Ludwig Wilhelm Erhard, a famous German politician and the second German chancellor who was known for leading the West German postwar economic reforms and recovery once said “a compromise is the art of dividing a cake in such a way that everyone believes he has the biggest piece.” That is what I am hoping the Kaduna State Governor, Malam Nasir Elrufai and the Nigerian Labour Congress will achieve when they finally sheath their swords and decide to come to the negotiation table.
According to the online Oxford Learner’s dictionary, compromise is an agreement made between two people or groups in which each side gives up some of the things they want so that both sides are happy at the end. It is also a solution to a problem in which two or more things cannot exist together as they are in which each is reduced or hanged slightly so that they can exist together. Compromise is reached when two disputing parties sit together, placed their grievances, complains, challenges and issues and finally decide to reach a compromise.
It seems Both disputing parties have stood their grounds and no one is willing to yield. The battle line has been drawn too and with turns of event, we are yet to see light at the end of the tunnel. In an interview with the press on the face-off between Elrufai and the Nigerian Labor Congress, NLC, the Kaduna state Governor who was asked about compromise told journalist that the is no grounds for compromise. Elrufai said addressing and referring to the leadership of NLC and in particular, the NLC president, Ayuba Wabba, “They have engaged in economic sabotage. That is an offence under the Miscellaneous Offences Act and we want him, we will bring him to justice. We are looking for him, he should report to the nearest police station or report to us, he will be prosecuted for economic sabotage. There is no grounds for compromise, they have used their last ultimate weapon.”
Already, the polity is heated with reports of threat between disputing parties. While Elrufai is accusing the NLC for vandalizing government properties and economic sabotage has also issued an arrest warrant on Ayuba Wabba, the NLC president. The NLC and other affiliate associations on the other hand had issued threat of shutting down all activities in the country not just in Kaduna, the battle ground. The NLC has seek the arrest of Elrufai and placed a huge bounty on his head. The NLC also has accused the state government for unleashing thugs on the peaceful protesters.
It is on this ground that I call on both parties to come to the negotiation table and seek compromise even though it does not always resolve problems of this kind. Compromise is one of the tools used in resolving conflicts, confrontations and disagreements in negotiation and mediation. Compromise according to Dale Eilerman is a “frequently settled resolution and not typically the optimal solution sought by either party (conflicting parties). It may generate a functional or material solution but not resolve emotional or behavioral issues associated with disagreement.”
Compromise is described as a win and lose agreement in which both parties get something of what they want but not all of what they want. It is very possible for Elrufai and the leadership of NLC to come to the table and negotiate and it is also possible for both parties to get something out of the negotiation table.
Some of the hindrances to a successful compromise are use of power and influence, which both the NLC and the kaduna state government are fully exercising. In essence, the warring parties must not abuse power and use excessive force that they feel they have. What is more important here for both parties is that they should all yield so that they can win. It is said, when two elephants are fighting, it is the grass who suffers and right now the citizens are the ones suffering. Using compromise to settle this kind of dispute requires the Kaduna State Government and the NLC to know that the outcome may not march their expectations and anticipations. It may be accepted but not optimal as both parties can be reluctant or resisting. So once again, I call on the Elrufai government and the NLC to “yield to win.”
Abbas Abubakar umar
Jabi, Abuja
