NewsRestructuring Will Surely Lead To Political, Economic Development

Restructuring Will Surely Lead To Political, Economic Development

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BEVERLY HILLS, March 22, (THEWILL) – Chief Martins Onovo is the Presidential Candidate of the National Conscience Party (NCP) in the 2019 presidential election. In this interview with AYO ESAN, he speaks on the state of insecurity in the country, the renewed call for restructuring, role of opposition in the nation’s politics, among other issues as they affect the nation.

The state of insecurity all over the country and most especially now in the South West is alarming. What is your take on this?

It is very clearly a consequence of the catastrophic failure of the General Muhammadu Buhari government. The government is, as we foretold, the worst since independence. Even, the former President, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan, had clearly said before the 2015 elections that, the choice before Nigerians in the 2015 elections is simple: A choice between going forward or going backward”. Now we are going backward. Corruption is worse, the economy is ruined and insecurity is the unprecedented daily norm.

With the copious confessions and statements published widely, and the physical evidence obtained in different cases, we know the following; That the Fulani terrorists in Nigeria were brought in from Mali, Sierra Leone, etc., by the APC for the 2015 elections as confessed by Alhaji Kawu Baraje, a former leading national chieftain of the APC. That the bandits are commanded by a northern Governor as alleged by Dr. Obadiah Mailafia. That the Nigerian Armed Forces are conniving with the armed bandits as confirmed by Gen. Theophilus Danjuma.

That Nigerian security forces know exactly where the terrorists are camped as confirmed by Sheik Ahmad Gumi. That a herdsman arrested in Plateau State was armed with a Nigerian military rifle as confirmed by Police. Further, the Police gave the rifle’s number as HC2614. That the herdsmen repelled and captured in Ogoja, had rifles from the Nigeria Army barracks in Ogoja as confirmed by Col. Tony Nyiam. That in Yewa, Ogun State, after the herdsmen were expelled by their host communities, the Nigeria Army escorted them back as published by The Nation Newspaper.

How will you react to Sheikh Ahmad Gumi’s recent call for amnesty for bandits?

Gumi is a man that should be watched. It is not only amnesty he called for. He is also quoted as saying in one Hausa newspaper that Boko Haram is a blessing to Nigerian Muslims. If you also watched the video of his meeting with bandits, you will see where he told the bandits that it was not the Muslim soldiers that were shooting at them but Christian soldiers. Have they not already divided the Army? But they will now be telling us that the opposition is trying to divide the Army. Is Gumi not inciting the bandits against Christians by claiming that it is Christian soldiers that are shooting at them? Let us not continue to deceive ourselves until the whole country goes up in flames.

ALSO READ: There Is Consensus On Restructuring

Imagine Gumi even comparing Niger-Delta militants with bandits. What a shame. But I’m not surprised. When the source of a river is dirty, that river will be virtually dirty, that’s what I can say about Gumi. If a religious extremist like Gumi will call for anything, you will know that what he is calling for is very wrong. It is obvious that there is no basis for comparison between Niger-Delta militants, and bandits. If Gumi can say Boko Haram is a blessing to Nigerian Muslims, then you expect same Gumi to bring a reasonable solution to any problem in the country, I don’t agree with that. For me, Gumi didn’t went to negotiate with bandits, he went there to incite them against Christians.

How can the nation get out of these crises?

The country must be restructured. Nigeria need a major political adjustment, and restructuring is the only safest option because it will be least expensive, and also because an overwhelming majority of Nigerians agreed that we need to restructure. Already, four out of the six geo-political zones in the country have agreed on restructuring through their socio-cultural organizations, so what we should have been doing is to discuss what should be the terms for restructuring.

My own terms which I believe should be ideal for us is that we should have six regions using the current six geo-political zones with six constitutions. A federation is a federation of constitutions, this is the proper definition of proper federalism, and that is what the original founders of Nigeria agreed upon. At the Lancaster Conference in London, that was what the founding fathers agreed upon before the military disrupted the agreement. We need to go back to that original agreement with some updates and modifications .Nigeria was founded as a federation but the Army truncated that arrangement and imposed their own structure. When you go against your own foundation, your structure will collapse, and that’s why Nigeria is having all these challenges.

The kidnapping of students in the North and payment of ransom by governors, how do you see this development?

That is direct sponsorship of terrorism that was started by the Gen. Buhari government when it was reported that it paid two million dollars or Euros as ransom to Boko Haram for the release of some of the kidnapped Chibok girls. We condemned it then and the unpatriotic supporters of the government and a section of the mass media, celebrated it as usual.

