Federal legislators differ on clamour for restructuring

In response to the recent agitation for economic and political restructuring of Nigeria, notable members of the House of Representatives across political parties have expressed different views.

Some of the legislators who spoke during separate interview sessions with select Legislative Correspondents, however aligned that most of the recommendations canvassed in the National Conference report have been captured during ongoing fourth Constitution amendment initiated by the 8th session of the National Assembly.

Speaking during an exclusive interview with select Legislative Correspondents, Leo Ogor, Minority Leader said that restructuring will take the nation out of the wood, adding that for the nation to move forward, economic restructuring need to be done, so that states can have controlled over their resources.

He said that states should be allowed to run their affairs, adding that as soon as economic restructuring is done, political restructuring will fall into place.

Ogor said: “Restructuring will take the nation out of the wood. If we don’t restructure, the nation will restructure itself. The first thing we need to do if we have to move forward is economic restructuring.

“The vast resources will be given to the states and the federal government will be free. Political restructuring is inconsequential at the moment. Which of the state are will going to remove? We don’t need regional arrangement. Let all the states run their affairs. As soon as we do economic restructuring, political restructuring will fall into place.”

For Zakari Mohammed (APC-Kwara) who viewed restructuring from a different perspective, described the recent call for “restructuring as a wasteful venture.”

Mohammed who doubles as Chairman, House Committee on Basic Education added that the until the nation do away with suspicious and the citizens learn to trust themselves, the issue will continue to plague the nation.

He said: “There is mutual suspicious among us. In other climes,  there is nothing like where are you from or otherwise, but here, there is suspicious. Until we learn to trust ourselves, this issue will still be coming up. Restructuring or no restructuring, there are issues we should look at, like providing light, roads, water, food among others.”

In a separate interview with Tajudeen Yusuf (PDP-Kogi) on the other hand added that until government deals with restructuring, the issue of agitation will always come up.

Yusuf who doubles as Chairman, House Committee on Capital Markets and other Institutions observed that the 1999 Constitution was a fraud, the lawmaker pointed out that what is being operate as a Constitution was doctored in line with the military mindset.

The Kogi lawmaker who emphasised the advocated for equity and justice in the allocation of resources across the country, argued that there was a deliberate effort by the Military to frustrate the amendment of the Constitution.

“If you don’t fix your situation, time will fix it for you. As long as we don’t deal with restructuring, the issue of agitation will always come up.

“In 1979 Constitution, we have a semblance of federal system of government. In Western nations where true federalism is being practice, they pay some percentage to the centre. The 1999 Constitution was a fraud. What we have today was doctored in line with military mindset.

“We need restructuring, but I don’t think that what is on ground now is what we need. We need genuine leaders who have the interest of the people at heart. We have short sighted leaders, who do not see beyond their interest.”

Responding to the agitation for restructuring, Biodun Faleke (APC-Kogi), asked if “we actually have a country,” adding that until the leaders of the nation sat down and put things in the right perspective, things will never work.

He said that until sentiment, favoritism, nepotism, tribalism and religion are done away with, things will not work in the country.

The lawmaker noted that there is no obedience to the rule of law and there is no unity among the people.

“The first approach to restructuring is to ask why is this agitation coming up now and why is it becoming so strong in the country? Leaders need to sit down and think. Do we actually have a country, are we operating a country or cabal system of government?

“Until we agree and decided not to disagree along sentiment, tribal and religious line, until we do away with all these and agree we have a country and all the interest parties agree to live as one things will not change,” the Kogi lawmaker stressed.

On his part, Johnson Agbonayinma (PDP-Edo) lamented the decadence of the nation, adding that this is not the nation our heroes past fought for.

Even though he noted that the nation belong to all of us, the lawmaker said that “looking back our past heroes probably will be crying and lamenting in their graves that this is not the Nigeria they fought for, the Nigeria of their dreams. Growing up, this is not the Nigeria I will be praying to see. If we do not know where we are coming from, we will never know where we are going.”

 

KEHINDE AKINTOLA, Abuja