The Nation Newspaper

Tag: restructuring

  • ‘ No alternative to restructuring’

    Politicians, pro democracy group and other political stakeholders unanimously agreed over the weekend that for Nigeria to actually attain full democracy, there is need for proper restructuring of political parties in the country. A former member of the lower chamber of the national assembly, Prince George Jolaoye, who represented Ayedire/Ola-Oluwa/Iwo federal constituency of Osun State, led the call.

    He spoke at an event organised by the Nigerian Movement for Positive Change (NMPC), held at Alice Palace, Agodi Street, Ibadan. He said: “This restructuring must first take place within the political parties. It is sad to say that most of our political parties lack proper political ideology. In the USA, and Britain, the foundations of their political parties are well cemented within established and clearly articulated political ideologies which accentuate the complexion of politics played. In such places, politics is all about ideas.”

    Another speaker, Senator Gbenga Babalola, charged voters to take their destiny in their hands and exhibit courage to elect political leaders they can vouch for. Babalola said, “No elected person will make Nigeria great, except the voters. Nigerians should wake up and demand accountability from their leaders.” The chairman, Board of Trustees (BoT) of NMPC, General Adekunle Martins (retd), charged political office holders to embark on policies and projects that will truly reflect the welfare of the masses.

     

     

  • Ibori backs restructuring

    Former Delta Governor James Ibori yesterday urged Southsouth Governor’s Forum not to relent in their battle for the restructuring of the country.

    He said the south/south governors forum had the commitment to ensure that the battle for restructuring was carried to the “finish line”.

    His words:”I have been watching the south/ south governors forum from the sidelines and I have no doubt that they will carry the battlele to the finish line”.

    Ibori, who spoke at the inauguration of the Sapele Modern Market in Sapele,lamented that despite the presence of three power generation stations Delta State suffers acute power outage.

    He said he had strong emotions over the Sapele Ultra Modern Market because his mother owned shops at the market.

    His words: “I have  a very sentimental attachment to the market.My mother had stalls .As a young man,I used to come here to come here to see my mother.I am overwhelmed by emotions”.

    The Sapele Modern Market which has 1523 shops was gutted by fire in 2005.

  • Ubani seeks restructuring

    Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) Second Vice President Mr Monday Ubani has advocated restructuring to move the country forward.

    He said the country was no longer working and that “there is no viable option left except we restructure”.

    Ubani spoke at a briefing on the state of the nation in Lagos.

    According to him, Nigeria has not been able to make progress because of the unitary system introduced by the military.

    He said the starting point would be to revisit the 2014 National Conference report.

    “Whether anyone likes it or not or wants to hear it or not, the truth of the matter is that Nigeria has a fundamental foundational issue which we need to deal with. Unfortunately we have failed, refused and or neglected to deal with it to our great detriment.

    “Previous and past governments have paid lip service to it even when they found out the truth that the country cannot make much progress with the present structure in place.

    “The present structure is bogus, over bureaucratic, over-centralised, oppressive, devoid of justice and equity.

    “The structure encourages laziness and lack of competitive spirit that was prevalent in our polity in the early 60s due to the apparent adherence to the tenets of operational federalism.

    “Today what we operate is highly distorted economy, the centre taking everything that belongs to the federating units and gathering the states in Abuja for handouts monthly.

    “The proper system would have been the various federating units paying certain percentage of what they have gathered in the federating units for the maintenance of a leaner, more efficient and adequately compensated public service,” Ubani said.

    The NBA chief praised President Muhammadu Buhari and the lawmakers for passing the not-too-young-to-run bill into law.

    He lamented that nothing seems to have been done to develop future leaders.

    He noted: “We have a lot of young people who have the zeal, wisdom, brains to lead instead of recycling the old people whose ideas have become archaic.

    “If we get the issue of leadership right but refused to restructure, we are getting nowhere.”

    Ubani urged the electorate to demand that any aspiring politician swear to a written affidavit on oath to restructure Nigeria upon winning and assumption of office in 2019.

    “We have no time. 2019 is around the corner and election of new public officers will soon commence. Let Nigerians demand any aspiring politician to swear to ‘a written affidavit on oath to restructure Nigerian upon winning and assumption of office at Aso Villa. That  should be the minimum requirement.

    “ Let us stop beating about the bush,  Nigeria is not working and may not work unless we address our defective and unhealthy structure that is clearly defective.

