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Tag: Restructuring

  • Restructuring won’t solve Nigeria’s problem, says Rep member

    Restructuring won’t solve Nigeria’s problem, says Rep member

    A lawmaker, Rep. Chinedu Ogah, says the nation’s development is largely hindered by greed among the political leaders rather than restructuring.
    Ogah, representing Ezza South /Ikwo Federal Constituency, said this at a news briefing on Monday in Abakiliki.

    He said that restructuring would not solve the country’s complex problems and called for moral reorientation and attitudinal change, especially among the political class.

    “The problem of the country is greed, not restructuring. Our problem is that we are selfish and greedy,” he said.

    He said that good governance could only be enthroned when the people freely elect their representatives as against imposition.

    Ogah also spoke on the need for peaceful coexistence among the various tribes and geopolitical zones of the country.

    “We depend on each other for our socio-economic survival,” he said, adding that no section of the country could survive independent of others.

    The lawmaker also faulted the call for state police, saying that the institution would be abused by the well-to-do in society.

    “Imagine the multitude of security personnel in the hands of one politician, when there is no state police, how much less when states are allowed to control their own police.

    “The implication is that members of the National Assembly and powerful politicians will use state police to intimidate and clampdown on those who cannot speak for themselves,” he said.

    Ogah commended President Muhammadu Buhari for re-jigging the nation’s security architecture.

    He called on the citizenry to support the president’s current war against insecurity.

    “If you are a leader and there are security breaches in your area and you cannot fish out the masterminds, then you are not a leader elected by the people,” he said.

    Ogah listed some of his achievements since he assumed office to include securing 295 employments for his constituents and other Ebonyi indigenes.

    He also said that he had spent over N70 million on scholarship for his constituents in various Nigerian and foreign tertiary institutions.

    He said: “We gave out N50 million in the first tranche to students both from my constituency and other parts of Ebonyi studying in various tertiary institutions within and outside Nigeria.

    “We also gave N20 million in the second tranche,” adding that he was committed to reducing the financial burden on students from the constituency.

    He also spoke on his activities toward making health services accessible to the people, including the payment of hospital bills for indigent patients.
    “We have constructed a functional hospital at Item, Amagu Ikwo Local Government Area.

    “The hospital we are building at Idembia in Ezza South is at 95 per cent completion, while plans have been completed for the renovation of Enyibichiri Hospital in Alike.

    “We have attracted the construction of many bridges, linking many communities and villages across the constituency, in addition to fixing some rural roads,” Ogah said.

  • Nigeria Needs The Peace Serum of Restructuring, By Atiku Abubakar

    Nigeria Needs The Peace Serum of Restructuring, By Atiku Abubakar

    Nigeria needs to be restructured. Just look at Nigeria today. This truth is staring us in our collective faces.

    The current ethnic and religious clashes bedevilling Nigeria are symptoms of the disease. They themselves are not the illness. We must address the root causes of the various symptoms of insecurity Nigeria now faces.

    Nigeria needs peace, unity and prosperity. But all three of these virtues are dependent on Nigeria having social justice. Without justice, there cannot be cohesiveness in a multi-ethnic and multi-religious nation as Nigeria.

    Nigeria has foundational issues, which we have to resolve. Until we resolve those issues, our nation may not fulfil its potentials of being the beacon of light for the Black Race, even if we have the most righteous people at the helm.

    It has been said by many behavioural scientists that ‘the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again, but expecting different results.’

    We have been operating from the same unitary foundation, and have given it several names since January 15, 1966. Other than slight name changes, the mould has remained the same, and the yield has changed little.

    Yes, there will be improvements and retrogressions here and there, due to the character and personality differences of the men and women at the helm. However, until the foundational fault lines are addressed, whatever progress one man makes, can be undone by his predecessor, often in a matter of months.

    If half of our people expend their energies pulling Nigeria in one direction, and the other half counter by pulling her in the other direction, our motherland will never know peace, unity and prosperity.

    Nigeria needs to restructure to avoid the various failed state prophecies, first advanced by an American think-tank against Nigeria in 2006. Most recently regurgitated by the Financial Times of London, about a month ago. To be forewarned is to be forearmed.

    What is a failed state? A failed state is a political sovereign geographic territory whose government has deteriorated to a level where it cannot fulfil a sovereign government’s basic responsibilities, such as the security of life and property, and upholding law and order.

    Nigeria is not a failed state. However, we are at risk of becoming a failed state, if we do not resolve our foundational challenges that make it rather difficult for the central government to discharge her responsibilities effectively.

    We should have done this long ago. I can only point to the Chinese proverb that says “The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The second best time is now.”

    We ought to understand that the collapse of Nigeria into a unitary system was an ad hoc temporary solution to a challenge that emerged after the January 15, 1966 coup decapitated the central and most regional governments. It was not meant to be a long term solution.

    Lessons have been learnt since that time, and nobody would be foolhardy enough to repeat such unfortunate actions that took Nigeria through such difficult periods. Moreover, our institutions are now much stronger than they were during our infancy.

    In proof of this assertion, I cite the recent multi-partisan rejection by the National Assembly of a certain nominee of the President. We did not have a strong Parliament to act as a check on the Executive in 1966. We had the institution, but we did not have the strength in the institution. Now we do.

    I believe that Murtala Mohammed was speaking prophetically of these times when he said on January 11, 1976 that “Africa has come of age”.

    Nigeria is now of age. It is now time to trust the component units of this federation with devolution of powers from the central government to handle issues such as policing, in tandem with the Federal Government.

    Because let us face it, if we keep on doing what we have been doing, we will keep on getting what we have been getting. Or worse, we will experience the law of returns.

    This is because the second law of thermodynamics is clear. The total entropy of a system either increases or remains constant; it never decreases.

    In simple terms, what this means is that, unless we halt the entropy, things will not improve.

    And the late Tai Solarin was an excellent example of this. We all remember the late Mr. Solarin as an educator, who happened to be one of the most altruistic Nigerians that ever lived. He was incorruptible and was a specimen of patriotism.

    If ever there was a good man, that person was Tai Solarin. He founded Mayflower Secondary School, which went on to be a world-renowned centre for sound education and the building of moral character in young people.

    He became an activist and an advocate for good governance, and was an acerbic critic of various governments, through his weekly column in the Daily Times, Nigerian Tribune and The Guardian Newspapers.

