President Muhammadu Buhari has reacted to calls by the advocate of restructuring describing such agitation as “unpatriotic”, “unhelpful” and “unwarranted.”
Spokesman for the president, Mr. Garba Shehu said in a terse statement that the government would not be stampeded into taking any decision under threats or pressure.
“The presidency responds to the recurring threats to the corporate existence of the country with factions giving specific timelines for the president to do one thing or another or else, in their language, ‘the nation will break up.’
“This is to warn that such unpatriotic outbursts are both unhelpful and unwarranted as this government will not succumb to threats and take any decision out of pressure at a time when the nation’s full attention is needed to deal with the security challenges facing it at a time of the COVID-19 health crisis.
“Repeat: this administration will not take any decision against the interests of 200 million Nigerians, who are the President’s first responsibility under the constitution, out of fear or threats especially in this hour of a health crisis.
“The President as an elected leader under this constitution will continue to work with patriotic Nigerians, through and in line with the parliamentary processes to finding solutions to structural and other impediments to the growth and wellbeing of the nation and its people,” said Shehu in the statement.
The president, had also in another statement by his media aide, Mr. Femi Adesina accused the enemies of the country of sponsoring and encouraging discord and anarchy against the government for either selfish ends or as revenge for perceived injuries.
Adesina alleged that the “traducers of the administration” had apparently perfected plans to use the botched strike by the labour unions over increment in pump price of fuel and new tariff regime on electricity as smokescreen to unleash anarchy on the land, fomenting mayhem and civil disobedience.
“Since Organized Labour toed the path of sense and sensibility last week, seeing reason with the imperatives of fuel price adjustment, and opening a further window of dialogue on the service based electricity tariff, some groups of Nigerians have been dolorous, disgruntled, and disconsolate.
“They had apparently perfected plans to use the strike by the labour unions as smokescreen to unleash anarchy on the land, fomenting mayhem and civil disobedience. But the plan blew up in their faces, and they have been in severe pains since then. They have launched series of tirades against Organized Labour.
“For some interest groups, their intention was to use the umbrella of the strike to further their whimsical and pie-in-the-sky dream of a revolution in the country. It went bust in their faces.
“For some others, Bitter-Enders, who have remained entrenched in pre-2015 and 2019 elections mode, it was opportunity to avenge the 2012 Occupy Nigeria protests, which they believe largely devalued the government of the day, and led to its eventual ouster in 2015.
“The strike that was to have come up last week, they wanted to use as opportunity for a pound of flesh, which they calculated would weaken the government so much, and influence the 2023 elections.
“For them, it was all about hanker for power, its trappings and appurtenances. Nothing about love of country. They have since then been calling Organized Labour all sorts of names, claiming they deceived Nigerians.
“The times in which we live-with severe security, economic and social challenges-call for all hands to be on deck, and goodwill and support for government, as it strives to put the nation on an even keel. We commend Organized Labour for putting the country first.
“Those sponsoring and encouraging discord and anarchy, either for selfish ends, or as revenge for perceived injuries, are enemies of the country. Nigerians are urged to beware of them, as the Muhammadu Buhari government is only interested in engendering better quality of life for the citizenry. Nothing more,” said Adesina.
Recall that during the weekend, the call for restructuring became more intense when the like of the general overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG), Pastor Enoch Adeboye.
Speaking at a symposium organised by RCCG and the Nehemiah Leadership Institute on Saturday to mark Nigeria’s 60th Independence Anniversary, Adeboye who rarely comments on political matters said Nigeria risks breaking up if it does not restructure.
He said restructuring Nigeria must be done as soon as possible prevent a disintegration.
“Why can’t we have a system of government that is 100 percent Nigerian, unique to us? For example, we started with the British system of government, somewhere along the line, we moved over to the American system of government.
“Can’t we have a combination of both and see whether it could help us solve our problems because in mathematics if you want to solve a problem, you try what we call real analysis, then if it doesn’t work, then you move on to complex analysis and see whether that will help you.
“If that fails, you move on to vector analysis and so on. I believe that we might want to look at the problems of Nigeria in a slightly different manner. Some people feel that all our problems will be over if Nigeria should break up.
“Why can’t we have a system of government that will create what I will call the United States of Nigeria? Let me explain. We all know that we must restructure. It is either we restructure or we break, you don’t have to be a prophet to know that one. That is certain – restructure or we break up.
“Now, we don’t want to break up, God forbid. In restructuring, why don’t we have a Nigerian kind of democracy? At the federal level, why don’t we have a president and a prime minister?”
Adeboye also added that the place of traditional rulers must be re-evaluated as they are “the actual landlords” that “control the respect of their people.”
“Go to any town in Nigeria, everybody in the town knows the paramount ruler in the town and they respect him (but) many of them don’t even know the name of the chairman of their local government.
“The traditional rulers are the actual landlords; they control the respect of their people. Their people will listen to them much more, I am sorry to say, than they will listen to some politicians.”
“Without any doubt, we must restructure and do it as soon as possible. A United States of Nigeria is likely to survive than our present structure,” he said.
Similarly, the Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF), joined organisations including the pan-Yoruba political group, Afenifere; apex Igbo socio-political group, Ohanaeze Ndigbo; the Middle Belt Forum and the Pan Niger Delta Forum (PANDEF) to press for a referendum to decide the fate of the country.
Spokesman for the ACF, Mr. Emmanuel Yawe, agreed that Nigerians should be given an opportunity to decide the future of the country but pointed out that advocates of restructuring are not coherent.
“Our position is that Nigerians should be given the opportunity to decide whether the country should remain one or to break up.
“There should be a referendum to decide on the fate of Nigeria. Once you have that referendum, if Nigerians decide to live together then they should decide on what form of government they want – whether it is federalism, unitary, parliamentary or whatever system of government they want.
“So, the solution is for a referendum for Nigerians to decide whether to break up or to remain as one country. And if we decide to remain together, we should determine the restructure,” he told ThisDay in an interview.
He said the referendum would also decide on restructuring, explaining that the people calling for restructuring had not really given a coherent message on what to restructure the country into.
However, he said many people have different ideas about restructuring.
“Some people are calling for fiscal federalism; to some people, restructuring means Nigeria should break up. Some people just want a better deal from Nigeria; they want to control the resources found in their domains. So you have different interpretations of restructuring,” he said.
He added that the people agitating for restructuring do not really know what they want other than abusing the north.
“It appears the only thing they have in common is hatred for the north. They keep abusing the north and they expect the north to accept it. You cannot keep on abusing people and expect them to buy into your idea.
“They should go beyond abusing the north, calling northerners parasites and all those things. We are not parasites. We have contributed a lot to the development of this country.”
He said when people continue to call northerners parasites, they scare them away from the debate.
“They should change their language so that whatever they are advancing, we should also contribute to it,” he said, explaining:
Responding, Afenifere and PANDEF slammed Yawe’s position that those calling for the restructuring of Nigeria were insulting the north.
Afenifere’s spokesman, Mr. Yinka Odumakin, said the ACF’s position smacks of grand arrogance.
“The ACF are insensitively arrogant to say clamouring for a settled society is an insult to them. Are they savages? God should forgive us the sin that made Him to lump us in the same country with these types,” Odumakin said.
PANDEF also described ACF’s statement as “careless” and “irresponsible” and clearly speaks to ACF’s “high horse” disposition.
“If they claim not to understand restructuring in the context Nigerians are clamouring for, then it’s a pity. There is nothing to clarify or define. Those against the restructuring of the country are only living in self-deception,” the organisation said.
