Ijaw National
Leader, Chief Edwin Kiagbodo Clark, yesterday, declared that
nobody could stop President Goodluck Jonathan from seeking a second term in
office, saying only the Nigerian electorate could decide his fate in 2015.
Speaking with
newsmen shortly after the opening of the Southern Leaders Conference in Enugu,
Chief Clark said it would be wrong for the South to return power to the North
in 2015 when the incumbent president had all the rights to re-contest.
He said since the
North had ruled the nation for 38 years and the South had done only 13 years,
there was need for the purpose of equity, justice and fairplay, for power to
still remain in the South
His words: “The
Constitution provided for two terms. In 1979, Shehu Shagari from the North was
president until 1983 when he got his second term but Buhari for reasons best
known to them, they thought that at the end of his second ruling he will hand
over to Ekwueme or to Akinloye. They then staged a coup and drove him (Shagari)
away and imprisoned all the politicians. Who took over? Another
Northerner.
“Then Ibrahim
Babangida said we have had enough. He took over from Muhammadu Buhari.
Babangida handed over to Ernest Shonekan, he didn’t even rule for only three
months and Sanni Abacha overthrew Shonekan. Even when MKO Abiola was elected in
1993 he was not allowed to rule even one day. MKO Abiola was driven away and
killed – one of the wealthiest men in Africa. Abdulsalami Abubakar also
ruled after Abacha died.
“Then Obasanjo came
and ruled for eight years and Umaru Yar’Adua was also going to rule for eight
years. Why would Jonathan not be allowed to rule for eight years?
“Well, that is not
what we have come here to discuss but quote me, the Constitution of Nigeria
says a president will contest election for two terms and remain in office for
eight years, four years each. Jonathan came in as president because his
master (Yar’Adua) died. And somebody has to feel that position and you don’t
count that period as if he has contested election. Swearing-in has nothing
to do with that provision of the election. Jonathan has every right to
re-contest in 2015 to complete his eight years. Nobody can stop him.”
Also speaking at
the Southern Nigeria Peoples Assembly (SNPA) attended by over 120 delegates
from the South East, South West and South South, the convener and Chairman of
the forum , Dr. Alex Ekwueme enumerated the gains of the meeting, the second of
its kind, to include collective bargain and speaking with one voice in the
nation polity, just like the monolithic north does.
Ekuweme recalled
that after the amalgamation of the Northern and Southern protectorates on
January 1, 1914, the Northern Nigeria continued to be administered as one unit
whereas the Southern Nigeria was constituted of the colony of Lagos, the
western and Eastern provinces, respectively.
The second republic
Vice President further narrated that part of the reason why he was denied the
Presidential candidate of the party he founded in 1999, the Peoples Democratic
Party (PDP), was because of his “hard-line posture” in securing power shift and
13% derivation for the southern states during the General Sani Abacha’s
midwived Constitutional conference of 1994-1995.
Ekwueme said that
during the conference, the northern delegates summoned a meeting amongst them
where they resolved to maintain status quo of retaining power in the north and
he took a proactive step to ensure that the southern delegates sojourn to the
conference was not a sheer waste of time and so he summoned a counter southern
delegates meeting.
He said: “I
therefore took immediate step to organize a Southern delegates’ caucus. In this
initative I had the support of late Dr. Tunji Otegbeye and High Chief Dr.
Emmanuel Nsan all under my leadership and chairmanship. The immediate task of
the southern delegates’ caucus was to devise a strategy that would prevent
continuation of the status quo, that is, continue retention of power by the
Northern elements on return to civilian rule.
“We mounted a
proposal for constitutional provision for alternating or oscillating the
presidency of Nigeria between the North and the South after each five-year
single term, a provision more popularly referred to as rotational Presidency.
“The proposal was
strongly resisted by many northern delegates who eventually accepted it provided
it was enriched in the political parties’ constitutions rather than in the
national constitution. The unworkability of the political party constitutional
provision arrangement was then demonstrated beyond all doubt.
“When opposition to
the rotational presidency persisted, it was pointed out that if the purpose of
the 1914 amalgamation was to ensure that the south was always under the
leadership of the north, then it might become necessary to consider the option
of de-amalgamation. With this show of brinkmanship, both sides opted to retreat
in the interest of Nigeria continued existence and unity and rotational
presidency was endorsed by consensus and became part of the draft 1995
constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.”