    However, when in 1989, Tai Solarin became the first chairman of the People’s Bank, we saw that being a good man alone could not help him make the bank good. The bank became rife with corruption, mismanagement and entropy.

    Why? Because good men, heading institutions without good foundations, will still produce destruction, taking us back to what Prophet Mohammed said:

    “Do you know what is better than charity and fasting and prayer? It is keeping peace and good relations between people.”

    It is time to feel our nation’s pulse and steer the ship of state away from a failed state destination. Restructuring is the lighthouse that will guide the Nigerian state’s ship back to the safety of land.

    And it is not just for the big line items. Even in the little things, we must restructure, for the good of our people.

    Take a sector, like agriculture. Today, Nigeria is dependent on food imports for much of her food needs, primarily or even entirely because agriculture is controlled from Abuja. And that idea is preposterous.

    The states are better equipped, by reason of proximity, to handle agriculture. Yet, how many states have a ministry and an agriculture commissioner?

    And now, the disconnect between Abuja and the states leads to a situation where one of the most fertile and stable nations on Earth has to import food.

    In pre-colonial times, and during the First Republic, Nigeria had well marked out grazing routes. That ensured that grazers knew where to go and restricted contacts between them and farmers.

    Now, these routes have disappeared. Of course, when this happens, there will be conflict. Brazil and Argentina are the largest beef exporters in the world, and they have grazing routes.

    In fact, In Brazil, pasture land outweighs planted cropland by about five times. This is because all tiers of governments in Brazil have worked together to restrict these areas, not only to avoid conflict between grazers and farmers, but also to ensure that Brazil’s great forests, including the Amazon, are not deforested.

    If Brazil and Argentina can do it, we can do it too. We have to put in the political and intellectual effort.

    You see, the concentration of power at the centre affects every sector.

    We cannot have the mentality that it is better to reign in hell than serve in Heaven. No one can reign in hell. The heat is too great. The victories are too little. It is a lose-lose situation. We are all the better if we come up with a win-win situation. And the only way we all win is if we restructure, while we still have a foundation to stand on.

    We must always remember that we are all brothers and sisters born from the womb of one mother Nigeria and that when brothers fight to the death, it is their neighbours that inherit their father’s property.

    We must stop fighting each other as Nigerians, and we must start fighting for Nigeria. Arise o compatriots, Nigeria’s call obey. Nigeria is calling for restructuring. And I urge all Nigerians to obey our mother’s voice.

    Thank you for your time and for listening, and may God bless the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

    Atiku Abubakar

    Vice President of Nigeria, 1999-2007.

  • Buhari canvasses restructuring of ECOWAS, orders release of $20m to counter terrorism

    Buhari canvasses restructuring of ECOWAS, orders release of $20m to counter terrorism

    President Muhammadu Buhari has advocated for the restructuring of ECOWAS, saying that the organization needed to streamline its management to adjust to current realities.

    ”A situation where ECOWAS has 23 statutory appointees, of which 13 are Commissioners for this Commission is totally unsustainable”, the president said in his presentation to the virtual 58th Ordinary Session of the Authority of Heads of State and Government of ECOWAS, in Abuja, on Saturday.

    He stressed that there was need for a lean and compact leadership in ECOWAS, to enhance the efficiency and performance of the organization, adding that the restructuring would eliminate overlap and the tussle between the large statutory appointees, as well as reduce personnel and overhead costs that could be channeled to the execution of projects.

    ”The African Union, our larger continental organization of 55 members, has pruned down its commissioners to only six, hence, there’s no basis whatsoever, for ECOWAS, with only 15 members, to maintain 13 commissioners and 10 other statutory appointees.

    ”Accordingly, Nigeria recommends the immediate appointment of a ministerial ad hoc committee to review the proposal of the Maxwells Temp Report and submit a recommendation, at the mid-year summit for our consideration and adoption.

    ”If, however, some countries are not in favour of this, then each country must sponsor its own statutory appointee as is practiced by other organizations, such as the European Union and other regional organizations”, President Buhari told the meeting.

    He added: ”Going by the recommendation of the Maxwells Temp Report, it is envisaged that even with the lean number of statutory appointees, each member country will still have a representative on the management of ECOWAS.

    ”We believe that this should satisfy our desire to have a sense of belonging in the community’s institutions and also to enhance our spirit of solidarity”.

    The Nigerian leader drew attention of the meeting to the fact that at 45, ECOWAS was expected to be an accomplished regional organization, and for that reason, the right and bold decisions to enhance its performance must be taken.

    ”This is to fulfill the aspirations of its founding fathers and effectively serve the citizens of our community, to consolidate our prime position as the best sub-regional organization in the African continent.” he said.

    Meanwhile, President Buhari has directed the immediate release of $20 million dollars, earlier pledged by Nigeria, to the pool account of the ECOWAS Action Plan to fight terrorism across the sub-region.

    ”We have already directed the immediate remittance of the sum of $20 million pledged by Nigeria to the pool account of the ECOWAS Action Plan to fight terrorism, while the sum of $80 million is to be disbursed for the fight against terrorism in the Northeast and banditry in the Northwest of Nigeria for the year 2020.

    ”We are also committed to meeting our obligations for the remaining period of the action plan,” Buhari said.

    On the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic ravaging the ECOWAS region, Buhari called on all member states to ensure that they prioritised procurement of the vaccines for their citizens, while increasing efforts to develop vaccines locally, so that member states could build herd immunity against the pandemic.

    ”Now that vaccines are soon to be available, I call on all member states to ensure that we prioritise the acquisition of the vaccines for our citizens ,while at the same time increasing efforts to develop our own vaccines so that we can build herd immunity against the COVID-19 pandemic in West Africa,” he said.

    He also urged the ECOWAS Commission, to work with the West African Health Organisation (WAHO), to assist member states in acquiring the vaccines and storage facilities, ahead of the distribution of the vaccines within the region.

    The President said efforts should also be accelerated for the production of rapid diagnostic test kits, of international standards in the region, to be made available to all member states.

    ”It is important for the region to evolve effective measures and avoid total lockdown at this critical time, that our economies are gradually recovering from the first wave of the pandemic”, he said, adding: ”The economic challenges that our region faces, because of the pandemic, will no doubt manifest this year, 2021.

  • Restructuring alone won’t solve Nigeria’s challenges – Jonathan

    Restructuring alone won’t solve Nigeria’s challenges – Jonathan

    A former Nigerian President, Goodluck Jonathan, has said that restructuring alone can not solve Nigeria’s problems and cannot be done in isolation.

