Speaker of the House of
Representatives, Hon Yakubu Dogara has once again explained why he is
clamouring for restructuring of the existing federal system of Nigeria.
Dogara said the call for
restructuring became imperative because it will give a sense of belonging to
all Nigerians.
He said this while speaking on
the topic, “Reforming the Nigerian Federation: Which Way Forward”, at the 3rd
annual Political Summit organised by the Save Democracy Africa in Abuja on
Monday.”
The Speaker noted that, “The talk
ofNigeria’s success or genuine federalism can no longer hold waters giving the
state of internal insurgencies, divisiveness, ethnic and religious schism
witnessed in several parts of Nigeria. Efforts at wishing away the problem
associated with Nigerian federation have only resulted into several tribal,
ethnic and religious movements that have even metamorphosed into terrorist
syndicates.
“One can, therefore, no longer
fold his arms but engage some of the issues that have confronted us as a nation
and threatened the Nigerian federation. This forum provides one of the
opportunities for such interrogation. Accordingly, I commend the organisers for
bringing this issue to the front burner once again.
“That Nigeria could survive
despite predictions to the contrary by the World Powers not only portrays a ray
of hope but also demonstrate that Nigerian Federation has come to stay.
“Nigeria is far behind many
Nations and everything possible should be done to takeNigeria to where it
rightly belongs among the comity of Nations given her huge and rich minerals
and agricultural resources, and population.
“It is therefore incumbent on us
to fashion out our own type of federalism that is best suited to our people and
to local circumstances. There should be genuine efforts to build the nation.
Therefore ethnic, religious and sectional agenda should take back place. The
essence of federalism is to foster unity and development. This has however, not
been achieved.
“Consequently, the recruitment
processes of our elective office holders are being re-visited in the Electoral
Amendment Bill to ensure that the system is able to recruit the best at all
strata of leadership. We need leaders who are visionary, selfless, prudent,
intelligent and indefatigable and having integrity and honour.”
He added that the current
National Assembly had shown enough determination to ensure that the federation
of Nigeria is managed effectively for the good of every citizen in its several
initiatives to address imbalances.
Hon Dogara stated, “There should
be massive awareness to change the mindsets of the rulers and the ruled. This
is where there is the need for proper education and awareness for both the
rulers and the ruled. I challenge our tertiary institutions to break the
disconnect between them and the political institutions and industries not only
to fashion out the appropriate curriculum to drive this new orientation to
confront our political and economic malaise but also to lead cutting edge
research in providing correct local solutions to our diverse of problems.”
The speaker also identified some
emerging issues in Nigeria’s federation political gerrymandering, corruption
and nepotism, state creation and boundary delimitation, electoral boundary
manipulation that discriminates against voters on account of tribe, language,
religion, or related status.
“The same is also true of
boundary adjustments, state creation and Local Governments in Nigeria. The
minority tribes have complained of being short-changed. The issue of fiscal
federalism and resource control.
“The allocation of revenue in
Nigeria is presently heated as there are always allegations and
counter-allegations of manipulations against the federal government by states.
There are also allegations of zero allocation to local governments by states
despite very clear constitutional provisions. In addition, there has been
complaint of total neglect of the states that generate the revenue as such the
derivative formula has been very contentious. There is over concentration of
powers and responsibilities on the federal government. There are several
responsibilities that can better be handled by the states.
“The power sharing between the
Federal Government and the states will have to be revisited and the issue of
the autonomy of local governments in Nigeria which state Houses of Assembly
keep voting against,” he further stated.
Dogara added, “The issue of
resource control must be properly addressed. The communities where those
resources are found should be adequately compensated. The Host Community Bill
initiated by the House of Representatives on the Oil and Gas industry will be a
test case. The call for resource control may by implication have a semblance of
territorial devolution.”
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