Dr. Oby Ezekwesili, a former Minister of Education and Chief Executive Officer of Human Capital Africa, slammed the National Assembly on Thursday for its efforts on the pending constitutional amendment, calling it a sham and a conduit pipe to waste public dollars.
Ezekwesili also criticised the hijacking of the country’s political space, and by extension, that of the continent, by a group of criminal enterprise gangs who now sit at the table and slice governance in the way that best fits them, while the wider interests of the people suffer.
Ezekwesili made this statement on Wednesday while delivering her keynote talk on “Reworking Nigeria’s Federalism: Perspectives on Restructuring and Fiscal Federalism” at the 7th Penpushing anniversary and annual lecture.
Ezekwesili stated that rather than responding to the people’s demand for a new constitution that addresses all of the imbalances and inequalities that define the current constitution, the National Assembly chose to embark on a venture that will do little or nothing to address the need to restructure the country in accordance with true federalism.
She clarified that the agitation for secession in some parts of the country, the problem of insecurity, the challenge of unemployment and poverty, and maladministration in general will only be resolved with a new constitution that prioritises devolution of powers, justice, equity, and fairness to all, regardless of tribe or ethnicity.
The former minister has also urged the media to lead the charge in seeking a new constitution that is driven by the people and will ultimately benefit the country’s progress and development.
Ezekwesili said, “The ongoing constitutional amendment cannot work; it cannot address our problem; it is a charade and sheer waste of resources. The demand for a new constitution is a matter of life and death.
“For instance, when the engineer tells us that the foundation of a building is structurally defective, is it not to take the whole building down because it will continue to constitute an endangerment to the people?
“You won’t say, ‘Oga, can we just do some little adjustment to the building?, No, it won’t work, and this is the same with nation building. So this expensive charade that the National Assembly is embarking on and spending money on won’t take us anywhere.
“The media should take the front seat and be at the vanguard of a demand for a new constitution. We must have a constitutional conference that enables the people of this country to have honest conversation around things that will make us make progress and make Nigeria work for all of us.
“If there is anything that will come out of this annual lecture, it must be that the media should be at the vanguard of a push for a constitutional conference, one that will enable the constituent part of this country, a constituent assembly elected by the people; they go, they sit, and they have the discussion on the basis of the issues that make the fiscal federal system of government work and come out with issues that are eligible for the constitution, which is put before the people to vote in the form of a referendum.
“This is what Kenya did after almost collapsing, and since then, you never hear them talking about breaking up; they will talk about the need for good leaders.”
Ezekwesili went on to say that there is nothing strange about effective governance, which has been done in other areas of the world and can be repeated here in Nigeria and throughout Africa.
Ezekwesili disclosed, “There is nothing that is mysterious about good governance; this thing has been done elsewhere and could be replicated here in the country.
“Unfortunately, today’s politics has been hijacked; what we now have is a criminal enterprise gang, and this is not only in Nigeria but across the continent. A criminal enterprise gang has taken hold of politics and excluded the society, and these people just sit at the table and just slice governance in the direction that suits them, but that must not be made to continue.
Ezekwesili explained that there is a strong link between the quality of African politics and the country’s economic performance and prosperity, but that this sad reality may persist for a long time if nothing is done to improve the quality of its politics and political leaders.
The activist stated that true fiscal federalism will promote greater regional autonomy and collaboration, meet the demand for self-determination without dividing the country, increase productivity and accountability, and strengthen leadership capacities, among other things.
Speaking at the annual lecture, Sarafadeen Ishola, the immediate past Nigerian High Commissioner to the United Kingdom, stated that the country’s current federalism is adopted in principle but suffers in practice, failing to provide the autonomy expected by the federating units or promote the developmental competition required for national growth.
Ishola, who presided over the event, stated that real federalism entails more than just devolution of power; it also includes responsible governance, institutional clarity, budgetary equality, and public responsibility.
He stated that Nigerians should not view restructuring as a sectional objective but rather as a national rebirth approach to solve some of the difficulties impeding the country’s effective management.
Speaking during the event, Mr. Dimeji Kayode-Adedeji, the founder of Penpushing Media, an online platform, stated that the purpose of the annual lecture is to raise awareness of topics that can help the country grow even further.
Kayode-Adedeji stated that the web news medium has continued to grow at a rapid pace, dramatically affecting the country’s narrative through qualitative reporting and a dose of altruistic gestures that are purposefully aimed to improve humanity.
He explained that as part of the online news medium’s commitment to the development of mass communication undergraduates, the news platform has assisted in the training of over 80 students from various institutions, as well as the establishment of an annual award honouring the best graduating mass communication students in higher education.