    The former President called for the issues of nepotism, ethnic and religious bias to be addressed.

    He stated this on Thursday while speaking at a dialogue on restructuring in Abuja.

    He noted that Nigerians must restructure their minds because the issues at the national level still exist at the state and local levels.

    The immediate past President General of Ohaneze Ndi Igbo John Nwodo, while delivering his speech said that Nigeria must restructure before the 2023 general elections.

    According to him, “We must change the constitution of the country as the 1999 constitution was not produced by the majority of Nigerians.”

  • North’s ‘restructuring’ as gambit for 2023, By Ehichioya Ezomon

    North’s ‘restructuring’ as gambit for 2023, By Ehichioya Ezomon

    By Ehichioya Ezomon
    The “restructuring day” appears to break in Northern Nigeria, thanks to a vocal protagonist of reordering of the prevailing system, and convener of Northern Elders’ Forum (NEF), Prof. Ango Abdullahi.
    In a no-holds-barred interview with Vanguard, Abdullahi, a former Vice Chancellor of the Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria, calls for a return to regionalism that he says is better off for Nigeria.
    He says the unitary system of government installed by the military, which abolished “true” federalism in 1966, was an aberration, and the foundation of the problems confronting Nigeria.
    His words: “Let us go back to the concept of true federalism, which I believe in, but which was destroyed. The concept of true federalism, which was working for us, and should have worked for us for a long time from 1960, was disrupted in 1966.
    “That moved us away from federalism to a unitary system of government under a military regime. That was the beginning of all the problems that we are having today.”
    To Abdullahi, restructuring means a return to true federalism in which the federating regions will exercise such powers and obligations as did the Eastern, Midwestern, Northern and Western regions before the January 1966 military incursion into politics.
    And like a long-starved dog would grab a piece of yam without realising it isn’t a piece of meat, some advocates seem in a hurry to swallow wholesale the Northern restructuring gambit.
    Of course, the dominant advocates of restructuring are in Southern Nigeria, whom the Northern elite have railed against as plotting to divide the country to disadvantage the North.
    On the contrary, though, Southern elite, joined by a sprinkling of Middle Belters, have advocated reordering of Nigeria’s politico-economic system as a way of solving the nation’s problems that have snowballed into overwhelming security challenges.
    Southern elite have persuaded, cajoled and even blackmailed the North for a silver lining to no avail. Rather, their persistence has hardened the Northern position on restructuring of Nigeria.
    Hence, the North’s reported support for restructuring, coming out of the blue, has elicited Southern advocates’ modest response of “congratulation” to the bearer of the “good news,” Prof. Abdullahi.
    President General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Chief Nnia Nwodo, said of the North’s about-turn: “At last, reason and patriotism is beginning to prevail. I congratulate the elder statesman (Abdullahi) for harkening to reason. We are on the brink of disaster if we do not restructure. Every patriotic Nigerian must harken to this call now.”
    And to Ohanaeze’s Secretary-General, Uche Achi-Okoaga, “restructuring is long overdue,” which should be embraced by sceptics “to save Nigeria from total political disintegration.”
    Yet, as exciting as the piece of news from the North, why the “sudden” change of mind from the section of the country that’s seen restructuring as against its collective interest?
    Isn’t North’s gesture to Southern advocates of restructuring a red herring or a Greek gift offered in anticipation of gaining an upper hand in the 2023 general election?
    The clamour for zoning of the presidency to the South has never been more intense, with each of the three Southern zones of South-East, South-South and South-West laying claim to the position.
    The South-East has gone a step further with the incumbent and opposition political parties “speaking with one voice” towards getting the presidency to be zoned to the area in 2023.
    Perhaps sensing, as usual, a discordant tune from the South, the North has revved up its determination to hang on to power after the expiration of President Muhamaadu Buhari’s constitutionally-mandated eight-year tenure in office in 2023.
    And what a better carrot to serve the South than a promise to restructure the country – a gesture the North may’ve reckoned has more attraction for and traction in the South than the presidency!
    Surely, the South will prefer a genuine and achievable restructuring on the basis of true federalism that allows the federating units to have control over their affairs, and develop at their own pace.
    That means a welcome to regionalism, as canvassed by Abdullahi, that would mesh with the wishes of Southern elite, especially of the South-East and South-West, who witnessed the advantages of regionalism in the First Republic that’s cut short by the military.
    Despite the elation about North’s new stand on restructuring, Southern advocates may not wholly buy into it, as Northern elite reportedly have no appetite for honouring political promises.
    The pledge by the All Progressives Congress (APC) to effect true federalism, if voted into power in 2015, continues to be tied to the “body language” of President Buhari, who’s given cold shoulders to restructuring that features in the manifesto of the APC he heads.
    Opposition PDP hasn’t faired better regarding restructuring, which the party, and its presidential candidate and former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, made a special theme in the 2019 polls, but has literally abandoned since losing the franchise.
    Remarkably though, Atiku, during the campaigns, limited his advocacy for restructuring to Southern Nigeria, perhaps in the knowledge that the subject was a hot-button in the North.
    In other words, Buhari and Atiku, as Northern elite, who lead the APC and PDP, respectively, have had a muffled voice on restructuring. So, how would the Southern elite trust the Abdullahi stratagem on North’s acceptance of restructuring of Nigeria?
    Is Abdullahi speaking for the North, whose elders recently censured him over his unsubstantiated claim that many people from the North were killed in the South-East during #EndSARS protests?
    The Coalition of Northern Elders for Peace and Development described Abdullahi’s statement as “false, unfortunate, insensitive, callous and meant to instigate Nigerians against one other.”
    Will the same elders and elite not disown Abdullahi on his claim of Northern acceptance of restructuring “as his personal opinion” not worth the consideration of advocates of reordering Nigeria?
    Thus, Ohanaeze’s Achi-Okoaga has urged opponents of restructuring to see it as not connoting “turning Nigeria inside-out,” but a shift from frivolities, analogous and straightjacket institutions, and governance structure…”
    “To some people, when they hear restructuring, they think it is to change the name North to Nothing or South to Something,” Achi-Okoaga said, likening Nigeria to a dilapidated structure that needs rehabilitation or reconstruction.
    “When a building is dilapidated, you reinforce or strengthen it, but if the dilapidation is beyond repair, you pull it down to avert impending calamities,” he said.
    “It is the case with Nigeria. It requires to be reinforced or strengthened in all ramifications – economically, politically, legally, socially, etc., and where necessary pull down completely to rebuild.
    “I urge any other person, groups, or segments still sceptical… to embrace the raging and intractable wave of restructuring, in order to save Nigeria from total political disintegration,” Achi-Okoaga said.
    As the “buzz” over North’s acceptance of restructuring looks to have a limited resonance in the South, Prof. Abdullahi and Northern elite should recalibrate their compass to include zoning of the presidency to the South ahead of the 2023 polls.
    * Mr. Ezomon, Journalist and Media Consultant, writes from Lagos, Nigeria.
  • Why restructuring Nigeria may be difficult – Uduaghan