    “There is no viable alternative to a comprehensive restructuring of this polity if Nigeria would be united, peaceful and prosperous.

    “Irrespective of whatever anyone at any level thinks, if Nigeria is to actualise its manifest destiny as the leading black nation, there is no viable alternative to its comprehensive restructuring,” Ubani said.

    The lawyer described as “media trial” and  ”unhealthy for the country”,  the parade of suspects by the police without having been pronounced guilty by a law court.

    ”It is important we begin to emphasis that the issue of parading suspect is wrong. An accused person alleged to have committed a crime should be taking to court. Nigeria should follow international law practice,” he said.

  • IPOB to Ohaneze: Kanu’s disappearance more important than restructuring

    Resolving the disappearance of its leader, Nnamdi Kanu is more important than restructuring, which the apex Igbo socio-political group Ohaneze Ndigbo stressed at its last summit, The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) has stated.

    Condemning Ohaneze for not being bothered about the disappearance of one its illustrious sons since last year, IPOB said restructuring is a Nigerian agenda, which shouldn’t concern a pro-Igbo organisation.

    In a statement yesterday by Ikechukwu Nnaji, IPOB accused Ohaneze of joining the federal government in labeling young Igbo men as terrorists.

    IPOB said: “It is shameful the so- called leaders of Ohaneze will gather people in Awka, Anambra to talk about restructuring of Nigeria, which has no bearing with the peoples clamour for Biafra instead of talking about the disappearance and whereabouts of one of their illustrious sons, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu.”

    IPOB reminded Ohaneze that it could not have had the platform to talk about restructuring if not for the bold steps Kanu took to demand for Biafra.

    It noted it was unfortunate that instead of aligning with Kanu to actualise Biafra, the leadership of Ohaneze in collaboration with South east governors betrayed him by aiding the Hausa/Fulani to declare IPOB a terrorist organisation.

    “That the Nigerian government ever spoke of restructuring that has emboldened Ohaneze was as a result of Nnamdi Kanu’s actions.

    “But the so-called Ohanaeze Ndi Igbo feeling it will be wrong for Kanu to take the credit of the emancipation of the Igbo race betrayed him.”

    Condemning the Ohaneze President, particularly IPOB said: “Nnia Nwodo came out to say that Nnamdi Kanu’s approach to the issues of Biafra was too rash and childish and would achieve no results.

    “But now, he has been going about making speeches to people that call themselves Fulani who hardly understand his grammar and at the end he ends up not communicating.”

    The group said it was only Kanu who understood the current structure would never guarantee Igbos their due entitlements in the Nigerian polity and without the entire race giving him support, geopolitical zone would continue to be subservient to others.

     

  • North’s youths give terms for restructuring talks

    Restructuring – the popular pill for Nigeria’s numerous ailments – returned to the front burner yesterday.

    In Kaduna, a Coalition of the North’s  socio-political groups, supported structural reforms, with a condition –  those who will carry the banner  should be within the 18 to 60 years bracket.

    They said the older men who have been speaking and running the country since independence and after, should not take the front seats at their envisaged national discourse.

    Also in Kaduna, Bayelsa State Governor Seriake Dickson met with Governor Nasir El-Rufai, who chaired the All Progressives Congress (APC) restructuring committee which made some recommendations , including  state police.

    Dickson is urging El-Rufai to join the push for the Federal Government to embrace restructuring.

    In the Anambra State capital where Ohanaeze Ndigbo organised a summit on state of the nation, the Igbo socio-cultural group, its Yoruba counterpart Egbe Afenifere and the Southsouth leadership, led by Chief Edwin Clark, also canvassed restructuring of the country.

    Leaders of all leading Northern youth groups, civil society organisations, students bodies, professional societies, trade and women associations at a summit convened by the Coalition of Northern Groups (CNG), said in a five-page communique signed by their spokesperson, Abdul-Azeez Suleiman: “For the avoidance of doubt, the North fully supports the restructuring of the country and shall be prepared to represent itself in any debate on the issue.

    “The North shall however not settle for any restructuring plan that falls short of a total, comprehensive and holistic reordering that should first and foremost include the peaceful, democratic and civil determination of the people or groups of people that truly and sincerely wish to remain part of the Nigerian federation.