Ekwueme further
traced the history of power rotation, saying the first hiccup was which zone,
North or South, would produce the Presidency to start with, adding that since
the idea of rotation was muted to check the prolonged northern rulership, it
made sense to start with the South.
“At that point we
changed our sloganeering from rotational presidency to power shift so as to put
the question beyond doubt. It was this power shift that the subsequent leading
party, the PDP, entrenched as one of its cardinal objective principles and
which ensured that northern aspirant sought the presidential nomination of the
party at the return to civilian governance in 1999; and which made it possible
for General Obasanjo to become the Presidential candidate of the party in
1999,” said Ekwueme.
He further narrated
that with the problem of power shift settled, the next was the percentage to be
ascribed to derivation. Again, the north was said to have insisted on 3% but
with the agitation and doggedness of the Southern delegates, 13% minimum was finally
settled for even after the group wanted 50% as was the case in the 1963
constitution.
“It was suggested
to me that my so called hard-line posture in successfully securing power shift
and 13% minimum for derivation were contributory factors to my inability to
obtain the presidential nomination of the party I founded and nurtured to
success. Be that as it may, I have no regrets as long as my guiding principles
were a search for justice, equity and fair play,” said Ekwueme.
Chairman of the
South East Governors’ Forum and Anambra State Governor, Mr. Peter Obi, urged
the Southern leaders to endeavour to set things right both in the zone and in
the entire nation saying Nigeria was fast drifting from the right path.
He commended the
conveners of the meeting for their commitment towards ensuring the unity of the
entire south, adding that the importance of the meeting made him to contribute
meaningfully to its success.
“People are no
longer shocked when dozens of their citizens are gunned down and bombed In his
speech, Bishop Emmanuel Gbonigi, Leader of the Yoruba Unity Forum,
called for immediate national dialogue of various
sections expressed serious concerns over the challenges plaguing the
country on behalf of Yoruba delegation, said that corruption, insecurity,
inequitable and problematic constitution have compounded the problems,
stressing that such ugly trend had continued to play negative impact
on the progress of the country.
He said that the
security situation of the country had continued to deteriorate; stressing that
kidnapping for ransom had become rapidly blooming business as army of youths
and unemployed swarm across villages and cities
by the Boko Haram.
The massacres have become routine. It is not clear what government’s policy is
towards Boko Haram. Is it dialogue or is it the use of force? It has become
unconvincingly to call the terrorists faceless because recent developments show
that they are known by our rulers”, he said.
Expressing disgust
with the call on the president to dialogue with the Boko Haram as well as
monetary compensation to their leaders and families, Gbonigi said it was akin
to setting wrong standards and raising fundamental question as to whether every
group needed to resort to violent acts against other citizens before they can
attract government’s attention.
“There are groups
in Nigeria today who believe that the mode of national revenue sharing is
unfair to them, or that their part of the country is grossly marginalized, or
that the constitution we operate is oppressive and disadvantageously
constructed against them, or that it stifles their self realization and
development. Must the government wait till all these groups mount their own
insurgencies before it listens to them, and will it then proceed to have
separate dialogues with each, accompanied by monetary compensation? If it is
acceptable to dialogue with the Boko Haram, why can’t we have a dialogue that
embraces all Nigerians once and for all, for all grievances to be expressed and
mutual accommodation reached? Such a national dialogue is clearly what the
nation needs, and is long overdue”, Gbonigi said
Among personalities
from the three zones in attendance were Dr. Alex Ekwueme, Chief Edwin Clark,
Commodore Ebitu Ukiwe, Bishop Emmanuel Gbonigi, Chief Gbenga Daniel, Dr.
Chukwuemeka Ezeife, Chief Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu, Alabo Toye Graham-Douglas, Chief
Ralph Obioha, Senator Rowland Owie, Chief Olu Falae, Dr. Walter Ofonagoro, Dr.
Okwy Nwodo, Dr. Silas Iloh, Senator Adolphus Wabara, Senator Ofia Nwali, chief
John Oyegun, Senator Syvester Ngele and Dr. Sam Egwu.
Source: Vanguard
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