    Why restructuring Nigeria may be difficult – Uduaghan

    …proposes administrative restructuring

    The immediate past governor of Delta State, Dr. Emmanuel Uduaghan, says achieving restructuring in Nigeria may be difficult considering lack of consensus and divergent views on what restructuring means to many Nigerians.

    Dr Uduaghan stated that the word “restructuring” means different things to different people depending on their background making it difficult to reach a common ground on what to be restructured.

    The former governor expressed this view while appearing as a guest on a radio programme, “The Discourse”, on Classic FM in Lagos.

    He posited that what Nigeria needs is an “administrative restructuring” that will set the country on the path of development.

    Uduaghan, who was Delta State governor between 2007 to 2015, pointed out that since there is no consensus/agreement on restructuring, achieving it would be ‘almost impossible.”

    “I like the way you put the question. What is restructuring to me? That is because restructuring means different things to different people and that is why we cannot as a country be talking about restructuring or achieve restructuring.

    “Some people see restructuring on a geographical basis. Let us just build this country into several States and all that, let us merge some States you know, some parts of the country have taken over every position in government, all the appointments belong to one part of the country or we need to redistribute them. They look at restructuring from different geographical issues.

    “But some of us, I in particular, l look at restructuring on issues of administrative basis. Administrative in what sense? The percentage of funds that goes to the Federal government compared to the State and Local government, the gap is much.”

    The former governor who recently returned to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) after over two years sojourn in the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) explained that the administrative complexity that exists between the Federal, State and the Local Governments hinder the country’s progress.

    He blamed some of the reasons why the country was not achieving much on huge vested responsibilities on the FG through the ‘Exclusive List’ which bars the state and governments from performing some duties even right in their domains.

    While citing personal experience in office, Uduaghan explained, “What are the responsibilities of the various arms of government? You say FG has these responsibilities on an exclusive list, the State government, this is what you can do, the local government this is what you can do or cannot do, and that has caused a lot of roadblocks in achieving some of the things we are supposed to achieve.

    “Let me just give an example of what happened when I was in government. You see there are Federal roads and there are State roads. The Road between Ughelli and Asaba is a Federal road of almost 159km. It’s longer than the Ibadan/Lagos road…Warri Port is a Federal government Port, it’s not a state Port. We are only able to do advocacy with the federal government so they can improve on the port.

    “Now with an improvement in Warri Port, more ships are coming into Warri Port. Many traders from Onitsha import their goods through Lagos port and have to drive the goods through that Lagos-Benin road which was very bad at that time. Of course it takes two to three days to get their goods to Onitsha.

    “We said if we work on that Ughelli-Asaba Road, dualize it and the goods come through Warri Port. With the goods from Warri Port within two/three hours it will be at Onitsha.

    “But for us to be able to even start on the Ughelli-Asaba dualization it took us two years to tackle the Ministry of Works at the federal level because it’s a federal road. They said as a state government you need permission from the Federal government to do it.

    “So for two years, we didn’t get that permission. It got to a point I said look is the road not in Delta? I must start it and that is how I started that road, let the federal government come and beat me for starting it.

    “And that is why I started that road and I am happy that my successor is continuing with the road because with that road is properly dualized and with an improvement on the Warri Port the congestion happening in Lagos Port will be much reduced.

    “So, that is why if we have a restructuring that ensures that whatever road is in your state, do it. There should be nothing like Federal road and State road. If you have the money to do any road in your state whether Federal or State do it because it will improve the movement in the state.”

    “So, mine is administrative. The country should be restructured in such a way that each style of government is able to meet all its financial needs in running its own responsibility.

    “The federal government is taking too much. Why will the federal government from Abuja decide to go and put up a building, primary school building or primary health care center.

    “But if we restructure this country and say ok Federal government remove all your hand from primary health care centres and leave it for local government and the state government then we will not have all those conflicting issues”, Uduaghan added.

    Speaking on other issues, Uduaghan said since his return to the PDP, he has been engaging himself with mentoring of youths for leadership positions.

    On why he left PDP for the APC, he said, “I left the PDP at the time I left because when I left office after some years I could not breathe. You know like they say literally I could not breathe and I needed to be able to breathe so I left and was able to breathe.

    “Some of the issues I had when I left office while in APC some of them were dealt with. I was approached by my colleagues in PDP, held several meetings and some agreements were reached. I would say the knee that was on my neck that made me not be able to breathe was relaxed that’s why I came back.

    “People have different reasons for moving from one party to the other. Very Different reasons and it happens all over the world. Donald Trump , the President today, didn’t start from the Republican party.”

    “I am a firm believer in encouraging younger people. I’m a firm believer in that. I have been a commissioner, I have been SSG and have been Governor. I’m getting involved in mentorship. I believe strongly in the issue of mentorship

    “Right now, it is informal mentorship I’m doing. I hope I can make it formaI and to be able to mentor younger people. We have, I want to repeat, we have challenges in the political terrain in terms of people accepting certain realities and certain truths.

    “You may want to mentor younger ones. Are they ready to be mentored? I see many younger ones who just believe that they are experts because they have one social media page whether on Instagram or Facebook and all that, where they write every junk day.

    “So, they just believe they are experts because they are able to put a lot of rumours and hate speeches on Facebook so they are not even ready to take advice”, the former Delta governor further stated.

  • Gov el-Rufai presents pathway to restructure Nigeria

    Gov el-Rufai presents pathway to restructure Nigeria

    Further to his continuing advocacy for the implementation of restructuring as a nation-building opportunity, Malam Nasir El-Rufai has called for a collective national endeavour to secure the necessary constitutional amendments.