    “The seeming endorsement by some northern leaders of a brand of restructuring that clearly places the region at a disadvantage is unacceptable and must be discountenanced.

    “Any reorganisation process that fails to involve the discussion of the limits and extents of all the federating components with regards to available space and resources shall not be acceptable to the North.

    “And that older generation Nigerians above age 70 must not take up more 15 per cent of the delegate composition to the proposed national dialogue on restructuring.

    “It is important to note here that those who fall within the above definition of old generation Nigerians have in the past participated in debates that gave birth to the current national arrangement that is largely acknowledged as having failed our national aspirations.

    “Nigerians of between the ages of 18 to 60 should therefore competently compose 85 per cent of the delegation to the new debate process for the reorganisation of the country.

    “This is in recognition of the reality that Nigerians within this age bracket are growing worried that the nation has not fared well by being on the same political and economic lanes for 58 years (1960-date), resulting in no meaningful developmental impact.

    “This shall therefore eventually form the cornerstone for a platform for Nigeria to deliberate, decide, design, and develop a roadmap for an ultimate generational power transition.”

    The group insisted that “the recommendations by both the committees set up by the northern state governors and the All Progressives Congress (APC) be discredited and abandoned”.

    “Specifically, the Summit reviewed the distractions facing the North in the form of multiple and varied threats and the options that are available to the region as it prepares to engage other sections of the country in the restructuring debate.

    “The Summit particularly noted that in spite of the intensity of the clamour for restructuring from other parts of the country, the North appears not yet able to approach the issue with the required determination and to properly take a collective and definite stand.

    “It also critically examined the various attempts being made by external forces at totally undermining its economic and social fabrics, by encouraging rampant poverty, pervasive corruption and social problems like armed robbery, kidnapping, prostitution, drug and substance abuse.

    “Resulting from this is an instigated mutual distrust that is giving rise to widespread security challenges that are yet to be holistically addressed.

    “The Summit as well recognised that without proper preparation, the North stands the risk of continuing to bear the brunt from the fallout of renewed agitations for secession and the recent clamour for restructuring.

    “Consequently, the Summit agreed that the discordant tunes coming out of the North suggest that it is too overwhelmed  to even comprehend the true import of the brand of restructuring being called for, and its likely implication on the nation at large, to northerners in particular and to the younger generation most especially.

    “The group frowns at the mistake about to be committed by the present crop of northern political leaders in accepting a proposal that could mortgage the region’s collective interest and its future but suggested that in their place, a new all-encompassing process that will ensure the accurate representation of all interests be constituted.

    “It is time they formed a rallying point from which younger Nigerians can make a strong demand for a new political order, to usher in a generational power shift, as reparation for past marginalisation in the nation’s political leadership.”

    The group recommended the immediate setting up of a multi-purpose committee in the North with the mandate to embark on a massive campaign for the enlightenment and sensitisation of all northerners in preparation for the national debate on restructuring.

    Security was heavy at Awka during the summit of ethnic leaders. It was to forestall the threat by proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) to attack the leaders.

    The leaders decided that the only solution to the problem of the country is restructuring.

    Ohaneze appealed to the Federal Government to unban IPOB.

    Chief Clark, Chief Adebanjo and Chief Nwodo, said Nigeria must be restructured to a true federal state.

    The summit also proposed a single six-year term for the President and a constitution review to bring about a regional system of government and resource control.

    Deputy Senate President Ike Ekweremadu supported the proposals.

    He said he would be at the forefront of a bill along that line at the National Assembly.

    To Ekweremadu, Nigeria’s resources are enough to make her the world’s greatest nation.

    He said: “We will network with our brothers and sisters from other parts of Nigeria, carry everybody along in the exercise and engage those not sufficiently convinced that Nigeria will be greater if restructured.”

    Prof Jerry Gana, a former minister of I,nformation said it was for the rest of Nigeria to consider the proposals of various parts of the country, and see which is really good.

    “Let us agree and restructure Nigeria for the security and development of Nigeria,”he said, adding:

    “The democratic position is to allow for dialogue and free will discussions that will arrive at a beneficial conclusion for the benefit of all.”

    Gana also advised that the National Assembly be allowed to discuss the issues and refer them for public referendum before they pass the bill into law.

    Adebanjo said restructuring was being proposed “because we love ourselves”.

    “Without restructuring, we are only paying lip service to national change.”

