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Category: Insight

Clark: Those talking about Biafra are talking rubbish

The Ijaw National Leader and elder statesman, Chief Edwin Clark, in this interview with Bolaji Ogundele, explains his concept of restructuring and what the Southsouth hopes to take out of a restructured Nigeria. Excerpts

The clamour for restructuring, what is it all about? Some claim they do not know what those agitating for it mean.

Those saying they don’t know what restructuring is all about are mischievous. Before they went to London in 1953, the North wanted confederation in their 8 point agenda, the Western Nigeria wanted a federal system of government; Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe wanted a unitary form of government. They harmonised these in England and agreed on having a federal system of government. That’s restructuring and that system went on from 1953 till our independence, when the three regions had a constitution of their own, apart from the federal constitution. They had representatives in London, called Agent-General; I think Omololu was the one for the West, somebody was the one for the East and Abdul-Malik was the one for the North.

I remember that in 1963, when the Mid-West region was created, I moved from the West to the Mid-West. These were all restructuring. Then in 1963, we changed our constitution again to a Republican Constitution. It was also a restructuring. Anytime we want to change something awkward in our constitutions; that is restructuring. Same way during the military, there was restructuring; at the Constituent Assembly. The last one was headed by Justice Karibi-Whyte, with Justice Mamman Nasir as the deputy. That was restructuring.

What we are saying is that in 2005, there was restructuring; Obasanjo convened the Political Reforms Conference, even though it was thrown out, but it was meant for restructuring. In 2014, 492 of us met; different types of people, including the physically challenged, to the topmost persons in Nigeria. We met for four months and we came out with a recommendation, the government should look at them. As far as I’m concerned, what we are asking is that the present constitution is lopsided, it’s not a federal constitution, we are saying let’s go back to 1963.

There are a lot of items recommended in the 2014 recommendation; let the office of the Attorney General be separate from that of the Minister of Justice; let’s have a situation where the federal government will devolve more powers to the states. Let’s see that the fiscal position of the country is restructured; the states and the council areas should have 58 percent while the federal government takes 42 percent. Let’s have state police, a situation where you call the governor the Chief Security Officer and he has no power over the police is not good enough. This is what we mean by restructuring. We are not asking for the country to be broken up; we are not asking for secession, we are not asking for people to give quit notice to anybody. This is the position.

How do you advise the federal government to handle calls for secession?

Call them for discussion, they should be educated. For instance, those talking about Biafra are talking rubbish. Nigeria fought a war from 1967 to 1970, at the end of which Gowon declared “no victor, no vanquished”, for anybody now to say he wants to lead another war because he wants to break away, question is ‘why’. The Igbo have been part of this country’s progress and you see their people on the television every day, foremost politicians who have contributed a lot during the first and second republics, it was only during the military that they suffered and if they are now suffering in Buhari’s time because they didn’t support him during the election and are now being marginalised, they should wait, their time will come, they don’t have to go for the extreme; this country belongs to all of us.

In essence, I’m saying that being marginalised by Buhari’s government is not enough reason to ask for the breaking up of this country, their time will come. I’m thinking that it will be Igbo people’s time in the 2020s, they will produce the president. They should be thinking of dialogue, they should be thinking of education. I am happy that today, the northerners have also joined in the clamour for restructuring. They’ve set up the Tambuwal Committee, the governor of Sokoto State, including a number of governors and eminent traditional rulers. They’ve said they will visit all the documents about restructuring and I’ve advised that they should visit the 2014 National Conference, as His Eminence, the Sultan of Sokoto, and many other people had suggested. They should not be viewed from a partisan point of view; it should not be seen as either an APC or PDP agenda, no. The APC had restructuring as part of its manifesto.

Once there is restructuring, all that have made the country not to develop will be treated and the country will be developed. Every state will have its own resources. I think they should go by that. It’s been recommended that 5 percent of the national revenue should be devoted to developing the solid mineral resources and agriculture, so that everybody will go back and not be dependent on oil. Oil will fade out tomorrow. There was no oil in 1956, did Nigeria not exist? The regions were dependent on what was produced in their area. Even when the Mid-West was created in 1963, we survived.

As leader of the South-South region, what do you think should be on the restructuring plan for the region?

What we are asking for is true federalism, meaning there should be fiscal federalism; the states should be allowed to retain part of what they have in their own region. We also recommend that the state should be paying tax to the federal government, even if it’s the federal government that is collecting the revenues, certain amount should go to the states and certain amount should be retained by the federal government for other states.

Like what was done in the past, 50 percent of what you produce in your area should go to the state, 30 percent to the federal government and the remaining 20 percent should be shared amongst the regions; at that rate, every state can develop at its own pace. Every Nigerian should be equal, and then the federal character can work. But a situation where there’s one lopsided constitution, a situation where Kano has 44 council areas and Lagos, which has the largest population, has just 20 is irregular. Why should Bayelsa have only 8 council areas, when it is oil producing? Why should oil be costlier in Bayelsa than in Sokoto because of the Equalization Fund? Why are the host communities not receiving equity shares from the oil production activities in their area?

Those of us from the South-South believe that a restructured Nigeria should provide for fiscal federalism, a situation where the area bearing the brunt of environmental degradation…

Our ecosystem is destroyed; we no longer have fish, we no longer have water to drink. Nigerians should understand that if this country is restructured, certain amount of money will go to these people for them to develop their area. The situation where we have to come to Abuja to beg for money is unreasonable. The problems of pipelines vandalism, of oil theft will stop because the people will have a say in whatever is produced in their area, they’ll have a sense of belonging.

October 1, 2017
It’ll quell IPOB’s, MASSOB’s agitations, says Nwodo, Ikedife, Okorie, others

The apex Igbo socio-cultural organisation, Ohaneze Ndigbo and other leaders of thought in the geopolitical zone have described restructuring as the only way to unifying the country.

