Bode George, a former deputy national chairman of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) has said that democracy was failing in Nigeria because the present 1999 constitution was imposed by the military and copied from the United States.
George pointed out that the current presidential system was expansive and not suited for the country, noting that there was the need for constitutional review, restructuring or implementation of the 2014 National conference report.
The PDP chieftain stated this while featuring as a guest speaker at the Fifth Year Lecture organised by SWAAYA Limited, publishers of the Freedom online news platform on Tuesday.
The lecture was themed “2023-2027: Nigerians, elected leaders and expectations.”
Speaking during the event which took place at the Function Suite, Sheraton Hotel, Lagos State.
The PDP chieftain also backed the idea of state policing, noting that it would be a very effective way of securing the country.
According to George, “Having served that long in the military, I can authoritatively confirm to you that the Nigerian constitution is absolutely military in setting. In the military, orders come from top to bottom.
“But in a democratic dispensation, powers come from the people to the top. But we have copied the American constitution, and that’s why things are not working. We must be deceiving ourselves if we think that this constitution will take us to the promised land.”
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Also speaking, Omoniyi Olubolade, former Minister of Special Duties, advised President Bola Tinubu to formulate policies that would alleviate poverty and suffering in the country and tackle high corruption among public officials.
He said the part of the problem of the country was the faulty constitution imposed on Nigeria, noting that there must be urgent restructuring of the country.
Speaking in similar vein, Tola Adeniyi, renowned journalist and businessman, blamed Nigeria’s woes on corrupt and insincere political class.
He also identified the collapsed of regionalism and current Presidential system for the country’s woes, noting that there was the need for a review of the current constitution for Nigeria to make progress.
“The greatest problem of Nigeria is the crop of politicians we have; nigeria politicians lacks integrity. The collapsed of regionalism led to the fall of Nigeria.
“The current presidential system is corruption ridden, every four years we go through the ritual of elections where incumbent believes they must rule for eight years and they do everything including killing to be re-elected”, he said.