    He rhetorically asked the opponents of restructuring if they could be wiser than their founding fathers – Sir Ahmadu Bello, Chief Obafemi Awolowo and Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe – such that they were hesitant to restore the country the way those founding fathers set it up.

    Clark advocated that the youth should be carried along in the process. “The youth have been treated very unkindly by the Federal Government of Nigeria,” the elder statesman said.

  • I’m for restructuring always – Ogun Speaker

    Speaker of Ogun State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Suraj Adekunbi, has reiterated his support for genuine restructuring of the Nigerian polity, saying the Assembly under his leadership has, through the ongoing constitutional review process, contributed to the agitations for restructuring. The Speaker said his credential as a progressive is agelong and as such, he will always support any call for progressive changes that will bring about better living conditions and peaceful coexistence among Nigerians.

    He added that his belief that Nigeria and Nigerians need to take a second look at the terms of our coexistence is constant while adding that such restructuring  however must be devoid of sentiments and divisiveness. “If we want to restructure so that we can live better lives and be better neighbours, I am for that. But if we want to restructure so that one part of the country can lord it over the others, I am against that, ” he said.

    Adekunbi who was reacting to what he described as unfounded, misguided and sponsored reports that he shunned a pro restructuring group that had come to seek audience with him in his office, urged the people to avoid spreading fake news as such will not help the socio political development of the country. He said there is no truth in the claims contained in the report and urged the public to ignore it.

    “Thank you for  your concern. I am a progressive and I will always want to meet and discuss with like minds. I am for genuine restructuring and as such I will be happy receiving any problems restructuring  group anytime. However, I never heard of any visit by any group or individual. This report is just the handiwork of mischief makers who are hell bent on blackmailing my personality,” he added.

     

  • NGO backs Atiku on restructuring

    A non-governmental organisation (NGO), Rebuild Nigeria Initiative (RNI), has supported former Vice President and presidential aspirant Atiku Abubakar’s model for the restructuring of Nigeria.

    In a statement by its Vice-President, Otunba Wale Fasan, the organisation recalled that Atiku was the first Nigerian to suggest restructuring as a mode for reuniting a multi-tribal nation that has been plagued by misunderstandings and strife among its nationalities.

    The statement followed its solidarity with Atiku during his campaign in Osogbo, the Osun State capital, home state of his wife, Titi.

    Fasan said: “Atiku Abubakar is the one person who has the moral authority to say restructuring is possible because he engineered it. He is not saying ‘I can do it’; he is saying ‘I have done it’.”

     

  • Yoruba group supports restructuring  

    A Pan-Yoruba socio-cultural group, Yoruba KO’YA Movement, has presented a 10-page policy paper on the restructuring of Nigeria’s political, economic and social structures to Speaker of Lagos State House of Assembly, Mudashiru Obasa.

    The group also called on the Federal Government to grant Lagos State a special status.

    The National Organising Secretary, Comrade Adeyemi Adeleye, who addressed reporters yesterday, said the policy paper is to formalise and institutionalise its agitation for the betterment of the Yoruba nation and Nigerian state as a whole.

    He said: “Every conscious and passionate Nigerian should join the call for restructuring. The government spends N300 billion per annum on importation of Bitumen, whereas the deposit of bitumen in Irele, Okitipupa, Ilaje and Ese-Odo Local Government Areas of Ondo State is the largest in Africa, but Governor Rotimi Akeredolua cannot explore  because he does not have the power to do so unless Abuja permits him. This is unacceptable…”

    Obasa’s aides, Miss Aishat Durojaiye and Timothy Oluwafemi, said the Speaker was attending the University of Lagos (UNILAG) convocation ceremony with Governor Akinwumi Ambode.

    They promised to deliver their message to him.

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

  • ‘Why Nigeria needs restructuring’

    THE Owerri Branch of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) has backed calls for restructuring, saying it would enhance development.

    The call was made during the branch’s Law Week held in Owerri last week.

    The Branch Chairman Lawrence Nwakaeti said restructuring the country would unlock its democratic, economic and socio-political potential.

    He said: “That Nigeria is a sick state is a fact no one can deny. The spectre of the rampaging murderous herds- men that appear to be enjoying official protection, the inequality in the distribution of the national cake evident in the lopsided appointments to various positions in government, sit- ing of basic and very essential institutions of government mainly in a particular section of the country as against a fair spread to benefit all segments, the list is endless.”