They declared that restructuring would quell the agitations of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Movement for the Actualisation of Sovereign State of Biafra (MASSOB) and other agitators.

Those who spoke to The Nation in Anambra state include, President General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Chief Nnia Nwodo, former President General of the Igbo Group World-Wide, Dr Dozie Ikedife.

Others are a professor of law and former Vice Chancellor of Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Ilochi Okafor (SAN), first Minister of Aviation in Nigeria, Chief Mbazulike Amechi.

Also, the founder of All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) and currently, National Chairman of United Progressive Party (UPP), Chief Chekwas Okorie spoke in the same direction.

For Nwodo, those campaigning against restructuring had painted an unfortunate and untrue picture that those in support of restructuring were doing so in order to deny the northern states who had not yet any proven oil reserves of the ability to survive.

He said, “This is fortunate. The new model we propose for Nigeria recognizes that revenue in the world today is promoted by two main sources, namely, human capital development, leveraging on technology to drive the critical sectors of the economy and agriculture

“Ten years ago the top 10 companies in the world were Mobil, Shell and Total. Today the top eight companies in the world are represented by technology related companies.

“They include Apple, Microsoft, Google, Facebook and Amazon. The example of Netherlands in agriculture is also relevant here. This brings me to the question of what form Nigeria will assume under a restructured arrangement and how this restructuring can be brought about

“Two basic models have been canvassed for restructuring, a conservative model aimed at maintaining the status quo has been proposed to mean simply a shedding of some of the executive powers of the federal government like issuing of mining licenses, permission for reconstructing of federal roads, and shedding of regulatory powers over investments in critical sectors of the economy.

“This model merely scratches the surface of the problem. It avoids fundamental devolution of powers. The second model calls for a fundamental devolution of powers to the States as federating units and lean federal government with exclusive powers for external defence, customs, immigration, foreign relations and a federal legislature and judiciary to make and interpret laws in these exclusive areas.

“This second model purposes state at the federating units with different approaches. The first approach simply wants the states as the federating units and federal governments with limited powers.

“It wants the states to control a percentage of revenue accruing from their areas and contribute an agreed percentage of such revenue to the federal government.

“The second approach proposes the states as the federating units with a region at each of the six geopolitical units whose constitution will be agreed to and adopted by the states in the geopolitical region.

“The regions will have the powers to merge existing States or create new ones. There will be regional and state legislatures and judiciary dealing with making and interpreting laws made in the respective political entities.

“This approach proposes a revenue sharing formula of 15% to the federal government, 35% to the state government and 50% to the state governments. To achieve a national consensus on this subject requires a national discussion.

“Regrettably the ruling party APC which promised restructuring in its manifesto after two years and four months in office is still appointing a committee to define what sort of restructuring it wants for Nigeria.

“The only hope for change in Nigeria today is the rising call for restructuring pioneered by the Southern Leadership Forum supported lately by former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, former President Ibrahim Babangida and leaders of the middle belt including Dan Suleiman and Prof Jerry Gana.”

“Our expectation is that now that our president is fully recovered and back to work, he will re-address the situation by constituting a nationwide conversation of all ethnic nationalities to look into the 2014 national conference report and trending views on this subject matter so as to come up with a consensus proposal that the national and the State Assemblies will be persuaded to adopt,” Nwodo said.

Prof Okafor, said that as a student of constitutional law, no people with the diversities and conflicts that exist within us, had ever survived as a nation, unless in a very loose federation or confederation.

“Suppressing violently the self determination groups is unlikely to kill the agitation for re-structuring. It is clear to me that Nigeria is doomed as a nation sooner or later, unless we re-structure and return to loose federation of regions.

“We must listen to our youths. Their dissatisfaction is real, profound and deep. The political class that sit in the comforts of their mansions in Abuja, Lagos, Europe and USA, that have dual, sometimes triple citizenships, that visit us only on week-ends, and come elections, return home and buy their elections – you all must listen to the youths. NOW or NEVER.

“Never before has any group in Nigeria brought to the fore, the imperativeness and urgency of re-structuring Nigeria. It is an achievement of historic proportions. But as the Ohas of Ohanaeze, you must find accommodation with the Ezes of Ohanaeze and other groups in Nigeria clamouring for Nigeria existing on the principles of justice, equity, fairness and integrity and free of corruption, hatred and zealotry” the law professor said.

Speaking further, former President General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo worldwide, Dr Dozie Ikedife, said that if restructuring is done, it would quell all the agitations by the ethnic nationalities in the land, especially in the South East.

He said the current structure is against some of the geopolitical zones in the land, adding that the country must restructure to correct some of the imbalances in the land.

According to Ikedife, “any sensitive government must listen to the heart beat of its people; the essence of democracy is government of the people, for the people and of the people and not a group holding others at the jugular.

“If we do the restructuring in the country as being proposed, it must be the panacea of all these agitations which must include resource control and it must touch the relationship between the states and the federal governments.

“We do not want a primordial restructure that will be meaningless and without content,” the former presidential adviser to President Shehu Shagari on liaison in 1979 declared.

Okorie declared that the benefits of restructuring would be immense on the lives of Ndigbo.

He said they were clamouring for restructuring to correct what was damaged in Igbo land during and after the war including the roads in the region.

Okorie said if the country was restructured, most of the things concentrated at the centre would now come to the federating units, adding that there were some certain things that would not be in the constitution.

He said that the structures the country had currently was holding the system down, which according to him, had impeded development.

The outspoken Igbo leader said that the APC government had divided Nigeria more than any other government that had ruled the country, adding that such arrangement would equally; stop the agitations by groups like IPOB, MASSOB and others.

He maintained that the current structure being operated in Nigeria today encouraged laziness among the people and governments, adding that before the 1966 war, Igbo region was regarded as the fastest growing economy, noting that today, the region was nowhere in the country.