    TheNewsGuru.com (TNG) reports the Kaduna State Governor made the call while also presenting a roadmap to restructure Nigeria on Tuesday in a statement released by his Special Adviser on Media and Communication, Muyiwa Adekeye.

    “Restructuring is a pragmatic imperative for a more efficient governance structure in our country. It will enable a departure from excessive centralisation, rebalance the federation and locate powers and responsibilities in the tier of government best able to effectively discharge them.

    “There is a unique opportunity for all Nigerians who believe in the merits of restructuring to work together to realise it. As a fundamental redesign of the anchors of the Nigerian state, restructuring can be achieved only by constitutional means and processes. This means that the National Assembly is the primary platform for attaining it, followed by the necessary concurrence by two-thirds of the state Houses of Assembly in the country, and presidential assent.

    “Every part of the country has representation in the National Assembly. States and interest groups that wish to advance restructuring can persuade any of their federal legislators to present the draft bills in the Report of the APC True Federalism Committee, for instance, or any other relevant draft legislation for consideration and passage by the federal legislature.

    “This is the productive direction to consider, rather than revel in idle doubt and pessimism when the national interest is calling for active engagement.

    “There is no extra-constitutional route to resolving a constitutional matter on which there exists reasonable consensus and for which draft bills have been prepared. As a body of Nigerians elected from constituencies across the country, the National Assembly is the veritable constitutional conference. Therefore, it is not helpful to seek to traduce its legitimacy, especially by persons who do not have any electoral mandate.

    “Pragmatism advises cooperation in attaining this collective endeavour. However, recent comments from some regional groupings make it difficult to escape the suspicion that certain persons regard the realisation of restructuring as a moment of peril.

    “They appear to fear that the possibility of restructuring being actualised may erode their political viability or remove a platform for grandstanding. We assure them that they can always find new causes to pursue, post-restructuring, like working with others to ensure that the newly devolved governance structures work efficiently across the federation to deliver better outcomes for all our people,” the statement reads.

  • 2023: Devolving power to resolve ‘restructuring’, By Ehichioya Ezomon

    2023: Devolving power to resolve ‘restructuring’, By Ehichioya Ezomon

    By Ehichioya Ezomon
    Like a balloon that refuses to stay under water, restructuring of the polity, either via a brand-new constitution or reworking of the amended 1999 Constitution, has remained on the burner.
    Most Nigerians agree that the constitution, a product of Military decrees, is flawed, starting from its Preamble that falsely claims, “We the people of the Federal Republic of Nigeria… Do Hereby Make, Enact And Give To Ourselves the following Constitution.”
    So, as we did to the colonialists even when they’re no longer on our shores, we tend to blame our challenges on the constitution because it’s hatched and produced by the Military.
    Yet, while our problems may not be solely traced to the constitution, why not cure the identified “defects” in the document, and see who or what next to hold responsible for our woes as a nation?
    The agitation for restructuring stems from the defects in the Exclusive Legislative List of the constitution, comprising 68 items granted to the Central (Federal) Government in Abuja, to the total exclusion and participation of the Federating Units (States).
    That’s prompted the call for devolution of power, to give the States more responsibilities and resources to manage the grassroots far removed, and yet subjected to control and supervision from Abuja.
    The nagging questions have been: Why, in a Federation of 36 States and a Federal Capital Territory, power is concentrated in the Federal Government? Why should States, the bastion of power in a Federation, go “cap-in-hand” to the Federal Government, for allocation of resources for even basic responsibilities? Why don’t the States retain substantial portion of the resources derived from their domains, and pay royalties to the Federal Government?
    These and adjunct questions can be answered by devolving power from the Federal Government to the States, as contained in the Exclusive Legislative List of the 1999 Constitution.
    Though devolution isn’t a “cure-all” but it can address the pressing issues, such as the agitation for self-determination, and the clamour for restructuring of the country, of which devolution of power is the major component.
    That’s why in my August 7, 2017 article on “NASS missed opportunity on devolution of power,” I lamented the failure of members of the 8th National Assembly to make, and be part of history, by passing a bill on devolution of power.
    The members had gathered in plenary on Wednesday, July 26, 2017, for amendment (Fourth Alteration) to the 1999 Constitution, and to vote on scores of bills, including the devolution of power bill, which ranked as No. 3 on the items for consideration.
    Essentially, the bill sought to alter the Second Schedule, Part I & II of the 1999 Constitution, “to move certain items (from the Exclusive Legislative List) to the Concurrent Legislative List, to give more legislative powers to States.”
    What happened to the bill? Of the 95 senators, who cast ballots, 46 voted in favour, and 48 against and one abstained. And the next day in the House of Representatives, 210 members favoured the bill, and 71 voted against it. But it’s 240 votes to clear the huddles!
    Why did the bill fail to pass the mustard? Simply due to the fear of “restructuring” of the country. Former Senate President Bukola Saraki alluded to this fact to newsmen, post-the NASS fiasco.
    According to Saraki, some stakeholders had misunderstood the intent of the proposed amendments in the bill “as a clever way of introducing restructuring, and were not ready to back such a move without proper consultations with their constituents.”
    “I think what happened was that a lot of our colleagues misread or misunderstood or were suspicious of what the devolution of power to states was all about: restructuring in another way or attempt to foist confederation on the country or to prepare the ground for other campaigns now going on in the country,” he said.
    And Saraki’s advice? “What we must do is dialogue; reassure each other and let people understand that this concept (devolution of power) is for the purpose of making a modern Nigeria; that it is not going to undermine any part of the country,” he said.
    Then, he threw in a lifeline. “Nothing is foreclosed in this (constitution review) exercise; you don’t foreclose passage of a bill,” he said. “It has been defeated as at today, but it does not mean that it would be defeated when it comes (up) tomorrow.”
    As another opportunity beckons for amendments to the 1999 Constitution, the fear of “restructuring” hasn’t gone away. Hence, the aptness of the proposal by former president of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Dr Olisa Agbakoba (SAN), that aligns with my referenced article of August 2017 on devolution of power.
    Agbakoba’s memo on, “A Simple Way to Restructure Nigeria By Devolving Powers,” dated November 4, 2020, and addressed to Senate President Ahmad Lawan, canvasses devolving power to the States, to address the restructuring question.
    His words: “It is my honour and pleasure to present to you, for consideration at the National Assembly, a simple proposal on what is considered a complex issue.
    “Nigeria has been long engaged in the federalism question. It is clear that because of our diverse nature and large size, the political system best suited for Nigeria is a federal system. But the challenge has been what type of federalism. Many proposals, including restructuring, have been put forward without success.
    “I believe there is a simple solution. This is devolution of powers. The Constitution has two legislative lists namely, Exclusive and Concurrent. These lists have 98 items of powers. The Federal Government exercises exclusive power over 68 items on the Exclusive List.
    “The States, in concurrence with the Federal Government, exercise power over 30 items on the Concurrent List. But the States may only exercise power on the Concurrent List, only if the Federal Government has not already “covered the field” on any of the 30 items.
    “In effect, State Governments really have no power. I suggest that to resolve this, a committee may review the 98 items of power and assign what is best to Federal and what is best to the States, based on the principle of subsidiarity.
    “I also suggest the Exclusive List and Concurrent List be renamed as the Federal Legislative List and State Legislative List. The Federal Government will exercise reserved powers. The States will exercise devolved power…
    “In my opinion, the simple process of devolved powers can be by virtue of an enactment styled, Constitution Alteration (Devolution of Powers) Bill. This will resolve the self-imposed complex issue.”
    There we go: Besides other submissions and existing documents, the NASS has a template to work with, to resolving the recurring issue of restructuring with devolution of power to the States.
    * Mr. Ezomon, Journalist and Media Consultant, writes from Lagos, Nigeria.
  • Restructuring Nigeria’s Tower of Babael, By Dele Sobowale