    One of the speakers, Okey Ezeh, said Nigeria needs restructuring to thrive.

    “A Nigeria without restructuring is like that passenger with name recognition and sufficient endowments to arrive his desired destination but ends up drifting endlessly on a bumpy trajectory as result of the lack of possession of a navigational compass or roadmap that defines the route and destination,” he said.

    According to him, the greatest impediment to Nigeria’s development is rooted in the country’s structure.

    “There is always a tendency for some people in Nigeria to view the call for restructuring as a political thing. There is even some apprehension within certain circles when the subject of restructuring is raised. It is wrongly viewed as a threat to the unity of Nigeria.

    “To some, the surest way to keep Nigeria one is to kill restructuring. But I do have an unyielding belief that the only way to kill Nigeria is to kill restructuring.

    “Also, the surest way to keep Nigeria united is to restructure it, for the structure we operate has gone dysfunctional, ever drifting to its terminus.

    “Essentially, a restructured Nigeria will engender healthy economic competition among the regions and induce them to unleash their development potentials in the areas they have comparative advantage. It will address the incoherence and disarticulation in Nigeria’s economy.

    ‘Every coherent economy possesses certain regional and sectoral reciprocity and complementarity or what economists describe ‘backward and forward linkages’. The rentier, mono product, oil-dependent economy has never helped Nigeria.

    “Again, the retrogression quota system that breeds mediocrity in the educational and employment sectors has never served our collective interest. Restructuring means progress, accelerated development and economic interdependence,” Ezeh said.

    On why restructuring was chosen as the law week’s theme, Nwakaeti said: “The time to restructure is now. Before we have been playing with that term. I had to bring in people from diverse backgrounds to look at it from different perspectives and do justice to it. If nobody would say it, then lawyers should say it. That is why we chose it. We must lead for others to follow.

    “I must state that the Owerri branch of the NBA under my leadership has come a long way. And each moment broadens our horizon. Before now, it was one administration one law week, and if you recall, last year we had a law week in this venue.

    “So, when I mooted the idea of another law week this year. There was a lot of opposition to it. In some of the meetings, you see some very senior lawyers asking, what is it for? This law week, why must you do it again? And it is one administration one law week. Law week is an annual thing.

    “The Continuing Legal Education under Rule 11, states that it is something that is continuous and the law week is part of it, so you cannot say that because it had hitherto been done biennially, that makes it right.

    “So, I had to change the status quo and I did and you can see the outcome. You can see the dinner.

    There was enough to eat and drink. And people ate to their fill and had fun. A Justice of the Supreme Court was on hand to be part of it to chair the dinner session. It was wonderful.

    “I have to thank members of the Judiciary ably led by our own Chief Judge, for giving my administration that support and my colleagues. They were wonderful,” Nwakaeti said.

  • Restructuring a must, say Anyaoku, Akintoye, others

    ‘Adesanya’ was a soldier of democracy’

    With one voice, some leaders from the North, East and West yesterday spoke on restructuring, saying it is the only way to stabilise Nigeria and guarantee its progress.

    Former Commonwealth Secretary-General Chief Emeka Anyaoku, former military governor of Rivers State Gen Zamani Lekwot, renowned historian Prof. Banji Akintoye and Ohanaeze Ndigbo President-General Chief John Nwodo, among others, urged those in power to arrest the country’s drift by returning to true federalism.

    They spoke on Leadership and the future of Nigeria at the 10th memorial symposium of the late Afenifere chieftain and Alliance for Democracy (AD) national leader, Senator Abraham Adesanya.

    Adesanya, a politician, lawyer, activist and deputy leader of the National Democratic Coalition (NADECO), a pro-democracy movement formed in 1994, died on April 27, 2008. He was 85.

    Former Head of State Gen Abdulsalami Abubakar, who chaired the occasion, described the late Adesanya as a man of integrity.

    He added: “I had a good relationship with him when destiny brought me to be the head of state of the country. I commend organisations that fought to bring democracy to Nigeria, and NADECO was the leading organisation. I relied on his advice and others to pilot the transition to democracy in Nigeria.”

    Anyaoku described the late Adesanya as a symbol of loyalty to his ethnic group and country.

    The late Adesanya, he said, protected the interests of the Yoruba, democracy and Nigeria, as a whole.