In his own view, the former first aviation minister, Chief Mbazulike Amechi (aka The boy is good), said that Nigeria was being run as illegality.

The octogenarian declared that the amendment of the constitution by the military after constitutional conferences in the land had helped in dividing the country the more.

The elder statesman said the country today was being ruled without a people’s constitution, adding that restructuring would bring peace and progress.

“We need to have a federation with each federating unit depending on its allocation and not running to Abuja each time and that will equally stop some of these problems we are witnessing today in the land and have our dilapidated roads in the region fixed,” Amechi said.

October 1, 2017
‘1999 Constitution is illegitimate’

Akin Oyebode, a professor of International Law and Jurisprudence at the University of Lagos (UNILAG), in this interview with RAYMOND MORDI, Deputy Political Editor, says the country needs a new constitution.

Fifty-seven years after independence, Nigeria appears to be at a crossroads. Leaders often insist that the country’s unity is not negotiable, but a growing number of Nigerians are no longer comfortable with that phrase. What is your position on this?

Anybody who mouths the shibboleth that Nigeria’s unity is not negotiable is merely advertising his or her ignorance. American writer Mark Twain said only two things are not negotiable in life — death and taxes every other thing is subject to negotiation. The case of Nigeria is not unique, because nation building anywhere at all is work in progress. So, we should always be amenable to efforts to make a better exercise of Nigeria. Nigeria was a creation of British imperialism; the British cobbled more than 400 ethnic nationalities together to form Nigeria in 1914. It was not done in our own interest, but for the advantage and benefit of the coloniser, who came purposely for raw materials and market for their finished goods. That is why it is not surprising that the late Chief Obafemi Awolowo, during the quest for Nigeria’s freedom in 1947, declared that Nigeria was a geographical expression. I’m not sure in 1977 — 30 years after — that the country has progressed much beyond being a geographical expression. So, it is my candid view that we have to rethink and reformulate, reconfigure or restructure the modalities of our cohabitation. Like the late Bola Ige once said, there should be a big family meeting, to decide two questions. One: do we want to live together? Two: how? These questions are still on the table. So, anybody who decides to bury his head in the sand, like an ostrich, by not interrogating whether or not we should live together and the modalities for our cohabitation, definitely is flying in the face of truth and reality.

Some observers say the problem of Nigeria is not restructuring, but corruption. Do you agree?

A multi-tasking approach would be better. Corruption agreed is endemic in contemporary Nigeria, but there should be a scale of priorities and on top of the agenda is the national question. We have to resolve the contentious issue of the cohabitation of the over 400 nationalities that comprise Nigeria; you can’t run away from that fact. Once we settle that fundamental issue of why Nigeria and then how Nigerians intermingle and nobody chooses his place of birth, nor his parents; we just found ourselves here. We should not because of state of origin or place of birth give preference to our group at the expense or to the detriment of other groups. The sense of Nigerian nationhood is work in progress; it has not been achieved. When we look at each other as Nigerians, where you come from would not be very important.

Corruption is the lubricant of the contemporary Nigerian society. The truth is that corruption would not go away until there is a national resolve to reduce it to its barest minimum; no society has been able to abolish corruption in its entirety. But efforts can be made, as it happened in Hong Kong, Singapore and Malaysia, to reduce the role of corrupt practices. So, I think it is a question of priorities. I would rather we resolve the national question ahead of that of corruption. Once we solve the national question, we can then intensify the combat against corruption.

There appears to be no consensus among its proponents about what restructuring means. In your view, how do we go about restructuring?

Definitely, Nigeria is at a crossroads and we have a lopsided federal structure. At the 2014 National Conference, where I participated as a member, I said Nigeria was operating a caricature or what you can call a deformed federal structure. Deputy Senate President Ike Ekweremadu called it ‘feeding bottle federalism’. Ekweremadu who made this remark at a lecture he delivered at my law school in Toronto three or four years ago said it is a very funny federation where the constituent units go cap in hand to Abuja every month to replenish their feeding bottle. He said otherwise the federating units will die. So, what we have is not functional; some people will say it is not true federalism, while others will argue that there is nothing like true federalism. But we know the animal called federalism by its characteristics, such as the quality of the federating units; no unit will exercise an overarching powers or influence to the extent of dominating the other constituent units. That is not true of Nigeria, because some of the basic things that should be handled at the constituent units have been grabbed by the federal power, owing to military intervention in our affairs. Militarism and federalism are odd bedfellows. The military operates on the basis of command structure, the order of the superior goes to the inferior; you don’t question it. The military for more than 30 years exercised their tyranny over Nigeria; even dictated the constitution we are operating. Former Head of State Abdulsalami Abubakar confessed that Decree 24 of 1999, which gave birth to the 1999 constitution, was what you call a modus Vivendi in law or a temporary agreement until the civilians take over and set in motion the process of fashioning a real constitution for Nigeria. But that did not happen; the politicians were so venal in their search for political power and continued to live a lie that we the people met somewhere under God and adopted the constitution. I’m sure Abdulsalami himself must be really amused that we have refused to do the needful. Efforts were made at the 2014 confab to set the records straight, but unfortunately the Buhari administration has announced that the recommendations of the conference belongs to the archives. To that extent, we are back where we started from.

If you ask me to give a simple answer to the question, I would say what we need is devolution of powers; the federal government must shed weight. It is too fat now; we need a lean federal structure, which exercises authority over limited areas, like international trade, national currency, foreign affairs and defence. The other things should be devolved to the constituent units. We do not need to go back to the four regions we had in 1966; we may consider using the current geo-political zones as the constituent units. We may even divide the country into eight units, but not the current 36-states structure that we are operating. It is too large; it can’t survive without being supplemented by the federal government.