    Restructuring Nigeria’s Tower of Babael, By Dele Sobowale

     

    “Northern Leaders’ Call For 12- Structure, Resource Control: Southern leaders divided, receive call with suspicion, cautious optimism.”

    VANGUARD, Wednesday, October 14, 2020, p 30.

    “Vox populi, vox humbug” meaning “Voice of the people is rubbish.”

    US General William T Sherman, 1820-1891.

    Ask any advocate of Restructuring about the matter, especially a Southerner, and he/she would probably tell you that “it is the voice of the people” – among other things. Ask further what is the precise definition of restructuring; and you might come away wondering if General Sherman was not extremely polite. Perhaps Alcuin, 735-804 AD, was more accurate in his description when he said: “Nor should we listen to those who say ‘The voice of the people is the voice of God’; for the turbulence of the mob is always close to insanity.” It is not every advocate for restructuring who deserves our attention. Some might urgently need to visit a psychiatrist. Yet, each time someone proclaims his support for restructuring we presume we have met a soul mate.

    Yet, till today, nobody has presented a comprehensive idea of restructuring for all of us to consider. It is all well and good to point to what is wrong with the present situation; it is a different thing to put forward a proposal designed to make things better. It is always easy to criticise. The Northern leaders were the first group to lay out for consideration their own idea of how to restructure the country. To me, it was a brave departure from the “vox populi” approach. Even before getting the details and bringing them in summarised form to our readers, I find their intervention refreshing. At least, we have a proposal.

    My first step was to take a look at the names of some members of the group. Seldom can the message and the messenger be separated. Reputation matters on matters such as this. Three names stood out for seriousness, fairness, courage and patriotism – Alhaji Othman Tofa (Kano State), Mr Sam Nda-Isaiah (Niger State) and Dr Usman Bugaje ( Katsina State). For me. those three are more than enough for me to give their submissions all the attention it requires – and a large dose of benefit of doubt as well. I have worked closely with two before – Nda-Isaiah and Bugaje – and the depth of their intellectual exposure is simply astonishing. They don’t suffer fools gladly; so they don’t associate with idiots. You need an encyclopaedia in your head to keep up with them. So, I assume that their colleagues are top class brains as well. Nobody can ignore highly intelligent and well-exposed people at a time like this. I certainly don’t intend to do so.

    “Come let us go down and confuse their language; so they will not understand each other.” Genesis 11:6.

    However, before we get to the central idea of the proposal, which is before the National Assembly, NASS, it might be useful to consider how the clamour for restructuring is daily resembling the bedlam when our Biblical fathers attempted to construct a tower to reach God. As the scriptures tell us, they actually started on the project, speaking one language, before misunderstandings resulted in failure. Far be it from me to question what has been written in the Holy Book. But, even those claiming not to believe in God have discovered that language is a major barrier between peoples worldwide. One of the causes of our failure to agree on one definition of restructuring might be found in our internal xenophobia. Readers who might think that xenophobia is what South Africans and Ghanaians practise against Nigerians, might be shocked to know that it is the same thing Beroms and Fulanis, Tivs and Bassas, Ijaws and Itsekiris, Yorubas, Igbos and Hausas etc exhibit right here in Nigeria.

    “Though tribes and tongues may differ”, we have deceived ourselves that “in unity we stand.” Nothing can be further from the truth. That we have been forced to remain one country for sixty years is a minor miracle which should not delude us into believing that we are united and will always stand in brotherhood. We have to consciously work towards it. The lessons of history argue against our continuing as a nation for ever. Let me explain.

    “In the human species, language, as a rule, forms the sharpest barrier between populations, and that is why the line of language forms the national boundary, and why, with rare exceptions, political boundaries enclosing varying language groups tend to enclose trouble as well.” Robert Ardrey, THE SOCIAL CONTRACT.

    Nigeria has the absolute largest diversity of languages on earth in one nation. Apparently, nobody has a complete list of Nigeria’s nationalities – each with its own distinct language. While gathering materials for IBRAHIM B BABANGIDA 1985-1992: LETTING A THOUSAND FLOWERS BLOOM, I attempted to find out how many ethnic groups a national leader in Nigeria must take into consideration in order to fulfil the spirit of the principle of Federal Character. The A-Z list of about 150 nationalities is on page 373 of the book.

    Long before my attempt at writing the book, my career had taken me to all corners of Nigeria several times. My first and biggest surprise occurred in November 1974, at Bama, Borno State. I had called a young lady “You Hausa girl”. The reaction was explosive. “Don’t call me Hausa again. I am Kanuri!!!” Chastened, but willing to learn, I then asked “Is Kanuri a tribe?” It was like pouring petrol on raging fire. I learnt the hard way that even small ethnic groups in the North resent being called Hausa/Fulani – an ethnic group which exists in the poor imagination of us Southerners. Similarly, minority tribes East of the Niger, hate being called Ibos etc.

