Brexit: Will June 23 go down well in the UK’s history?

by Orukotan Samuel

There is a proverb that says, “Cows that do not stay as a herd become victims of a tiger.” Living within every civilization are competing ideas, principles and standpoints. For this reason, a democratic nation of individuals is a fratricidal goal. However, the ultimate test for patience and endurance is the contractual phenomenon known as ‘Marriage.’ Unfortunately, the 43-year-old marriage between the European Union, EU and the United Kingdom, UK has ended in a divorce.

It is quite an unfortunate event but do we because of a broken relationship, then question the solidarity of the UK on impatience and weakness? If doing so is even right, shouldn’t we consider patience as the last resort of a parasitic relationship, so we were told?

The UK is the world’s fifth largest economy and leader of the 53-nation Commonwealth. The UK also possesses an adequate amount of nuclear weapons.

This consequently, makes the UK one of the most potent military force in the world. In addition, the UK has a permanent seat on the UN security council and has a “special relationship” with the United States (US) which the US President Barack Obama himself said (in April, 2016) was enduring.In effect, the UK is re-joining the rest of the world. This is the decision referred to as Brexit and those that support the decision from tip to toe are called Brexiters.

On one fateful Thursday- 23 June, 2016, about 72 percent of 46.5 million eligible voters turned out to cast their ballot. Suffice to say, the power of the ballot box cannot be overruled in a democratic environment. Majority of Britons voted in favour of leaving the 28-member-bloc, prompting the resignation of Prime Minister David Cameron which would take effect starting from October 2016. This in itself has dealt a huge blow to Europe’s possibility of achieving greater unity since WW2.

Here are some few facts about Brexit. 48 percent of Britons voted to remain in the EU while 52 percent voted to leave the EU. London, Scotland and Northern Ireland voted to remain but Wales and much of England had voted to leave. The reasons Brexit supporters gave was that: the UK has not been able to control its own borders over the years due to transfer of sovereignty, it has not been able to sign its own free trade deals. The pound which was first introduced in February 1985, 31-years-ago, has hit its greatest low and biggest drop in UK’s history. Also, British people were fed up with living under the yoke of Brussels (the minority). Indirectly Britons were tired of the democracy that instituted the majority to having their say and the minority their way. Suffice to say, the minority are the political elites in the UK.

The results of that Thursday’s EU referendum have further exposed the rifts in the British society. The outcome of that Thursday’s historic EU referendum is a huge “blow” to Europe- a grave test and a shock.

German chancellor Angela Merkel called the result a “blow” to Europe. French President Francois Hollande admitted too that it was a “grave test”. Even Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras said “the EU has taken a blow”.

However, Maria Krontria, a 45-year-old Greek teacher made a very profound statement about UK’s decision. She had said: “I went to bed with the UK in the EU and woke up to an EU without the UK. It is a shock.” In addendum, she had added; “EU is to be blamed for this. It missed its target from being a Europe for the people to a Europe for multinational businesses”.

Across the cosmos and at home, many have come to terms with UK’s decision. Cameron, one of those few said that the British people made “a clear decision to take a different path”. France’s foreign minister Jean-Marc Ayrault also said “Negotiations (over a new UK) have to go quickly in the common interest.”

The EU president Donald Tusk had announced, “we now expect the UK government to give effect to this decision of the British people as soon as possible, however painful that process may be.” He had also mentioned that “any delay would unnecessarily prolong uncertainty.”

Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty on the EU allows a member state to notify the EU of its withdrawal. In essence, Article 50 is the formal mechanism for leaving the EU. Once the Article is triggered, the stipulated charter of the Article is also triggered. The position of the law is that once the Article is invoked (the UK’s referendum is a case in point), the long and complicated [Brexit] process must start in spite of the uncertainty that surrounds the time-scale of when to trigger Article 50 after a referendum.

The UK has taken a decision. It is like two roads diverged in a wood. That thing is called choice.  It is the once-in-a generation opportunity that must be respected.  This is a risk that majority of Britons have felt was worth-taking. The best we (the rest of the world) can do is to wish the UK well in its new project. However, truth be told, there is an identity crisis within Europe. The European project has been plagued with plethora of self-inflicting problems like mismanagement of the refugee crisis, the denial of sharing responsibilities, border policies, non-accountability of EU commissioners to member states, war in trade deals just to mention but a few.

This writer had on 19 April, 2016 urged the EU to stand up and be counted in a contribution titled “Refugees crisis: The EU must stand up and be counted” and published in The Guardian Newspaper. It warned the EU on the need to forge enduring stability through proper integration of its member states. It also recommended that the EU should be a Europe for the people, of the people and by the people. Not a Europe for multinational businesses and shady dealings. In good conscience, deep democratic changes are needed in the EU. After all, it has “not” been running its affairs under the fundamental basics of democracy.

Expectedly, the EU still has looming problems staring at it. There is still a possibility for more divorce cases across Europe. The Greeks could be the next to leave the EU. It could be the Dutch. Who knows? If the Greeks decides to leave Europe today, they would be called ‘Grexit.’

On that ultimate Friday, a day after the UK referendum, Brexit dominated the Greek media. To many Greeks, EU must be destroyed. Its open border policy must be reversed. For EU has been a cruel master. If EU referendum is to hold in Greece today, majority of Greeks would likely vote for Greece to leave the EU. That’s an optimistic bet.

According to a poll by the research unit of the university of Macedonia in Northern Greece, fifty (50) percent of Greeks are scared by Brexit. Could there be Grexit? That is the question that keeps raising fear amongst the Greeks.

There are some gains of EU membership, no doubt. There are also pains too. However sad, one is still compelled to ask, what is the fate of EU citizens who live and work in Britain? Also, what is the fate of British expatriates who live and work freely in the EU? These are growing concerns that must be addressed by the EU and relevant stakeholders.

For Nigeria as a country, we can only be quiet at a time like this. Our candid suggestions may not be needed at this critical time if we don’t want as a nation (clearly in need of international support) to lose out in this divorce. More importantly, we must learn some few lessons from the UK referendum as a nation. One, national interests must be supreme to any external considerations. Two, bureaucracy should be characteristically based on accountability, transparency and proper management of natural and human resources. Three, bilateral relationships that frustrates the interest of the people should not be allowed to continue. Four, educating the citizens on some of the country’s bilateral relationships sometimes too, is expedient.

Some Brexiters took their decision on the fulcrum of ignorance. Some Britons don’t even know the implications of that decision they already took. They had only followed the crowd. Governance is about the development of people.

In Nigeria therefore, the people (for them to be developed) must be carried along in the democratic process. Perhaps, town-hall meetings which provide an interface between leaders and the people should be more encouraged.

Now that the UK has joined the rest of the world, who wins in all of these hoo-hah? What will become of 23 June, 2016 in the annals of the UK’s history if in the long-run, expectations were cut-off? Will the 23^rd of June still go down in the UK’s history as their Independence day as it is being clamoured for by Brexiters? Whatever your response is, it is dependent on time. Time is the only judge for our erstwhile colonial master’s decision to leave the EU, not human beings.

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Op–ed pieces and contributions are the opinions of the writers only and do not represent the opinions of Y!/YNaija