Do we need a constitutional amendment to restructure?

It is not a question of amendment. President Buhari has enjoined people canvassing for restructuring to go through the constitutional amendment process. The Senate President, Bukola Saraki, has also said the same thing. I don’t want to lampoon them, but they must know that the constitution we are operating today is illegitimate. Where did we meet to agree; it’s a military diktat, which has become superfluous, because it has outlived its usefulness. Nigerians now have not just the right, but the duty to fashion a fundamental law that would govern their lives, not the military decree that was thrust down our throats. So, the 1999 Constitution is illegitimate and we must cure it of its illegitimacy by replacing it with a constitution adopted by Nigerians by way of a referendum. It is that referendum that would legitimize the new order of things that Nigeria would put in place. By amendment we are postponing the evil day. Patriots recognize the fact that we need a constitution fashioned by Nigerians for Nigerians and adopted by the people by way of a referendum. That’s the right way to go; any other thing is dysfunctional, is counter-productive and an exercise in futility.

How do we go about fashioning a new constitution? Are we going to organize another national conference?

What we need is a Constituent Assembly. We elect people to a Constituent Assembly, whose job is to fashion a new constitution, which will be submitted or subjected to a referendum. In 1977, under the military, we had a Constitution Drafting Committee. We called it a group of 49 wise men; they should have been 50 in number, but Awolowo opted out of it. Afterwards, the military government set up the Constituent Assembly. But the military exercise was faulted by the insertion of 18 amendments into that constitution. So, when we say a sovereign national conference or a constituent assembly, we mean one whose recommendations would not be subject to amendments by any other authority; that is the sovereignty involved. South Africa after apartheid set up a Constituent Assembly which produced the new South African constitution. Why should ours be different? There is a gaping chasm within the Nigerian polity for a new fundamental law.

Can we trust the ruling class who are feeding fat from the current structure to do the needful?

Unless the ruling class agree to commit suicide, by voting themselves out of contention, it is not possible. In other words, they would have to agree that they have defaulted, led us astray and are now willing to give the people an opportunity to determine their destiny. The people are the sovereignty, not the ruling class. But they are taking advantage of the people’s ignorance and the docility of the Nigerian masses. By the time Nigerians wake up from their slumber, they would chase the so-called ruling class out of contention. From examples of other countries, we can see what happens when the masses are sufficiently conscientised. Right now, Nigerians are incapacitated by poverty and hunger; everybody just wants to get something to eat.

In other words, you don’t see the ruling APC effecting a change, by way of setting the machinery in motion to restructure the country before 2019?

The APC is an amalgam of forces that just want to feather their nests. It is a group of strange bedfellows; it is not a real political party in the proper sense of the word. The party has a position on restructuring in their manifesto, but they were the first to say that the country does not require restructuring. What the party is currently doing, by setting up a committee on restructuring, which is asking for memoranda from members, is postponing the evil day. It has lost the initiative; it is not proactive; it is merely reacting. There are people in the APC who want restructuring, but the party is a late comer to the game. But better late than never; it is five minutes to midnight and the APC has decided to jump on the bandwagon.

Given the current state of affairs, what are your fears for Nigeria?

I’m not a prophet, but in 1960 I was a 12-year old boy going into secondary school. At the time, we had dreams of Nigeria becoming a great nation. Today, that dream has not been realized and I am sorry to say, but Nigeria is today worse off than when it got independence in 1960. We are now a group of disillusioned people, because of the rudderlessness of the leadership. But, having said that, I think we have to keep hope alive. If the necessary corrections are effected, Nigeria could have a renewed lease of life. We have to be optimistic that Nigeria at the end of the day would make it.

October 1, 2017
Adamu Ciroma Nothing new about these agitations

There is nothing new about the clamour for restructuring. It is normal for Nigerians to want to live together in peace. This is my objective, to assist Nigerians to live in peace and to know how to adjust to one another.

All these things are part of the normal process of resettling issues and ensuring that things are conducted properly and ensuring that people understand each other. So, it is normal.

October 1, 2017
Ango Abdullahi: Let’s go our separate ways

Prominent northern voices and elder statesmen, have thrown their weights behind the agitated restructuring of the country, saying that, restructuring remains the best option for the country.

Spokesman of Northern Elders Forum, Professor Ango Abdullahi said, God didn’t create Nigeria, but Lord Lugard who made a great mistake, hence the need for the regions brought together by the colonial master to go their separate ways.

But the first civilian Governor of the old Kaduna State, Alhaji Abdulkadir Balarabe Musa says restructuring; particularly in the area of resource control will bring about a more viable federal system of government.

Abdullahi in a telephone interview said, Nigerians should waste no further time in correcting the mistake of Lord Lugard, by either going their separate ways or revive the defunct regional system of government.

According to him, “I have spoken extensively on this issue of restructuring and I gave reasons why Nigeria has failed. The elites have insisted, that Nigeria should work, which is why I am advocating that, the mistake Lugard made in 1914 should be revisited.

“Lugard made mistake by bringing us together and I don’t take it that God made this country, it was Lugard who made it. And now that we have agreed that he has made a mistake, we should correct it. Correcting it here means that, we should go to the structures he put together and go our separate ways, or at best, I support the position taken by the South West that, we should go to our former regions. That is my position.

“If we cannot work Nigeria for 100 years, we should do something else, and doing something else means that, we either go our separate ways or go back to a point where our leaders agreed for once that, Nigeria should gain independence, but original federal system. I also agree with the South West position that we should have our parliamentary system back.

“We should stop wasting time by organising constitutional conferences. Each time we organise constitutional conference, they will say there is nothing wrong with the provisions of our constitution, it is the people working it that are not implementing it properly. So, this shows that, it is the Nigeria political class and the elites that have failed. So, why don’t we stop now and retrace our steps and go back to 1960?

