Friday, June 19, 2015

Re: USA Africa Dialogue Series - Fwd: [Raayiriga] Senegal gets rid of its senate to save money

I agree with you regarding the obscene remunerations, including the heist that happens in the name of severance packages. I am also for looking into the reduction of the numbers of federal and state houses. 

One senator per state seems to me a good way of helping to alleviate the high cost of government as a result of having non-viable states that you mentioned. Reducing the number of senators from the current 109 to 74 (I suspect you meant 73) will definitely represent a significant improvement. I believe we can do better than that; the reason for not reducing the number to 37 should not simply be a concern for no having two "governors". The Constitution clearly defines the roles of Governor and Senator, so there would never be two "governors". It is like saying the a state (in a one-senator system) would have two "senators" because it has only one governor.

Ugo


G. Ugo Nwokeji
Director, Center for African Studies
Associate Professor of African American Studies
University of California, Berkeley
686 Barrows Hall #2572
Berkeley, CA 94720
Tel. (510) 542-8140
Fax (510) 642-0318
Twitter: @UgoNwokeji

On Fri, Jun 19, 2015 at 6:04 AM, 'Klalli' via USA Africa Dialogue Series <usaafricadialogue@googlegroups.com> wrote:
Why 37 and not 74 senators? The point is you don't want another "governor" representing the state, so I will suggest more than one senator per state. What about reducing the number of people in the federal house and state houses. The point is, as long as we have too many nonviable states and local governments, we will continue to have the problem of high cost of governance. While we are at this, as a minimum, we must eliminate the atrocious separation packages by our political office holders. I don't see why the separation package should be different from what the regular civil servant receives, nobody should be receiving the kind of separation package for working for 4 years (or fewer years in the case of ministers). 

Kasim L. Alli.

-----Original Message-----
From: Ugo Nwokeji <ugo@berkeley.edu>
To: usaafricadialogue <usaafricadialogue@googlegroups.com>
Sent: Thu, Jun 18, 2015 8:39 pm
Subject: Re: USA Africa Dialogue Series - Fwd: [Raayiriga] Senegal gets rid of its senate to save money

I do agree, to some extent, Victor's and Kasim's takes. However, I don't agree with the binary they are setting. 

My post was more than simply whether to abolish; in fact, I explicitly suggested in recognition of the stabilizing role the Senate can play, the reduction of senators from the current 109 senators to 37. How did you guys miss that? Can't we have a conversation along these lines, or is the senate and the current numbers so important to preclude reform?

On the question, Why the Senate? My answer is that the house follows roughly (at least in theory, given our unreliable population figures) and speaks more directly to representative democracy. We can certainly prune the numbers of House members, but I certainly would not suggest, for example, retaining 109 senators while cutting the house down to 37 members! 

It is certainly important to have this conversation, but simply keeping the numbers the way they are does not seem optimal to me.

Ugo

G. Ugo Nwokeji
Director, Center for African Studies
Associate Professor of African American Studies
University of California, Berkeley
686 Barrows Hall #2572
Berkeley, CA 94720
Tel. (510) 542-8140
Fax (510) 642-0318
Twitter: @UgoNwokeji

On Thu, Jun 18, 2015 at 4:33 PM, 'Klalli' via USA Africa Dialogue Series <usaafricadialogue@googlegroups.com> wrote:
The comparison with Senegal is not appropriate. First, as stated in this story, half of the Senegal Senate is appointed by the President and not elected. Second, the Vice President's position in Senegal has never been occupied. So what is the savings you are getting here. If you want to reduce the cost of government in Nigeria, why pick on the Senate and not the House of Representatives with more people and a higher budget. In my opinion, you can reduce the cost and size of the government without abolishing or destroying the institution. We all need to think about more creative way of reducing the size and cost of government in Nigeria, rather than abolishing the institutions.  Certainly we can all think of ways of strengthening the institutions rather than suggestions that have the potential of concentrating powers in the executive. Maybe one way to reduce the cost of government is to reduce the number of states and local governments, since most of these states and local governments cannot sustain themselves anyway.


Kasim Lekan Alli.
Atlanta, GA




-----Original Message-----
From: Ugo Nwokeji <ugo@berkeley.edu>
To: usaafricadialogue <usaafricadialogue@googlegroups.com>
Sent: Thu, Jun 18, 2015 6:38 pm
Subject: Re: USA Africa Dialogue Series - Fwd: [Raayiriga] Senegal gets rid of its senate to save money

I agree with you, Adeshina. 

