State Of The Nation: Implementation Of 2014 Confab Report Is The Only Way Out Of The Doldrums! (2)

HARRISON MADUBUEZE

This article is a continuation of my conversation on the need for the Government of the day to dust-up the 2014 National Conference Report of the Goodluck Jonathan’s administration. 

I have decided to keep the discourse on the same title to enable readers follow-up. In my last episode, I promised to highlight the basic resolutions on the POLITICAL RESTRUCTURING OF NIGERIA! as contained in the Confab Report.

Friends, permit me to digress a little. I would like to say NO THANKS! to politicization in this country. I say this because, if not for politics, the immediate past administration under Goodluck Jonathan was able to lay a foundation for solutions to the hydra-headed problems facing Nigeria. 

I have concluded that the phrase “Government is a continuum” is relative or better put, it is a mere academic or theoretical statement and never so in practice. The cheerless aspect of it, is the fact that the circumstances becomes worst if we have an entirely different political party in power. For us to make meaningful progress into a sustainable and prosperous future, we must as a matter fact, embrace the aforementioned phrase both in theory and practice, and fix Nigeria!

Nevertheless, I would like to urge the present administration to think of “Nigeria First” and dust-up the 2014 Confab Report and move to work immediately. Pretending over this, will undoubtedly leave us at a case of “one step forward, two steps backward”. 

In the main and as promised, in my last publications on this issue, below, were the Confab recommendations on RESTRUCTURING.
In Unit 5.12, page 277, report reads inter alia; 
POLITICAL RESTRUCTURING AND FORMS OF GOVERNMENT 

1. FEDERALISM 

Conference agreed that  Federalism denotes a political arrangement in which a country  is made up of component  parts otherwise called Federating  Units. Thus in a Federation,  political powers are  constitutionally shared between  the central government and  the federating units.          
These powers basically,  represent the functions of each  tier of the federation. Conference  also noted the inherent  advantages of a federal system  of government in a heterogenous  society such as ours.  

These include: –  the sustenance  of unity in diversity; –  expanded  opportunities for the various  peoples, including minority groups,  to participate in the  governance of the country;  thus minimizing the fears of  domination and/or  marginalization among minority  groups.  It also and promotes  broad-based development. Consequently, Conference  unanimously resolved as  follows: 

1. Nigeria shall retain a Federal  system of Government; 

2. The core elements of the  Federation shall be as follows: 
i.  A  Federal (Central)  Government with States as the  federating units; and ii. Without  prejudice to  States constituting  the federating units, States that  wish to merge may do so in  accordance with the Constitution  of the Federal Republic of  Nigeria (as amended). Provided that: 

(a)  A two-thirds  majority of all  members in each of  the Houses  of Assembly of each of the  States, in which such merger is  proposed, support by resolution,  the merger; 

(b)   a Referendum is conducted  in each of the States proposing  to merge with 75% of the eligible  voters in each of those States  approving the merger; 

(c)   the National Assembly,  by  resolution passed by a simple  majority of membership,  approves of  the merger; and 

(d)  States that decide to merge  shall also reserve the right to  demerge following the same  procedure and processes for  merger. 

Provided that: (a)  A two-thirds  majority of all members in each  of the Houses of Assembly of  each of the States,  in which  such merger is proposed, support by  resolution,  the  merger; (b)    a  Referendum is conducted in  each of the States proposing to merge with  75%  of  the  eligible  voters  in  each  of  those  States  approving  the merger; (c)    the  National  Assembly,  by  resolution  passed  by  a  simple  majority  of membership,  approves  of  the  merger;  and (d)  States  that  decide  to  merge  shall  also  reserve  the  right  to  demerge following the  same  procedure and  processes for  merger. 
2. 

On REGIONALISM, Conferees said;
At  independence  in 1960,  Nigeria had three regions and  by  1964 had added a fourth region. All four were autonomous but subordinated only to the Federal Constitution. Then came the  Military in 1966 when aspects of  the Federal Constitution were  suspended leading to the creation of 12 states, (six in the north and six in the south) in answer to political exigencies including the  protection of minority rights; 

More states were created to  satisfy the  yearnings of various ethnic  nationalities  which  fear  domination by some others.  Nigeria now has 36 States plus  the Federal Capital Territory.  

In spite of this subsisting  arrangement, there continues to  be demands for the creation of  more States.  

After extensive consideration of  Regionalism/Zones,  Conference decided as follows: 

(i) The States shall be the  federating units; and   

(ii) Any group of States may  create a self-funding Zonal  Commission to promote  economic development, good  governance, equity, peace and  security in accordance with the  Constitution of the Federal  Republic of Nigeria (as  amended).
…. to be continued next on STATE CREATION! 

Yes, the conferees never left out the issue of STATE CREATION. In fact, like I said earlier, you really need a copy of this document and you will agree with me that, we have a solution. 
What we need is to continue urge the Government to do the needful regardless of political party because, like I always say, at the end, we all desire to bequeath a better and stronger Nigeria, to generations yet unborn.