“If we go our separate ways, I believe the people in the West as they always argue will do like our father, Chief Awolowo did, people in the East will do like Zik did and people in the north will do the same that Sardauna left for us.

“It is because the political class are selfish that, they don’t want to hear these views. They don’t want to hear that Nigeria is divisible, which is nonsense.

You can’t say that Nigeria’s unity is non-negotiable, it is not true, because the President said recently that, Nigeria’s unity has been settled. It has not been settled. So, you cannot say Nigeria’s unity is non-negotiable,” he said.

October 1, 2017
Falae: Restructuring imperative, but Nigeria’s unity is non-negotiable

Chief Olu Falae, an Afenifere leader and former Minister for Finance and Secretary to the Government of the Federation, speaks to DAMISI OJO on restructuring as Nigeria turns 57 today. Excerpts

What is your opinion on the clamour for restructuring?

A:The only way to douse the tension is to restructure the country to usher in stability, harmony and progress. What is causing the rumpus is that a carefully negotiated political covenant was made by our revered leaders before independence, which formed the basis of the independence constitution thrown away through military incursion into power. That constitution was replaced by the present political contraption imposed on the citizenry by the late Gen. Sani Abacha.

If the truth must be told, there was deep suspicion by our political leaders “then” as “now” regarding various regions of the country. So, they agreed to go into independence on the basis of the constitution which gave considerable autonomy to the regions. For example, every region has its own constitution as distinct from the federal constitution, controlled its local governments and operated the type of legislature it preferred.

For instance, the constitution of the Western and Eastern regions made provisions for the House of Chiefs where as the Northern region had none. Whereas in the Western region, local government councillors elected their chairmen annually .

During that era, the Western region introduced Free Primary Education in 1955 which no other region achieved until much later.

What was the situation before Nigeria became an entity?

In the run-up to Independence, the British government was ready to grant internal self-government to the Western region in 1957,Eastern region in 1958 and Northern region in 1959, Thus, it can be argued that if our leaders had not been able to negotiate a carefully balanced deal in London before independence, the region might have asked for different Independence which the British government would have approved, If independence constitution is presented today, it will go a long way in settling the yearning for fairness, balance and autonomy. Restructuring is a call to what we used to have,which was approved by all leaders and practised six years before the military truncated it.

There is a need for confidence building to bridge the communication gap by returning to the independence constitution and once Nigerians know the meaning of restructuring, they will come to the same conclusion like the past leaders did in London between 1957 and 1959.

You actually led some Yoruba leaders to the National Conference in 2014.Was this issue of restructing given a thought?

Restructuring was one of the major agenda in the National Conference. I led my people there and I was in a position to know what happened there.Majority delegates at the conference advocated a change of the present constitution to what we used to have in the past.Returning to the Independence constitution will save the country from tension and end agitations especially by the minority.

Doing this,we will come to the conclusion which our leaders in the past agreed upon in London between 1957 and 1959. We will use dialogue to achieve this. Restructuring is absolutely necessary,however,the unity of Nigeria is non-negotiable.

October 1, 2017
Reuben Fasoranti ‘Nigeria should return to parliamentary system’

As a Yoruba leader, what is your view about restructuring?

My position is that of the Afenifere group and other Yoruba leaders. The only alternative to the present challenges facing the country is to embrace restructuring. The federal government of President Muhammadu Buhari should without further delay do the needful by hearkening to the voices of many Nigerians asking for restructuring.

With this step taken, there will be equal opportunity to each region to develop at its own pace and raise the development paradigm as obtained in the country before the 1966 military coup. This is what restructuring and true federalism is all about, we must pursue this vigorously without anybody talking about the advantages one section has over the other. True federalism will allow states to explore mineral resources in their locality and pay royalty to the government at the centre as being done in the developed countries. Every Nigerian who wants stability must support this agitation to bring peace and tranquility to the country.

. The most profitable and desirable system is the parliamentary with six regional governments, some local governments and a federal government with limited roles such as foreign affairs, security, power generation, education and so on. it is advisable that Nigeria should revert to true parliamentary system of government as against the expensive presidential system. The system with six regional governments similar to what used to be when they had four regional governments would be beneficial to the citizenry. There is need for the creation of Northwest, Southwest, Southeast, Northeast, Southsouth and Northcentral regions as provided in the constitution.

October 1, 2017
Tinubu, restructuring and the King’s College speech

The debate about the expediency – or otherwise – of restructuring has increasingly become a top-drawer issue, gaining momentum by the day and suggesting that it may be one of the dominant issues of the 2019 election. The main political parties in the country are now more or less, in my estimation, obliged to clearly state their stand on the issue to be taken seriously in the next poll. The ruling All Progressives Congress, which had been rather lukewarm about the matter despite having devolution of power as a precept in its constitution, has hit the road with its committee collating the views of its members across the country on restructuring. The opposition Peoples Democratic Party is also said to be weighing in on the issue. On September 7, many Yoruba leaders and leaders of socio-political groups in the South-west gathered in Ibadan, the region’s political capital, to state their position on restructuring. The highpoints of the deliberation contained in their 16-point communiqué include a return to the 1960 and 1963 constitutions, both of which espoused the regional structure and granted wide powers to the regions. Also canvassed was overhaul of the revenue allocation formula that will see 50% going to states, 35% to the proposed regional governments and 15% to the central government.

While it must be emphasized that it was not every stakeholder in Yorubaland that attended the summit let alone agreed with the entire proposition, the question whether this makes the submission any less valid is a moot point. In the North, some of the region’s leaders including governors are also talking and demanding devolution of powers and other variants of restructuring. Also, the National Assembly, which had curiously dumped devolution of power as an item on its constitution review plan, is now having a rethink.