I was thinking exactly about exactly this same solution for Nigeria, in the wake of the obscene amounts regarding the remunerations of our federal legislators! Maybe, the Senegalese case will give Nigerians the will to do so. The Nigerian Senate is supposed to balance power between the big and small states, like its United States counterpart, but has this really been the case in our 16 years under the current system?  Methinks not.

The imperative of reducing our overbloated public sector and reallocating the savings toward capital projects and social services (such as education and health care) far outweighs any benefits of the Senate, if there is any to start with. My take would have been different if our senate had served any useful purpose, such as in the U.S. case, for example, where Wyoming's 563,000 people speak in equal terms with California's 37 million. This is not the case in Nigeria. Even if it was, serious questions remain about whether the Nigerian senate, as presently constituted, is financially sustainable. It is not. 

The most we can afford is one senator per state, reducing the number of senators from 109 to 37 (a reduction of 66 percentage points). Even then, we will still need remove the useless allowances. (I am, however, not a big fan of reducing salaries to the extent driving public officers to desperation.) The second of option -- of reducing the number of senators from 109 to 37 -- may be a better option, in the hope that nurturing this institution will yield the desired results.

What we need is the will. Certain entrenched interests will likely oppose any movement in this direction. The Senegalese have shown the wisdom in a people adjusting their political system according to changing realities. We must seize this moment -- the Senegal example and the "change" wave -- to push for this change. 

I am willing to join up with whoever really wants to see change in this direction. This will require a constitutional amendment. I would not simply submit the proposals to President Buhari and leave it at that. This is something we have to DEMAND by whatever legitimate means possible, including the mobilization of the public.

However, I would leave the office of the Vice President as it is.

G. Ugo Nwokeji
Director, Center for African Studies
Associate Professor of African American Studies
University of California, Berkeley
686 Barrows Hall #2572
Berkeley, CA 94720
Tel. (510) 542-8140
Fax (510) 642-0318
Twitter: @UgoNwokeji

On Thu, Jun 18, 2015 at 12:11 PM, 'Adeshina Afolayan' via USA Africa Dialogue Series <usaafricadialogue@googlegroups.com> wrote:
Now, isn't this a very brave political move? Abolishing the senate and the office of the vice president! Talk about making democracy less expensive and more development-friendly on the continent. Then talk about the political will to move a state forward. I am more amazed that the members of the senate were willing to participate in such a scheme without mounting a political "war". 

This is the kind of news reports that should make PMB's daily news briefing. In the final analysis, development is a possibility. We just need a leadership that perceives and acts. 



Adeshina Afolayan

From:"Oluwatoyin Adepoju" < toyinkaidara@gmail.com>
Date:Thu, 18 Jun, 2015 at 2:54 pm
Subject:USA Africa Dialogue Series - Fwd: [Raayiriga] Senegal gets rid of its senate to save money


---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: ibrahim HASSAN keynaylalemi@yahoo.co.uk [Raayiriga] <Raayiriga@yahoogroups.com>
Date: 18 June 2015 at 05:56
Subject: [Raayiriga] Senegal gets rid of its senate to save money
To: " Raayiriga@yahoogroups.com" < raayiriga@yahoogroups.com>, "Nasir Ahmad El-Rufa'I (Gubernatorial Campaign Organisation)" < 1643003895926445@groups.facebook.com>


 
 
This undated photo shows Independence Plaza in Dakar, Senegal
Rignese via Wikimedia Commons
 
 
image
 
 
 
 
 
Senegal gets rid of its senate to save money
West African nation hoping to save $15M by doing away with one of its two national legislative bodies
Preview by Yahoo
 
 
 
(CBS/AP) DAKAR, Senegal - Senegalese lawmakers, who are divided between a 150-seat national assembly and a 100-seat senate, voted to do away with the senate, passing a law which dissolves the institution in order to save an estimated $15 million.
Minister of Justice Aminata Toure explained that the suppression Tuesday of the senate is intended to curb government spending, and will provide the cash needed to help the victims of the yearly rains which have left thousands homeless and killed at least 13 people.
Unlike the national assembly, the senate is a relatively recent institution, and has become a symbol of government waste. It's been frequently pilloried and described as an instrument of cronyism, a way to reward loyal party workers who did not get elected to the larger national assembly. Around half the senators are directly appointed by the president.
Congress also voted to abolish the office of vice president, establish in 2009 by then-President Abdoulaye Wade, the BBC reports. It has not ever been occupied.
© 2012 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Posted by: ibrahim HASSAN < keynaylalemi@yahoo.co.uk>
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