You got it wrong, Afenifere tells AGF over position on restructuring

The position of the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami (SAN), on why the call for restructuring will not work at present has been faulted by the Afenifere.

The AGF had described the demand for restructuring as ‘a tall order’ that cannot be achieved through emotional outbursts and demonstration, adding that federalism was never imposed on Nigeria.

According to him it was a system the country adopted in 1954 as a tool for handling the country’s ethno-religious and cultural differences.

Malami stated this in Abuja when he spoke during the opening ceremony of the Think-Tank Conference themed, “Federalism and the challenges of dynamic equilibrium in Nigeria: Towards a national strategy,” a programme put together by the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies in Kuru, Jos.

He said, “There were federalising tendencies that were as ancient as the Olumo Rock and which facilitated adoption in 1954 as a compromise between what Lord James Bryce referred to as centrifugal and centripetal forces. It is true that Nigeria’s federal system has been experiencing challenges and there have been agitations and prescriptions to reform and modify it.

“As things stands, restructuring requires amending the constitution to accommodate referendum or, in the alternative, a constitutional amendment to the 1999 Constitution which, in this case, must be supported by a majority of legislators in 24 states of the federation as enshrined in section 9 of the constitution.

“One thing that is certain is the inevitable implication that abolishing states through restructuring process will certainly translate to the eventual multiplier effect of abolishing the state Houses of Assembly and perhaps downsizing the National Assembly. This, indeed, is a tall order that cannot be achieved through advocacy, emotional outburst or provocative rhetoric and demonstration.”

Read also: FAYOSE TO BUHARI: Resign now for the love of Nigeria

While Malami accepted that reforms and modification of institutional arrangements, systems and processes were normal in federations, he however contended that they were never done in one fell swoop as being canvased in Nigeria.

He therefore said that mega changes were not fit for federations.

But responding to the AGF’s position in a statement by its spokesman, Yinka Odumakin, the Afenifere argued that Malami got it wrong and said that what agitators for the restructuring are asking for was for true devolution of power and fiscal federalism.

“The AGF got it wrong. We are saying we need to adopt the proper federalism for the country where you have proper devolution of power. Let every section of the country operate according to their civilization, that’s what we are saying,” Odumakin said.

 

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