The fact that political leaders and stakeholders are talking and complaining loudly about the present political structure suggests, in my view, that something is awfully wrong with our situation and that an urgent remedy is required. And I think we are gradually getting to that point where we must confront the problem. At every turn, the popular mantra is now restructuring. Until last weekend, the question which has been on nearly every lip is this: When would the APC National Leader, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, speak about the issue? After bidding his time, putting together his views, consistent with what he has always stood and fought for over time, Asiwaju eventually unfolded his position last Saturday in a keynote address as Principal Guest of Honour at the 2017 Annual Dinner of the King’s College Old Boys’ Association (KCOBA). That speech was further proof that Tinubu knows when to speak and how to do it with some aplomb. As one commentator on a national television succinctly put it last week: “Knowing when to speak and how to speak should now be added to the worth of Asiwaju Tinubu, widely regarded as a consummate politician, strategist and administrator”.

Asiwaju spoke on both the economic and political imperatives of the moment. It was a landmark speech, highlights of which bear restating here. In the lecture entitled ‘A New Nigeria or A Better One: The Fitting Tools of A Great Repair,’ Asiwaju left no one in doubt that he desired a better Nigeria for the people. “What I seek is a better Nigeria. I care not whether something is old or new but whether it shall make us better”. He lamented that a nation as diverse as ours had not taken the time to give our legal marriage its proper functional underpinning. “We all lined up to call ourselves Nigerian without gathering to discuss what it meant. Thus, we inhabit a nation that has not sufficiently defined its governance. We may be defined by political borders and boundaries but we have not glued ourselves to collective purpose and vision. Too many of us are born in Nigeria but not of it”.

Nigerians, he said, must listen to those clamouring for secession to determine what they actually mean, explaining that many secessionists cry separation because their personal ambitions would be better served by such. Expressing his belief in one Nigeria, he argued that breaking up the country would solve no problems. He concedes, however, that some problems remain in the nation which needs to be fixed. “That I am a foe of disunity does not mean I have blinded myself to the truth that our nation is in need of great repair,” he said. “We all see the nation for what it is. Some look further to see the nation for what it is not and they rush to condemn it. I choose to see the nation for what it can be and thus seek to nurture and cultivate it so that this Nigeria may bring forth the fullest blossoming of its riches, resources and ingenuity of its diverse people”.

Asiwaju’s thematic prognosis outlines a foundation for a new Nigeria. And despite the evident brilliance, he would rather see it as his humble initial contribution to the long overdue discourse on how to mould and shape our political economy. He condemned Nigeria’s over-dependence on oil revenue and on the rent-seeking behaviour such revenues encourage. “Even at the best of times and with the highest of oil prices, the economy was characterized by imbalance and inefficiency. Widespread poverty, gross inequality and massive unemployment described the condition”.

Among his many remarkable prescriptions were the creation of an industrial capacity that employs large numbers of people and manufactures a significant quantity of goods for domestic consumption; national industrial policy that fosters development of strategic industries that create jobs as well as spur further economic growth; focus on manufacturing things that Nigerians and the rest of the world value and want to buy; institution of a policy of tax credits; subsidies that insulate critical sectors from the negative impact of imports and lowering of interest to make credit available for business investments and consumer credit accessible to the average person.

Others included a national infrastructure plan, addressing the power problem to obtain this vital ingredient to economic vitality, government-backed home mortgage system, re-invigoration of agriculture with the reintroduction of commodity exchange boards and agric mortgage loan corporation to help the common farmer to improve output and income and a re-calibration of the revenue sharing formula in order to give more funds to the states. Noting that the central government was doing things the states can do better, the APC leader said giving heed to the recommendations above will keep the federal government busy. It was at this point that he restated his often-stated call for true federalism. He argued that the imbalance between the roles of the federal and state governments lies at the root of the nation’s difficulties.

Moving many of the 68 items in the Exclusive List to the Residual List as was the case in the 1963 Constitution will help ensure true federalism, he said. These items include police, prisons, stamp duties, regulation of tourist traffic, registration of business names, incorporation of companies, trade, commerce and census. He said those eager to dispense with federalism in favour of “more rash and impractical remedies should allow us to first truly practice federalism before we deem it a failure”.

Sadly, it has to be said though that the reportage of this speech in one or two newspapers and commentaries by a few on social media seemed to have misconstrued some of Asiwaju Tinubu’s standpoints. A few clarifications would suffice here in that regard, as restructuring has now become a coat of many colours with many espousing diverse and often self-serving versions of what they term restructuring. First, Asiwaju’s advocacy has always been for a true federalism. What he seeks is a re-balancing of the roles between the federal and state governments to give more powers to the states to perform their responsibilities as obtained in the 1963 Constitution. The APC leader is convinced that the ongoing debate is healthy for the country and should help produce a better system for Nigeria.

Second, when Tinubu noted that not all change could be deemed to be good, it was neither meant to disparage the APC which he helped found, nor a denunciation of the party’s change mantra as insinuated by some on social media. That was sheer mischief. He spoke in a context which clearly highlighted that what he sought for the country was a better Nigeria and that whether something was old or new was immaterial to him. For the avoidance of doubt, this is what he said: “What I seek is a better Nigeria. I care not whether something is old or new but whether it shall make us better. Not all change is good. Not every new thing shall be kind to us. Yes, Nigeria must change, but some of the changes we need cannot be bought at the store of the new. Many things we need are shelved in the warehouse of the old. Just as we must learn new things on one hand, we must remember vital old wisdom on the other”.

Taking the comment of anyone, particularly leaders, that points a way forward out of context would not help the ongoing democratic discourse. Their views should be properly captured. Asiwaju’s paper has been published in full by some of our national newspapers. The speech is on the internet and can also be glimpsed on his Twitter handle.