    My ten years in the North, living and working in Kano, Kaduna, Sokoto, Bauchi, Plateau, Nasarawa, Kogi and briefly in Borno state provided me with the opportunity to really understand the diversity of languages and to develop a catalogue of those I came across. Astonishingly, almost everywhere, the most hated ethnic group is frequently the one next door. That is why Jukuns and Tivs and Ijaws and Itsekiris appear to be mortal and irreconcilable enemies.

    To be candid, it is doubtful if all the ethnic groups now in Nigeria could have voluntarily got together to form a nation. It required an external force which made all of them an offer their traditional leaders could not refuse. The British conducted something akin to multiple shot-gun marriages to get us wedded together. That origin already sowed the seeds of the present threat to our unity. Nigeria was not the only multi-lingual country forcefully cobbled together by imperial powers. India, for instance, was united long before us by the British. In Europe, the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, USSR, was patched together by Russia after World War II. It has vanished in less than fifty years. Yugoslavia and Czechoslovakia were once nations which can only be found on very old maps. All have disintegrated – and that should be a lesson to us, if we really want Nigeria to remain one country. It will not be easy.

    Satraps, like Obasanjo and Buhari, who state as if they alone will decide the issue, that the unity of Nigeria is not negotiable are talking nonsense. Once the forces aiming for the country’s disintegration become stronger than those trying to maintain its unity, the nation will break up. One thousand Obasanjos and Buharis will not be able to keep it together. We are now on the brink. That is why the proposal by the Northern leaders should be regarded as the opening offer from interested parties instead of being dismissed out of hand by various Southern groups and individuals. Summarised below are some of the responses – which are not all very helpful. Before touching on the reactions, we need to be reminded of what anthropologists have said about language and nation-building.

    “A population is a group of organisms, similar among themselves and dissimilar from other organisms with which they live, descended from a not remote common ancestor.” G.G. Simpson.

    For instance, the Batta and Bini, Ibibio and Izi, Tappa and Tarok, Wawa and Wuse do not claim any common ancestors etc. It is pertinent to note that almost half of the countries playing the European Nations Cup did not exist as separate entities in 1970. Few European nations, bona fide members of the United Nations, have populations as large as Lagos State or land mass as large as Niger State. The existing map of Europe is based on distinct ethnic lines founded on language and allied traditions and culture. To that extent, Nigeria is several nations rolled into one; and that explains why we are having problems merging as a nation and restructuring will be difficult – though now unavoidable.

    Invariably, tensions between nations that have split into two or more occur at the boundaries where most inter-marriages take place creating populations of mixed-race people. India and Pakistan have been in perpetual conflict over Kashmir since the split. This observation is important for the sake of those who are wedded to the illusion that the break up of Nigeria will be peaceful and the new nations will live in perpetual harmony. Not true, as history has proved.

    So, we better bend our minds towards a negotiated settlement – irrespective of whether we stay united or break up.

    To be continued….

    STILL ON IGBO PRESIDENCY 2023.

    0803-322-3905

    Good morning Dele. PEACE. If you are still working on the project: President of Igbo Extraction 2023, I now have four possible candidates, listed in my order of preference thus: Pat Utomi, Peter Obi, Moghalu, and Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, your candidate. For now, I will say a few words on the first and last listed. I studied in Britain and Germany and returned home in 1980, with Anammco, Enugu, as an Economist. I’ve followed Pat Utomi’s national contributions from that year to date. He is a detribalised Nigerian and has an edge over the other three listed, coming from the south/south zone, eminently qualified, and may be the most acceptable to the North than any of the other three listed. Okonjo-Iweala is equally eminently qualified, comes also from the south/south zone but may not fly with the North for gender and cultural reasons. # Economist. 2-10-2020.

    Dear Double Brother Economist, I don’t abandon a crusade once started because, I think carefully before starting – especially one such as this which tests one’s courage, determination and principles. I have published your text message without editing. It is more important right now to build strong support for Igbo President 2023. The candidate will become an issue later. I am not fanatic about Okonjo-Iweala. I will work just as hard for Utomi, Obi and Moghalu.

    Let me also add the following two people to the list: Tony Elumelu and Allen Onyema. They merit consideration for two different reasons – but both for their selfless contributions towards the welfare of fellow Nigerians irrespective of ethnicity. Elumelu’s entrepreneurship development and Onyema’s rescue of all Nigerians willing to come home from South Africa, while fleeing for dear life, are examples of the stuff national leaders are made of.

    To be continued…

     

  • Adeboye Didn’t Go Far Enough, By Azu Ishiekwene



    Azu Ishiekwene

    A major headliner last week was the General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God, Pastor Enoch Adeboye, calling for restructuring. He didn’t just call for it: he also sprang a surprise.

    According to news reports, he warned that if nothing was done to restructure, the country might break up, even though he didn’t pray for it to happen.

    You had to read it twice and pinch yourself to believe that it was Adeboye. It was like the Pope giving a hint that the Church could lose its female members if it didn’t amend the Code of Canon or the Ordinatio sacerdotalis.

    Adeboye doesn’t just talk. As the leader of one of Nigeria’s largest Pentecostal churches with branches in over 160 countries around the world and a membership of over 50 million, he chooses his words carefully.

    Recently when some Christian religious leaders mounted a vigorous protest against the amendment of portions of the Companies and Allied Matters Act (2020), Adeboye chose a different approach. He sought private audience with President Muhammadu Buhari and refused to speak when the press later asked him what the visit was about.

    The only appearance of a radical public posture in recent times was Adeboye’s visit to former Governor Ayo Fayose of Ekiti State at the height of the state’s bloody encounters with herdsmen. Fayose expectedly framed that visit as an endorsement of his decision to hang any trespassing herdsmen by the horn of their cows.

    Apart from that visit and a few incursions on the domestic issue of whether or not a woman who cannot cook is ready and fit for marriage, Adeboye has largely minded the gospel – until last week.

    He said at a church symposium to mark Nigeria’s 60th independence anniversary, that one lasting way to tackle the country’s socio-economic and political fissures was to restructure. In a message that could have been entitled, “Restructure or Die”, Adeboye asked, “Why can’t we have a system of government that will create what I call the United States of Nigeria?”

    He explained that under the system he had in mind, there would be at the federal level, a president and a prime minister with different constitutional roles.

    “For example,” he said, “if the president controls the army, the prime minister controls the police. If the president controls resources like oil and mining, the prime minister controls finance and inland revenue, taxes, customs, etc. You just divide responsibilities between the two.”

