By Mohammed Ahmed
Recently, the national assembly want to propose a bill to regulate the behaviour of NGOS in Nigeria, but it suffered strong resistance from some CSOs and NGOS , these organizations using various means and organizing various discussion activities to disrupt and threaten the actions of the National Assembly, it actually embodies their hypocrisy and fear, they just want to hide their unknown bad behavior, in fact when considering the optimal way to mitigate poverty in the underdeveloped world, proposed solutions often involve international non-governmental organizations (INGOs) which are predominantly based in the USA, Europe, and a few Gulf States which are able to attract donor funds from the Global North and the Arab world.
The Nigerian NGOs that these INGOs collaborate with, fund and support, have no means to independently generate the income they require to carry out their stated goals and objectives.this money dynamic places these local NGOs in a very vulnerable position where they can be coerced to implement agendas that are in favour of the donors rather than the local communities in which they operate.
In several nations that have suffered violent political uprisings and even sacking of legitimately elected governments by “popular protests”, there was an initial action by NGOs and civil society groups to motivate the citizens to oppose “bad governance” and to seek to immediately change them.
Often through non-constitutional means. several Nigerian NGOs and civil society groups and individual actors, have played, and are still playing the role of instigating political change outside the electoral process, calling for revolution and uprising, like that which led to the violence that accompanied the ENDSARS protest in Lagos and other Nigerian cities in 2020.
Fears that many of these civil society actors are in breach of our financial laws, regarding the way that they receive and utilize the funds from these INGOs. With very little auditing and accounting, they appear to use this funding to support lavish personal lifestyles and private investments, as well as to influence our national electoral and legislative processes with their many outreaches and in both esteemed and critical institutions.
There is the peculiar case of Amnesty International (Nigeria), Amnesty have constantly criticized the Nigerian Government of being dictatorial producing false evidence to back up their claims. Amnesty International (Nigeria) have taken sides with separatists like IPOB and IMN, openly undermining the Nigerian State.
Amnesty International condemned a Bill ‘The Protection from Internet Falsehood and Manipulation Bill’ in Nigeria, whereas a similar Law is being passed in the UK which is the Amnesty International’s Country of origin and they have refused to condemn it. In 2018, the Nigeria Army in a statement through the Director Army Public Relations Brigadier General Sani Kukasheka Usman called for the closure of Amnesty International.
In his statement, he said ‘Nigerians should be wary of Amnesty International (Nigeria) because its goals are to destabilize Nigeria and to dismember it’. The statement came as a response to Amnesty International’s accusation that ‘Nigerian authorities are encouraging impunity that is fueling insecurity across the country’.
On Tuesday 2020, a group of protesters stormed the Abuja Office of Amnesty International (AI), the protesters held placards with having captions of ‘Amnesty International is backing terrorism in Nigeria’.
One-man organisations with neither structure nor organisation like Connected Development (CODE), but a fanciful name, a business card, an indeterminate address and a fancy-dresser who goes by the name of Chief Executive with a talent for peripatetic conduct in NGO circles and the larger society. In due course, someone took the trouble to prepare a directory of NGOs in Nigeria.
Our finding: Many states in Nigeria have more NGOs than companies and direct investments. Each NGO looks for funds from international agencies and local donors. Most of them are vehicles for gaining access to government departments and agencies.
The result was the emergence of the NGO chief as an entrepreneur. And some of the guys really live it up. Loud fashion. Big cars. Opulent quarters. Like everything Nigerian, the NGO community, once a haven of good, became a vehicle of access to the good life. The legacy of the early heroes has since been overtaken by many who are out there to make a quick buck, or offer special services to the highest bidder, no matter how shady the deal may be.
It is perhaps not surprising therefore that the Nigerian Government has been trying to control the NGO community, has been very suspicious of it, and continues to attack the civil society community. The contempt is mutual. Our objective is to ensure transparency and accountability in the NGO sector to the extent that while freedom to act on behalf of the people was important, such freedom must come with responsibility.
Is this what they call human rights and freedoms? The time has come for soul-searching within the Nigerian civil society community. It is not everyone that carries placards that means well. It is not every loud-mouthed, fist-clenching character that is a revolutionary. It is sad that the Nigerian Revolution is a gathering place for anyone at all who can shout loud or bold enough to show up at the barricades.
Not even NGOs like International Centre for Investigative Reporting (ICIR) The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability” Project (SERAP) or any American sponsored NGOs should be above reproach or the law. But who will guard the guardians? Quis custodiet ipsos custodes? Although the resistance from all sides is very large but an NGO management law is very necessary in the current state of Nigeria.
By concerned citizens in Nigeria (Spokes person, Muhammad Ahmed).