*Rahman is Media Adviser to Asiwaju Tinubu

October 1, 2017
Ex-Rivers Dep Gov: South-East deserves one more state

A former Deputy Governor of Rivers State, Sir Gabriel Toby, in this interview with our Bureau Chief in Port Harcourt, Bisi Olaniyi, speaks on the need to restructure Nigeria now. The South-East, he says deserves one more state to correct the structural imbalance. Excerpts:

What is your view on restructuring of Nigeria? The general opinion now, which is accepted, is that we need to restructure Nigeria. Members of the National Assembly, on resumption, are reconsidering the bill on restructuring. Nigeria must be restructured, as a basis of our existence.

Restructuring of Nigeria should go in two ways: devolution of powers and resource control. We need to decide on the powers that the centre must retain and what powers must go to the states and possibly the local governments. That will be the beginning of determining what level of resources should be retained at the centre and what should go to the states. We in the South-South zone have always talked about resource control, as a basis of helping us to develop our areas.

The people who live in the upland areas and administer are not likely to know the feel or problems of those in the deltaic/swamp/mangrove areas, with terrain that is difficult to develop. As God will have it, the Niger Delta region, especially the South-South zone, is blessed with crude oil and gas. As of now, the main revenue of Nigeria is coming from the oil and gas in the Niger Delta.

You will find that the areas where the crude oil and gas are coming from are undeveloped. If they are allowed to control their resources, they will be able to develop their areas better. That is in principle. I must accept that our experience so far has not given us that kind of hope.

We have seen states that plunder their resources. We have seen local governments where chairmen and councillors stay in the state capital and share whatever resources they get, without being at the headquarters of the local governments to ensure development of their areas. The whole idea of creating local governments is to have them as centres of development and so also the states.

On resource control, are Niger Deltans still insisting on increase in the 13 per cent derivation fund from to 50 per cent?

It must be negotiated. Once we agree on what will be the responsibilities of the centre (Federal Government), then, we should be in a position to know how to fund the centre. The centre will be funded from the resources of this country, which come from all the states. The 13 per cent is not enough. That is part of the agitations.

From 1954, the regions were controlling whatever they produced and paid tax to the centre, which was used to develop. The derivation percentage must be increased, whether it is 50 percent, 60 percent or whatever, will be determined by the responsibilities that devolve from the federal to the states and local government.

Do you want the powers to devolve to both the states and local governments?

It is a constitutional matter. We must bear in mind that the states are the federating components of the Federal Government. We are aiming at happiness of all Nigerians, who should be in positions to manage their environment and themselves. Local governments are the centres of development and they must have some responsibilities in developing their areas.

In having true federalism, are you in support of having state police?

This is a knotty question. To an extent, I am in support of state police. When you talk of state and community policing, you will find that the policemen and women will be in the best position to know the flashpoints and to quickly tackle issues, but the state police, when created, must be supervised and have overall authority still residing with the Federal Government. So that there will be the same policies and control, when it comes to excesses and arbitrariness.

We currently have bicameral legislature with the Senate and the House of Representatives, but some Nigerians are calling for unicameral legislature to reduce cost. Which of the two do you want scrapped?

We have tried the unicameral and we are now on the bicameral legislature. When you are talking of scrapping, you must bear in mind that people are already there.

What of if the scrapping is effected at the end of the tenure of the present members of the National Assembly in 2019, in order to have unicameral legislature?

I agree that having unicameral legislature will cut cost. We will be better off in Nigeria with one legislative body. The bicameral legislature is becoming rather too expensive. The legislators also have retinue of aides.

There are two opinions on this matter: having part-time legislature or having just a single legislative body, as we have in the United States of America. It will cut cost and make us to move faster, in terms of development.

Do you support the return to the 1963 Constitution, and for Nigeria to adopt six geopolitical zones?

With the 1963 Constitution, we had three regions (Western, Eastern and Northern) and we later had the Mid-Western Region. You cannot turn back the hands of the clock. Going back to the 1963 Constitution will be a complicated issue. We now have 36 states and six geopolitical zones in Nigeria, no longer regions.

The best way to have peace in Nigeria is to restructure on the basis of states and devolve more powers and resources to the states. We should also let the states have their own ways of creating resources, if they want to survive. Then, we will have a federation of 36 states, not six zones.

On fiscal federalism, are you in support of the 40:40:20 revenue sharing formula being proposed; that is 40 per cent each for Federal Government and states, while the local governments would get 20 percent of the total revenue?

It is not a matter of Mathematics. If we agree on devolution of powers, especially the things that the federal government, states and local governments would do, then the question of how to share the resources will later come up.

October 1, 2017
MAN chief: Our economy needs restructuring too

Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) president, Frank Jacob, in this interview with Bukola Aroloye says the economy needs restructuring especially in the area of diversification. Excerpts

What is your assessment of the economy in the last one year? There is no doubt that the year 2016 was very difficult for all economic participants Government, firms and households. The reason for the harsh condition is also known to all and sundry. The fall in the crude oil prices in the international market and the resultant acute shortage of FX were core among economic challenges, others being poor power and credit supplies in that year.   Following that ill-development, government fell short of its fiscal obligations, manufacturers cut down production due to inability to import raw-materials used in the sector that are not locally available and household aggregate consumption plummeted due to erosion in real value of income resulting from high inflation as depreciating Naira fed into prices. This ultimately threw the economy into recession in the second quarter of 2016 as Real Gross Domestic Product (GDP) grew by -0.36 in Q1, -2.06 in Q2, -2.24 in Q3 and -1.30 in Q4.