Like you said, many believe restructuring will solve lot of problems confronting the nation presently.

Very clearly. Restructuring will mitigate many problems including insecurity, corruption and excessive dependence on oil revenue. Nigeria at independence was founded on federalism. We did better before the military came and imposed their unitary structure. In a restructured Nigeria, the economic diversification we have been longing for will be achieved naturally as each region will develop with its comparative advantage. We must remember that during the First republic, we had the palm oil export of the Eastern Region, the cocoa export of the Western region and the groundnut pyramids of the Northern region. On the political side, the fierce contest for a larger share of the national cake will be mitigated. Therefore, we know that restructuring will surely lead to political and economic development.

Since you believe in restructuring, how best can it be achieved?

Very simply, we get the Federal Government to send a bill to the National Assembly for a new Constitution that is modelled like the 1963 Nigerian Constitution. We will use the six geo-political zones as federating units and agree on the Exclusive, Concurrent and Legislative lists in the new Constitution. Most other items like Fundamental Human Rights, National ethics, Fundamental Objectives and Directive Principles of State Policy will remain mostly unchanged.

Many believe the way the country is going, 2023 general election may not hold or that Nigeria may not survive till then?

Well, we do not know tomorrow but we know that there are serious contentions and conflicts across the country. If these conflicts are not well managed now, they can grow into a conflagration. All Nigerians have also been told by Dr. Obadiah Mailafia that the bandits plan to start a civil war in 2022.

Nigerians believe the opposition parties have abdicated their role and that, that is why the APC – led Federal Government is having a field day. How true is this?

False! Very false!! It is the duty of opposition political parties to present alternative policy positions and alternative candidates. It is the constitutional duty of the mass media to hold the government accountable to the people. So, it seems clear to us that the mass media has been intimidated to abdicate its constitutional role.

President Buhari and the APC in 2015 promised ‘Change’. Looking back after six years will you say Nigerians are better off now?

Even the blind can see that Nigerians are worse. Corruption is worse, insecurity is worse, democracy is worse, the economy is worse, national unity is worse, lawlessness is worse, poverty is worse. Let us look at the indices for all these national priorities.

Corruption (CPI): in 2014 we ranked 136. In 2020 we ranked 149. Insecurity (GTI): in 2014 we were fourth most terrorized country in the world. In 2020, we were third most terrorized.

Democracy: in 2015 INEC arranged a charade. In 2019 INEC perverted the elections with impunity.

Economy: In November 2014 Dangote cement ex-factory price was slashed to N1,000. In January 2021 it is N3,050.

National Unity: In 2014 we had a united country. Now, Nigeria is more divided than ever.

Lawlessness: In 2014 governance was in compliance with the Constitution and court orders. Now, the Constitution is disregarded and court orders violated.

What changes do you want in our electoral system?

The situation in INEC in Nigeria is a rogue-corp situation. We must improve security for elections and then, hold INEC officials accountable for collation frauds.

Do you believe in zoning of presidency? If yes, which zone in your view do you think deserves presidency?

Zoning is a universal democratic standard for inclusion in politics. In my ward, we zone. In my Local Government, we zone. In my home State, we zone. In all political parties in Nigeria, national offices are zoned. In Nigeria, we zone. In Switzerland, they zone. The presidency must be zoned to the South East based on justice and democratic representation.

What can you say about President Muhammadu Buhari and the APC – led government’s fight against corruption?

The mass media has been unfair to Nigerians by claiming falsely that the government is conducting a “fight against corruption”. The most corrupt government since independence cannot fight corruption. We alleged in 2016 with incontrovertible evidence that the Gen. Buhari government was deliberately promoting corruption.

Today, all can see that we were right. The ‘Corruption Perception Index’ of Transparency International confirms that we are right. The US Department of State Report confirms that we are right. The numerous corruption scams confirms that we are right. The audit reports of the Auditor General of the Federation confirms that we are right. The government simply named its agenda of political and religious domination by the persecution of political opponents a “fight against corruption” and the mass media with its claim of investigative journalism and editorial power was deceived by the semi-illiterates in government in Nigeria.

About the Author

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AYO ESAN, has been actively reporting and analyzing political events for different newspapers for over 18 years. He has also successfully covered national and state elections in Nigeria since the inception of this democracy in 1999.

Ayo Esan, THEWILLhttps://thewillnews.com
AYO ESAN, has been actively reporting and analyzing political events for different newspapers for over 18 years. He has also successfully covered national and state elections in Nigeria since the inception of this democracy in 1999.

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