​​What Former President Goodluck Jonathan Said At The Panel Of Dialogue Of Civilisations Rhodes Forum’s 15th Anniversary Summit In Greece.

AN ADDRESS BY DR. GOODLUCK E. JONATHAN (PRESIDENT, FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF NIGERIA, 2010-2015) AT DOC RHODES FORUM ON ‘MULTIPOLARITY AND DIALOGUE IN REGIONAL AND GLOBAL DEVELOPMENTS: IMAGINING POSSIBLE FUTURES’, 06 OCTOBER, 2017

Protocol

Let me first commend Rhodes Forum for advancing the philosophy of Dialogue of Civilisations (DOC) in this past 15 years.  I also wish to thank the Forum for inviting me to share my ideas with this highly intellectual discussants at this year’s programme, taking place in Greece; a nation deservedly recognised as the cradle of Western civilization, birthplace of the Olympic Games, as well as democracy.

2.  I consider the theme for this year’s Summit, ‘Multipolarity and Dialogue in Regional and Global Developments: Imagining Possible Futures’ quite pertinent, in view of the prevailing dynamics in global politics. It is a topic suitable for interrogation by academicians, civil society, technocrats, and politicians, in order to provide a clear direction for the world, as it seeks the path of sustainable peace and development.

3.  I will leave the theoretical concepts of historical global power formations for my co-discussants who are in the academia so that I can quickly share with you what I consider as practical issues that are critical to advancing peace in the world.

I will also share with you what I did with my fellow African leaders to bring peace (in Africa) at the continental, sub-continental and national levels.

4.  Even then, I have to state that at different times, the world has witnessed various power configurations which started in the modern world as a multipolar arrangement that became bipolar after WWII. It eventually morphed into a Unipolar sphere of influence after the collapse of the Soviet Union about two decades ago, before other power centers emerged in the  21st Century to define what we have now as the return of the Multipolar formation.

5.  That the world needs peace is a declaration no one ever contests, given what the absence of peace portends. That the only road to a peaceful world is through dialogue is also incontrovertible. What then raises a valid contention is the argument over the steps taken by leaders towards realizing peace. Are they the right or wrong steps?

6.  At the end of World War II, 51 nations came together to form the United Nations on 24 October, 1945. The UN Security Council was also formed the same day. The UN was set up principally as a replacement for the ineffective League of Nations, in order to prevent another world war and guarantee world peace.

7.   In terms of carrying out the mandate of preventing a Third World War, we could say the UN has done exceptionally well up to this moment. However, we cannot say the same thing over its mandate of ensuring world Peace as it is obvious that the UN has not achieved much in this regard. From 1945, when 51 nations came together and now that the UN has 193 member states, the world has not known real peace.

8. Late Fela Anikulapo-Kuti, a Nigerian philosopher and musician of international repute, tried to rebrand the UN in his own way, by calling it ‘Disunited Nations.’ He might have exaggerated. Nonetheless, his grouse was that nations, going through bitter conflicts were all members of the UN. Yet, the global body, primarily set up to guarantee world peace, appears not to have been able to muster the required willpower, to resolve those issues that cause conflicts, for decades.

8.  Over time, since the establishment of the UN, the world has seen conflicts within and among nations of catastrophic and tragic dimensions, without the global body living up to its billing to provide far-reaching solutions. For instance, the East Asia and the Korean Peninsula have not known real peace for 60 years because South and North Korea have remained technically at war since the Korean War (1950-1953) after the warring sides failed to sign an armistice.

10.  We have similar situations between India and Pakistan, and in the unending Middle East crisis, which is at the heart of endless bloodletting in the zone. There was also the Rwandan genocide as well as the specific cases of Bosnia, Somalia, and Darfur in Sudan, which unraveled with so much bloodshed.

In each case, the UN was helpless in resolving the conflicts. The ongoing wars in Syria, Iraq, distressing Rohingya dilemma in Myanmar, as well as threat of conflicts and wars in other parts of the world, are all signs that the UN is failing the world.

11.  Below the influence of the Super Powers are other power centres and regional blocs like the European Union, the Arab League, Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN), Organisation of American States (OAS), African Union (AU), the Southern African Development Co-ordination Conference (SADCC) and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS). There is no doubt that all these groups have been pivotal to peace and economic development in the countries within their authority. However, they have apparently been helpless, in view of disputes between nations within their fold and those outside their influence. This is where the role of a reorganized UN, the one that inspires trust among these blocs and all nations, is most required.

12.  The truth is that despite decades of efforts at the multinational level towards ensuring peace, the world has remained mired in developmental challenges that question man’s ability to govern, collaborate, unite and make his world better. Those are challenges of poverty, healthcare, inequality, and conflicts. This is because the world has not matched this zeal for an organization with a corresponding gusto for trust, good faith and the conscience for productive engagements, negotiations, and dialogue.

13.  I believe in the UN as an effective global body that should lead the quest for the peace we desire. I am also convinced that for the organisation to bring about world peace, the UN method and approach to dialogue must be reviewed. It is important that all member nations of the UN must have faith in the organisation, and believe that it is fair and representative enough to protect them. The Security Council which is the most powerful UN organ, with "primary responsibility for the maintenance of international peace and security”, cannot inspire that confidence, because of the way it is presently configured.