    “He was devoted to the fight for democracy in Nigeria and he incurred the wrath of Abacha with an attempted assassination on his life in 1996. He was a political activist, a patriot and a defender of truth and public interest,” Anyaoku said.

    He lamented the killings in some parts of the country and the simmering agitation for secession.

    Anyaoku said: “I believe that restructuring Nigeria’s present governance architecture by returning to the provisions of its 1960 and 1963 constitutional arrangements will not only help the emergence of a leadership that will pave the way for a national rebirth, but will also put the country on a more assured path to political stability and faster socio- economic development.

    “I am proposing a restructuring of Nigeria into a true federation of eight federating units comprising the existing six geo-political zones plus a restored old Mid-West region and a newly created Middle Belt federating unit”.

    Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, who spoke with reporters on the sidelines of the event, spoke of his plan to restructure the country in six months, if elected president in 2019.

    He said: “The process is not rocket science. A serious-minded government that knows how to listen and build consensus can restructure Nigeria for the benefit of all and this I undertake to do when I become president.

    “Indeed the Federal Government can voluntarily withdraw from most of the items listed in the exclusive list of our constitution. I believe that the benefits accruing from these first steps will help us as we move towards the changes that require amendments to our constitution.

    “The major task is recomposing the second schedule which does not encourage development and when you enjoy cordial relationship with the National Assembly and see it as an independent partner in progress rather than as a competitor, you can achieve great things,” he said.

    Nwodo urged Nigerians to vote only politicians who believe in restructuring.

    He said: “Nigerians, any leader who does not recognise that the cause of our underdevelopment, bickering, missed standards, is the fact that we do not have a restructured nation, don’t vote for him.”

    Lekwot urged Nigerians not to be afraid of restructuring. He also called for state police, and better funding for the armed forces as a way out of insecurity.

    He said: “Our police are well trained because when they go overseas, they win medals. But back home because of the faulty structure, they cannot perform. Even if we had a million policemen, this country is very large, they cannot cover every corner. This is why restructuring will create room for community or state police.

    “The American presidential system we are running has three tiers of policing. They have the county police, which are the local government, state police and the federal police. I hear people say we cannot pay them. Well, if we don’t pay them to do the right thing, we are going to reap the harvest, because, those who make life uncomfortable for us are well organised.

    “Another advantage is if community or state police is created, many youths will be employed and as we know, people in the rural areas know the ground better than anyone else.

    “I hear some people castigating the military, it’s based on ignorance….What is happening now, even the military, they are very thin on the ground, and because of the number of years, fatigue has set in. They too are suffering from manpower shortage and when morale is not high, anything can happen.

    “Given our diversity, restructuring is the way out, because the present structure is not working. If you programme something and it is not working, you have to come back. So, we have to get back to the drawing board in order to see if what requires fixing can be fixed.

    For Prof Akintoye, a historian and former senator, a break-up is imminent if the country fails to urgently restructure.

    He said: “If Nigeria does not take steps, which are important and prerequisite; if Nigeria does not take steps urgently, to return to a federal system, the kind of federal system that we saw in the 1950s up till 1965, Nigeria may very likely break up. That’s my assessment of the situation.

    “I’m a historian and I also happen to have been in your politics, but I speak from what I know. Don’t say that your country cannot break up, it can. Any country can break up. The Soviet Union had the most feared government on earth by the middle of the past century. I was in Tashkent, Uzbekistan for a few days and I saw that the people were scared of the Kremlin. That was in 1982. Less than 10 years later, those people who were scared of the Kremlin were already an independent country.”

    Former Managing Director of Concord Newspapers Dr. Doyinsola Abiola, urged Nigerians to go back to their roots in their quest for quality leadership.

    Dignitaries at the event included former President Olusegun Obasanjo; Deputy Governor of Ogun State, Mrs Yetunde Onanuga; former Governors Olusegun Osoba (Ogun), Chief Gbenga Daniel (Ogun) and Peter Obi (Anambra).

    Others included former Interim National Chairman of All Progressives Congress (APC), Chief Bisi Akande, KOWA Party chieftain Prof. Remi Sonaiya, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) chieftain Chief Bode George, former Akwa Ibom State Governor Obong Victor Attah, former PDP Lagos State governorship candidate Jimi Agbaje and eminent scholar Prof. Adebayo Williams, among others.