Sukuk is good, but a global Islamic agenda —Dr Austin Nweze

Dr Austin Nweze is currently a member of the faculty team at the School of Media and Communication (SMC), Pan Atlantic University, Lagos, Nigeria. He spoke with journalists on the last day of the 2017 Chevron-sponsored Advanced Writing and Reporting Skills (AWARES ‘17) at the SMC. EBENEZER ADUROKIYA brings the excerpts:

On the Sukuk Islamic banking, there are fears in different quarters, from CAN, saying that it’s a surreptitious plan to islamise the country. What’s your take on this as an expert?

Well, the issue is that the Islamic financial community has been making some incursions into Nigeria’s economy because of the importance of Nigeria and the global committee of nations, especially in Africa and it makes only business sense for some interest groups to want to invest in Nigeria.

It started mainly when the former governor of Central Bank, Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, laid the foundation by setting up Islamic banking system, Jaiz Bank and other insurance institutions.

Basically, what that means is that even if it is a non-interest thing, you can share profit. It’s a profit sharing thing, it’s not as if it’s free money and they have recently raised bonds which you have an option of either investing or not investing. Some people, when they invest in such market, they say because of my religious beliefs, don’t buy me shares of companies that produce alcohol. In the same way it could also happen this time. So looking at it purely, on a business side, there’s nothing wrong with it.

But on the other hand, it’s also a part of the global scheme for Islam; not just Nigeria, but for Islam to dominate the world’s business, the world religion, and the world politics.

It is a grand strategy by the global Islamic community to do this and Nigeria happens to be the major entry point into Africa because of sheer population and the size of the economy; so, that’s why Nigeria is important to them and that’s why CAN is crying.

They are using government vehicle to promote Islamic agenda, not only in Nigeria, but in Africa. Their affairs are founded in a way that they are supposed to react the way they’ve reacted, its normal. But because Nigeria is supposed to be a secular state and even though we are not members of the Islamic union, they should not use government vehicles to promote Islam.

But you find out that they are even doing more than that. The government is paying for people to go on pilgrimage, government’s involvement in religious affairs is not good for the nation. Business-wise, there is nothing wrong with Sukuk, but religious and faith wise, there’s some religious undertone in it and if you dig deeper you’ll know the grand plan of Saudi Arabia, Iran, pushing their religious ideas into this part of the world.

Singapore was the first non-Islamic country that adopted Sukuk. UK and some other European countries are also into it.

They are doing it purely on business model and Singapore’s institution; they don’t promote any religion at all. They use Confucius ideals to run their government in Singapore. Britain is non religious which the Arab would have basically taken over and so they adopted it purely on business. But there’s this mutual suspicion between the Muslim north and the Christian south about Nigeria.

We don’t have problems with the Western Muslims; so these are some of the challenges they have.

Apart from that, it is a purely business thing which is good because the government created that suspicion by using government’s assets, government’s resources to fund religious affairs which they are not supposed to get involved. It’s based on Koran. So the principle is gotten from there and it’s also in the Bible in Psalm 4 or 5, talking about usury, you should not be charging interest. So the suspicion created by the government is a major issue.

What do you think of the concession between the Federal Government and Dangote?

I think what government is trying by all means is to create a Frankenstein monster that will haunt the government in the nearest future. Monopoly has never helped any economy and what government has done is to create only one Dangote instead of creating five million Dangotes. Policies made to favour one man are not right and thinking that one man has the capacity to solve Nigerian’s problem, is never done anywhere in the world.

 During the PDP administration of Goodluck Jonathan, waivers were given to some people including Dangote and you know what that means. Giving a 10-year tax break to all the businesses, you know how much revenue government will be losing and the monies will go to individual pockets. This is a huge mistake.

 Mobil built a road, Ajegunle Road. Mobil did not ask for a tax break, it’s part of their social responsibility. So government is shirking its responsibility to Dangote. So, why do we have a government? Why don’t we have Dangote as central government? Refineries are not working, government is not able to build refinery, or even allow people that are licensed to build refineries. They are hoping on one man, Dangote, for us to have regular supply of fuel. When Dangote’s refinery comes on stream, that it will solve all our problems is wrong thinking!

Some people are looking at the cash inflow that would come from the port Dangote fixes it.

By right, Dangote should do that without any tax concession because he bought half of the port. So, if he has to do a good CSR, he should do the road; not as government giving him tax break, he owns part of the port. The little tax he is paying, the government is denying itself that revenue.

This kind of concession, is it revocable if another government comes in?

Of course, we have seen new government come in and do that. Aladja Steel Company is also being revoked; Ajaokuta Steel is being revoked, as long as there is a legal way to get around things.

Finally, let’s talk about the concession of airports, seaports, railway and so on. What are your thoughts on the airport that is about to be concessioned?

The MM2 was also concessioned out to Bi-Courtney to run for a number of years before they hand over to government because government does not have all the resources to do some of these projects. So, it’s a PPP kind of relationship that is required for government to do. It happened in Singapore and others; it is called infrastructure funding.

Private capital is always brought in to help government. Most of the airports like the London Airport is being concessioned; there is nothing wrong, it depends on who and how much revenue will come into the government. It will make more sense if government gets more money by concessioning out to private business than only themselves.

Will government make at least 50 per cent or 100 per cent more by running a place or by concessioning it? 

There is money that they’ll get and the remittances they get out of this thing. If it makes business sense, fine, let them do it. Also part of the deal will be that they should constantly, maybe every other year, improve the airport, and not let it run the way it runs today. So whichever one is better let government do; not like some of the concessioning they did and they are not making any money at all.