14.   The present situation where one nation, out of 193 nations, can upturn the decision of the Security Council, has not been helpful in galvanizing the confidence and mutuality, necessary to bring peace to the world. If anything, the system, which has remained unreviewed in over half a century, has been more effective in opening new frontiers for conflicts, rather than providing answers to the ones it sought to resolve.

15.  The UN dialogue method must, therefore, change.

16.  The Security Council of the United Nations must be democratized, in view of new global realities, in the interest of peace. As presently constituted, the UN is portrayed as a platform where nations come to quarrel and display their might, instead of its statutory role, as a forum for unity and world peace.

 I appreciate organisations such as the Rhodes Forum for stepping in to fill the gap, with programmes that promote understanding, unity, and equality.

17.  However, for the world to experience sustainable peace, effective leadership must come from the UN, the flagship of global organisations. The UN that would inspire this kind of leadership should ensure equity, with leading nations and power centres representing different regions of the world, sitting at the Security Council as permanent members.

18.  In Africa, the restructuring of the Organisation of African Unity (OAU) to African Union (AU), coupled with the formation of the regional blocks such as the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA), ECOWAS and SADCC has helped reduce conflicts significantly. This has given the continent a glimmer of hope in the way it applies dialogue as an instrument of regional peace and development.

19.  In West Africa where I come from, ECOWAS and my nation Nigeria has resolved, as well as prevented, many conflicts and stabilised and strengthened democracy in many countries in the sub-region. Some of the countries we were able to stabilise are Liberia, Sierra Leone, Niger, Cote D’Ivoire, Mali, Guinea Bissau, Burkina Faso and The Gambia. We were able to achieve this because of intense and purposeful dialogue.

20.   In ECOWAS, we have not only adopted dialogue as a productive means of resolving political conflicts and violence, but have also moved many steps towards economic integration. I believe that successes have been recorded in this regard with the policy on free movement of persons and goods, similar to what obtains within the EU countries. We were able to achieve all these through a process of sincere dialogue.

21.  When I was in office as President, I championed the cause for good governance, transparent elections and peaceful power transfers, because I also believed that at the heart of the dialogue for a more peaceful world, is the need to cultivate a culture of democracy and good governance at the national levels. This is a good way to reduce local tensions that could blossom into a global crisis.

22.  Dialogue is a formula that serves any community well, in preventing or resolving conflicts. In Nigeria, through a process of dialogue, we arrived at an amnesty programme that brought an end to the crisis in the Niger Delta, an oil-rich region in my country that accounts for all the oil wells that remain the mainstay of Nigeria’s economy.

23.  Sometime in 2014, I had a thought in my mind. Nigeria is easily the most ethnically and religiously heterogeneous society in Africa, and one of the most diverse nations in the world.

Many times, these different ethnic groups are pulling in diverse directions that as a leader, you may experience genuine fears that the center may not hold.

24.  At that time, I asked myself, how can I as President, help build a more harmonious union in Nigeria. One based on the words of our National Anthem which ends with 'to build a nation where peace and justice shall reign'.

25.  To address this I convened a National Conference where the various ethnic groups and other stakeholders deliberated for five months on the future of the country. They had the mandate to discuss and advice the Government on all matters pertaining to our nationhood, except the sovereignty of the country.

26.  On Thursday, August 21, 2014, I received the report. Our general elections came up six months after the national conference. The confidence and national goodwill the conference inspired, helped bring down the tension during and after the general elections. It was a confidence-boosting outcome, despite the predictions by some international bodies that Nigeria was going to disintegrate in 2015.  

27.  There is one important point people often overlook whenever the issue of global peace arises. There can be no peace at the global level if there is no peace in the heart, conscience, and character of leaders of nations.

28.  I spoke recently at another event about my belief that the best leadership flows from inspiration and not from power or force of arms. Conscience-based leadership build nations and ensure peace while ego based leadership throws nations into conflicts and chaos.

29.  In closing, I have to make one thing clear: irrespective of centers of control, it is only genuine dialogue that can bring peace to the world. A peaceful world will reduce financial crises, armed conflicts, terrorism, unchecked migration, religious conflicts and secessionist agitations.

30.  It is obvious that investments thrive, and economies grow better in peaceful environments, leading to improvement in education and other social investments and reduction in poverty.

31.  The advocacy by the Rhodes Forum and similar organisations is exceedingly important because they provide neutral platforms for advise on global issues. However, for the world to experience a lasting peace, there must be fairness, equity, and justice in the UN Security Council.

32.   I say this because I envision smaller or hitherto less powerful nations acquiring new capacities and capabilities, in this age of technology’s boundless potentials, with which they may even challenge the Super Powers for relevance. Only a democratised United Nations where every nation or power bloc truly commits to processes for sustainable peace, could eliminate the possibility of such apocalypse.

33.  So when I am asked to proffer solutions for achieving global peace and sustainable development, I will say that the answer lies in genuine dialogue. This entails negotiations, hard bargaining, inclusivity, persuasion and confidence building.

I thank you all