Fortunately, MAN was able to engage the government frequently on how the challenges could be resolved. The result of those engagements are the CBN preferential 60% allocation to the sector for importation of raw-materials and machinery that are not available locally; CBN forex policy intervention that began in February 2017; the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP) which has as priority infrastructure development; the constitution of the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC); the lift of the ban on Export Expansion Grant; the $20,000.00 quarterly special Forex allocation to SMEs; and the review of the list of 41 items which the CBN excluded from the official forex market. These are already yielding positive results as they contributed significantly to extricating the economy from recession in the second quarter of 2017 – NBS GDP report shows an improvement in Real GDP as it grew by 0.55% in the second quarter of 2017 marking the end of economic recession in the country. This is corroborated by the contraction in the Consumer Price Index as inflation rate fell from 18.55 percent recorded in the fourth quarter of 2016 to 16.1 percent in second quarter of 2017. Generally therefore, the economy appears to be on recovery and growth paths. Hopefully, this will be sustained.

In what areas do you think there can be improvement?

No doubt, the economic improvement recorded in the second quarter of 2017 is quite commendable.   However, to sustain the current recovery tempo and further advance the performance of the economy and the manufacturing sector, we consider the following measures very important:

*Continuously improving the state of infrastructure in the country, especially electricity, road and security infrastructure;

*Sustaining the current intervention in the forex market;

*Continuous encouragement of good governance in the country;

*Strengthening the monetary and fiscal policy mix in designing economic policies;

*Sustaining forex allocation to the industrial/manufacturing sector for importation of raw-materials and machinery that are locally unavailable;

*Continuously supporting the resource-based industrialization and backward integration programmes

*Encouraging patronage of Made-in-Nigeria Products

*Significantly reduce interest rate to single digits.

Would you say the real sector needs to be restructured?

No doubt, there is need for restructuring the real sector of the economy so as to make it more productive. Restructuring in this context should consider the current mode of production in the sector. At the moment, production in the sector can be said to be crude and lacking contemporary technological production systems. It is important to note that no country in the world has ever advanced without technological progress. The manufacturing, agriculture, solid mineral and construction are equally poor with technology adaptation. Unfortunately, this condition is responsible for the technology transfer mirage being witnessed in the country.   The restructuring of the industrial sector, especially manufacturing sector is therefore imperative and critical to production expansion in the sector. Consequently, the real sector player should be encouraged to ensure their production processes are technologically driven, especially recent technologies. In doing that, the mode of production in the sector will gradually transmute to a more technological frontier that would also facilitate swift technology transfer.

An effective restructuring, particularly for the manufacturing sector will through embracing of contemporary technologies catalyze heavy manufacturing in the country as against the prevailing light manufacturing.   Generally, the implications of such restructuring of the real sector   would amount to more output, employment and contribution to government revenue.

In specific terms, which type of restructuring does the economy need?

Indeed, the economy needs to be restructured, especially as it has been built around crude oil resource which has proven time and time to be undependable. The current unfavourable swing in crude oil prices in the international market has exposed the weaknesses and gaps in the economy as a sole dependence on crude oil earnings. The restructuring of the economy is also important so as to position the private sector to drive the economy – modern and prosperous economies are driven by the private sector.

The ideal restructuring needed at the moment is economic diversification that will be supported with resource-based industrialization and backward integration programmes. Agriculture and solid minerals are cardinal sectors in the diversification programme due to their high inter-industry linkages. Consequently, diversification should begin within agriculture and solid minerals’ sectors so as to catalyze input materials for other sectors of the economy.   This will expand Nigeria’s export revenue streams and create a sustainable landscape for the industrialization of the country.

While emphasizing diversification, there is need for government to incentivize investment into the petrochemical industry which also has significant inter-industry linkages and has the capacity to increase the country’s export revenue.

How can the economy be boosted for greater efficiency?

It is important to note that economic efficiency borders on Ease-Of-Doing-Business (EODB) and cost of operating a business. With less efficiency, EODB and operating cost will be harsh and may trigger off business downturn. The constitution of the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC) is therefore apt and commendable, especially for the improvements already recorded on some of the EODB factors, particularly business registration. However, to consolidate on these achievements, there is the need for the government to further consider the following measures for implementation:

*Further focusing on improving the quantum of electricity generated, transmission and distribution infrastructure as well as evolving an optimum tariff for the commodity;

*Improving Private Sector access to credit which has been crowded-out by government’s presence in the financial markets;

*Harmonizing the tax structure and publishing approved tax rates collectable by the federal, states and local governments to eliminate multiplicity of taxes and double taxation.

What sort of monetary and fiscal policies would you advocate over the next one year?

Monetary and fiscal policies are veritable tools for the management of the economy considering the fact that Nigeria just exited recession. There has to be a synthesis of fiscal and monetary policies to achieve macroeconomic stability and economic growth. The CBN’s exchange rate policy in the period, especially recently has been efficacious as it stabilized forex market by narrowing the premium between the parallel and official markets rates and making forex more available in the economy. The same view can be held for loan to manufacturers, especially those emanating from the development funding windows particularly the Bank of Industry (BOI). The Bank has within its limited capacity been granting credit for acquisition of machinery to manufacturers and other industrialists. These credible monetary policies have to be sustained. Nonetheless, the CBN interest rate stance remains a worrisome challenge as it retains Monetary Policy Rate (MPR) at 14% which MAN considers high and responsible for the increase in the other rates such as the lending rate which stands at about 30%. The high lending rate from the commercial banks has been a huge disincentive for investment in the manufacturing sector. MAN is therefore advocating for a reduction in MPR.

What sector of the economy needs greater focus?

There is no doubt that if the non-oil sector is healthy, then the entire economy will be healthy. It is important to note that all component sectors of the non-oil sector work and progress in unison due to inter-industry linkages. It is also important that while focusing on agriculture, solid minerals should also be given attention including the manufacturing sector. These three sectors are bound together by industry input-output linkages. None of them can adequately survive on its own unless the others are surviving. In conclusion therefore, there is need for the government to simultaneously focus on agriculture, solid minerals and the manufacturing sector.

October 1, 2017