    This system of shared responsibilities, with a role for traditional rulers under a composite mix of the presidential and parliamentary forms of government, he said, could also be replicated in states and so on.

    While the Presidency has largely ignored other calls for restructuring, it found Adeboye’s a bit hard to swallow. Within a day or two of Adeboye’s statement, the Presidency shelled back, warning as it often does, that it would not be blackmailed or stampeded by threats that the country could break up.

    If what Adeboye said could really break up Nigeria – in spite of his qualifiers, sugarcoating and surface-scratching – then we’re in far greater trouble than was thought.

    Of course, Adeboye is late to the party, perhaps conveniently so. Vice President Yemi Osinbajo a front-seat member of Adeboye’s church would remember that the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) which produced him for the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), sold itself on the ticket to restructure the country five years ago.

    The problem was that the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) and soon-to-become-dominant partner among the legacy parties treated restructuring with single-minded indifference, contempt or malicious silence – depending on what time of day the matter came up.

    The core CPC represented by President Buhari holds anyone who talks about restructuring in contempt, if not suspicion. This cauldron has now enmeshed Osinbajo, strong member of the RCCG, champion of restructuring by litigation, and the Southwest’s gift to Abuja.

    Like the proverbial frog, Osinbajo has learnt, painfully, to croak without choking and it has been Adeboye’s burden to refrain from complicating matters for his spiritual son.

    But the danger of isolation for Adeboye has mounted. In the last few weeks, former President Olusegun Obasanjo; Professor Wole Soyinka, Lt.-General Alani Akinrinade, Pastor Tunde Bakare, Ohaneze Ndigbo members, South South groups, and ranking members of the Southern and Middle Belt Forum, the National Working Group for Peace-building and Governance (comprising persons such as Cardinal John Onaiyekan, General Martin Luther Agwai, Professor Attahiru Jega, Professor Jibrin Ibrahim, Aisha Mohammed Oyebode, and Dr. Usman Bugaje), have lent their voices to the call for restructuring.

    Adeboye just couldn’t pretend anymore not to hear or trust that his usual back channel would be any use this time.

    His public intervention apparently ruffled Aso Rock feathers; yet, he didn’t go far enough. Shared executive responsibilities worked between the biblical Pharaoh and Joseph because Pharaoh was an absolute monarch who shared power with Joseph at the king’s pleasure. That changed when a new king arose who did not know Joseph.

     

    Today, shared executive responsibilities may sound good for deputies tired of being spare tyres under the present constitutional arrangement, but it’s a recipe for bloody turf wars. And worse, it hardly addresses the fundamental question of restructuring.

    We don’t need a “United States of Nigeria” as Adeboye suggested or a composite of political systems that appeases a particular section of the country. It is both a fiscal and structural thing.

    It’s fiscal in the sense that there’s no longer reasonable justification for the Federal Government to collect 52.6 percent of federal revenue from which it decides, for example, to spend $1.96billion to build a railway line from Kano to Maradi in Niger Republic. Or for it to spend billions of naira yearly to maintain the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), not because it serves the communities but because it serves the interests of a few Abuja politicians who happen to come from that area.

    And God knows the way we’re going all the other zones will not rest until they also have “special development commissions” of their own, funded by the Federal Government and under the wasteful care of Abuja politicians.

    The argument for fiscal federalism, which is a vital part of restructuring, is not to ask what the states are doing with their monthly dole from Abuja. It is to ask what the incentive is for the states to think and behave differently if they can always depend on the dole from Abuja to indulge their worst excesses.

    And of course, Abuja is happy to oblige because it also carries a financial overload in ministries, departments, agencies, and useless commissions which consume in recurrent expenses about 80 percent of income largely generated from oil rent.

    If states were to fund their own local governments and commissions and also pay governors’ security vote from tomorrow, for example, they would think differently about what to do and how. It would also be interesting to see how many of them would afford to maintain a “house of chiefs” or a “house of emirs”.

    In a restructured system, contiguous states may decide to fund joint services and infrastructure, while they maintain only what is essential. This point was extensively made in the report of the 2014 constitutional conference, a document that Buhari said he had not read five years ago.

    But there’s also a structural part to it, which obviously would require constitutional amendment. Restructuring means devolution of powers that reduces the items on the Exclusive List (68 of them apart from 30 others in the Concurrent on which the Federal Government can also make laws) and expands to states powers exercisable in matters of policing, prisons, copyright, trade and commerce between states, railways, waterways, and registration of business names, among others.

    The current shenanigans in the National Assembly cannot continue in a restructured country. Membership of the National Assembly (even state assemblies) would be part-time and Question Time could be a part of the deal.

    The case has also been made for a modified judicial system, one that is more client- and service-driven and perhaps, a separation of the offices of the attorney general from that of the minister of justice, and for a constitutional court that can enforce fundamental human rights.

    Through judicial intervention over time or restructuring by litigation, as Osinbajo once described it, a state like Lagos, for example, has clawed back swathes of federal wasteland, in areas such as creation of local governments, physical planning, title registration, registration and production of vehicle number plates, casino licensing, and inland waterways.

    These gains have significantly improved the revenue of states, but their brains are still wet with oil money. And yes, in spite of the gains, there’s still a whole lot more that the current oppressive system will not allow or that it allows in a perverted way.

    If the hisbah police in Zamfara State, for example, is keen to enforce the prohibition of the sale of alcohol by smashing hundreds of beer bottles, the state cannot be rewarded for its “righteous pursuit” with filthy lucre from taxes collected on VAT from beer companies in Lagos or Port Harcourt. There is more, much more to restructuring than asking for shared executive responsibilities between the president, governors and their deputies.

     

    APC does not need Adeboye to say that it is playing with fire, which is what Aso Rock’s blustering amounts to. Before the 2019 general elections when the party sensed that it was losing grounds for failing to keep its promise to structure after four years, it claimed that a committee headed by Governor Nasir El-Rufai of Kaduna State would look into the matter.

    If the governor did anything at all, he simply prepared the coffin for the idea, hoping to bury it quietly after the election. But that’s not working. And it won’t because this is one ghost that would not be appeased by threats to silence those demanding it or by pretending that they’re talking nonsense.

    It’s not about shared executive burden, not about a United States of Nigeria. Not even about what makes the Presidency comfortable. And yes, it’s just as radical as amending the Ordinatio sacerdotalis.

    It is what it is: restructure or die.

    Ishiekwene is the MD/Editor-In-Chief of The Interview