Afrigather Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu on Monday joined former Secretary-Normal of the Commonwealth, Chief Emeka Anyaoku; Afenifere chieftain, Pa. Ayo Adebanjo, members of the Nationwide Meeting, former governors and eminent nationwide leaders to demand for a brand new Nigerian Structure that will replicate true federalism and handle the issue of the nation..READ FULL ARTICLE HERE>>>>
They stated Nigeria has two choices in getting a really federal structure by both adopting the suggestions of the 2014 Nationwide Confab or go for a comparatively cheap straight elected Constituent Meeting on a non-party foundation for producing a broadly desired structure for Nigerians.
Sanwo-Olu and the eminent nationwide leaders spoke on Monday through the Nationwide Constitutional Dialogue organised by The Patriots, a Pan Nigerian Group of Eminent Nationwide Leaders of Thought, with the theme ‘Lawful procedures for actualising a Folks’s Structure for Nigeria’ in honour of the late famend constitutional lawyer, Prof. Ben Nwabueze.
JUST IN: Don’t follow what you have no ‘sure’ knowledge of – Naira Marley advises
The occasion held on the Nigerian Institute of Worldwide Affairs (NIIA), Victoria Island, Lagos was attended by Governor Sanwo-Olu, Anyaoku, Adebanjo, the Secretary to the Lagos State Authorities, Barr. Bimbola Salu-Hundeyin; members of the Senate, Senators Aminu Tambuwal and Gbenga Daniel; former Governors Kayode Fayemi (Ekiti), Rotimi Amaechi (Rivers), Ibikunle Amosun (Ogun), Donald Duke (Cross River), James Ibori (Delta), Victor Attah (Akwa Ibom) and Rauf Aregbesola (Osun).
Others have been constitutional legal professionals Chief Mike Ozekhome (SAN) and Mr. Tunji Abayomi; President of Arewa Youths Consultative Discussion board, Alhaji Yerima Shettima; former Deputy Nationwide Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Occasion (PDP), Chief Olabode George and different eminent leaders and pro-democracy activists, Prof. Anthony Kila, Dr. Idika Kalu, Elder Solomon Asemota and Comrade Wale Okunniyi, amongst others.
Talking on the occasion, Sanwo-Olu backed the agitation for a really federal structure for Nigeria to devolve energy to the states and charged the Nationwide Meeting to place a authorized framework in place for the beginning of a brand new structure that will be decided by the Nigerian folks.
He stated the dialog across the making of a brand new structure must be pushed additional. “If eminent Nigerians; individuals who have used higher elements of their time serving this nation have a dialog and we can’t take it ahead and be sure that we’ve got a whole resolution, then we’re losing our time. Given the variety of folks which are right here, we must always take this dialog and make it very efficient.
“Many audio system have stated that it isn’t the Nationwide Meeting that may make these amendments and it makes quite a lot of logical sense. It’s for the Nationwide Meeting to represent a legislation the place folks will come collectively and make these amendments themselves.
“I stand right here as a frontrunner of the biggest state. How effectively will we see the anomalies that we’ve got in our nation? Why would a federal company come to manage the water in entrance of Ozumba Mbadiwe? Why would a federal company 1,000 kilometers away come to see the wants of my folks in Ozumba Mbadiwe? These are a few of the issues that we have to take ahead and say that certainly we have to have a real federating state and have the ability to amend this structure.
“I’m a prepared convert. No matter we have to do now, there are such a lot of serving and former governors right here, allow us to make the modifications that we need and let the soul of Prof. Ben Nwabueze relaxation in peace as a result of that is one thing that he fought for over 60 years of his life. And we’re nonetheless right here speaking about it. We now have the chance to make these modifications now and I stand right here to say to you that we’re prepared to work with you to make these modifications.”
Sanwo-Olu who famous an anomaly for a federal company to manage the waterways in Lagos, stated it was regrettable that people who find themselves advocates of true federalism instantly change as quickly as they get to the Centre.
He stated: “I don’t know what’s fallacious on the federal stage since you would see state officers combating the identical course, the second they obtained to federal they modified 360 levels and commenced to battle the identical factor that they supported on the state.
“There are a number of examples and I’m questioning what’s going on, what is going on. I don’t know what is going on. There’s something in regards to the federal that shocks everyone, we should be daring to unravel what’s within the centre. We should be daring, audacious and forward-looking and handle the problems. That is our nation and we’ve got nowhere else.”
Talking earlier, Anyaoku referred to as for a Constituent Meeting to midwife a brand new structure, saying the present 1999 structure lacks the legitimacy anticipated in a pluralistic nation like Nigeria.
Anyaoku, the Chairman of The Patriots stated the current structure shouldn’t be appropriate to handle the myriads of challenges confronting Nigeria and referred to as for the adoption of the suggestions of the 2014 nationwide convention or the conduct of an “cheap” constituent meeting that will be nonpartisan to have a really federal structure.
He stated: “Our current 1999 structure as amended not solely lacks the legitimacy that flows from a democratically made structure but additionally has proved to be unsuitable for tackling most of the critical challenges confronting our nation. It’s a broadly recognised incontrovertible fact that the essential areas of the nation have considerably deteriorated and proceed to deteriorate.”
He stated Nigeria has suffered deterioration on many fronts within the space of safety of the residents’ lives and properties, financial well-being of the residents, infrastructure together with roads and training and well being services, social cohesion and social values, and the sense of nationwide unity.
Elder statesman and Afenifere chieftain, Chief Ayo Adebanjo referred to as for the implementation of the 2014 Nationwide Convention, which in keeping with him represented how the folks of Nigeria wish to be ruled contemplating the illustration of the folks from completely different elements of the nation that attended the nationwide convention.
He stated what Nigeria wants is a model new structure and never the modification of the present structure, which the Nationwide Meeting desires to embark on..READ FULL ARTICLE HERE>>>>
