Fulfill Promise On Restructuring, Afenifere, Ohanaeze Tell Buhari

Regional socio-political groups; Afenifere and Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide, have called on the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), to leave a lasting legacy for Nigerians by overseeing the process that will lead to a fresh constitution and thereafter the restructuring of the country.

The two groups stated their demands in separate interviews with Sunday PUNCH, while sending greetings to Buhari on the occasion of his 79th birthday on December 17, 2021.

Afenifere leader, Pa Ayo Adebanjo, said changing the 1999 Constitution should come first before the politicking of the 2023 presidential elections.

He said, “For him (Buhari) to leave a legacy for Nigeria, he should change the constitution now before the next election; if not, he would leave Nigeria in chaos. Changing the constitution should come before dangling the Presidency before anybody. That should not even arise now at all.”

The Aare Onakakanfo of Yorubaland, Gani Adams, in a separate interview with our correspondent, urged the President to embrace restructuring and fiscal federalism, saying the move would solve the secessionist agitations rocking the country.

Adams said, “I congratulate Mr President as he clocks 79, but I also use this opportunity to call on him to solve Nigeria’s problems before leaving at 80 plus.

“Insecurity, poor economy, everything that affects the country today needs political solution and by this, I mean we should go back to the basics and allow the federating units to govern themselves.

“The President should write his name in the space of history as one of the Presidents that solved the problems of this country finally because if he refuses to do that, there is no way he can stop those agitating for secession because people want change and they want to leave in a an environment that is conducive to them.

“He should call his team, and with the cooperation of the National Assembly resolve the issue of this country.”

Also, Ohanaeze’s National Publicity Secretary, Chief Alex Ogbonnia, said the President should use the occasion of his 79th birthday to serve as “a turning point in renewing his relationship with the Igbo”.

The Ohanaeze spokesman said Buhari’s relationship with the people of the South-East “is not enough; we are not satisfied. He should do more in all ramifications like standing for an Igbo man to be the President of Nigeria.”

Buhari, from Katsina State, was Nigeria’s head of state between December 1983 and August 1985 before his return as civilian President in May 2015.

During his campaign as the flagbearer of the All Progressives Congress in 2015, Buhari had promised to restructure the country along the line of regional autonomy.

The party had also included the issue in its Constitution to convince Nigerians of its seriousness about the issue. Specifically, Article 7(ii) of the April 2014 APC Constitution (as amended), said its aims and objectives was “to promote true federalism in the Federal Republic of Nigeria.”

The party then set up the Governor Nasir El-Rufai-led 23-member committee on true federalism, which submitted its report on January 14, 2018.

But four years after its submission of the report, the Buhari regime has yet to act on the recommendations of the committee on true federalism.

A founding member of APC and ex-Interim National Chairman of the ruling party, Chief Bisi Akande, in an attempt to defend the unwillingness of the Buhari regime to pursue restructuring, in his recently released book, ‘My Participations’, flatly denied that the President and the APC promised to do so as part of campaign promises.

– PUNCH