was criticised by some individuals, it is proper that things are put in proper perspective. The Asaba throne is a first class position. There is no denying that fact. Besides, this is Asaba; this is the capital of Delta State. This is Asaba that used to be the capital of Nigeria. I sit on the throne of this land. There is nothing untoward in what happened. We must put that in context. So, let nobody protest because Asaba remains the capital of Delta State and there should be exceptions to the rule.
The next general elections in 2027 are fast approaching. Now that you are a traditional ruler, many politicians will come to you. How will you be able to handle their endorsements?
On how to navigate when the politicians come during electioneering period for royal blessings and possible endorsements, the traditional ruler should be the father of all. In doing so, I will remain apolitical; I will not be partisan in any way, to the extent that you have to accommodate all of them as your children at the appointed time. The only thing I know is that nobody can pressurise me to do what I don’t want to do. Yours is to assess your children (subjects), pray for them, give them all the blessings and ensure that things work out for them. You are not expected to pitch tent with anybody and we should never be pressurised.
One of the issues delaying investment in Asaba is the land issue popularly known ‘Deve.’ Despite Delta State Government’s law against this malaise, it seems not to have resolved the issue. Is there any traditional way of handling the menace?
We have raised the issue of obstructing developers repeatedly with our people, we encourage our people to obey the laws of the land. As far as that is concerned as the development levy that they try to collect, Asaba will disown them and Asaba will not protect them in any way.
The tax reforms bill has been a topical national discourse. As a constitutional lawyer, what is your take?
Though, I have not studied the tax reforms, Nigerians don’t pay taxes, it cuts across all sectors, but another point is that when people pay taxes, they also expect judicious use. The usage of taxpayers’ money is very important, and that is the challenge the government is having. For us to have a meaningful tax reform, we must show by example that we are prepared to judiciously use taxpayers’ money. There must be in place public accountability and that is what we want to see before tax reforms will take place in Nigeria.
What is your New Year message to President Bola Tinubu?
My New Year message is better life for Nigerians. We don’t want hardship of any kind in our system and therefore the government must try to cushion the effects. A buoyant and prosperous economy must be put in place for better education for our children and we want better medical care. Nigeria should be able address its issues internally and give hope to the young generation and believe in Nigeria to stop the tide of ‘Japa’ syndrome and make people believe that we can stay in Nigeria and build careers in Nigeria.
