Jide Charles, Makurdi
Bauchi State Governor, Mohammed Abubakar, has said the agitation for the restructuring of the country is not sacrosanct.
Abubakar spoke with journalists in Abuja on Wednesday after inaugurating his five-point health agenda called “Lafiya Garkuwa”.
The governor was asked to give his opinion on whether restructuring would solve many of the problems currently plaguing Nigeria.
He said, “One of the problems of Nigeria is that the elites choose to pick on certain terms and they latch on to them and keep on repeating them. One of such terms is restructuring. You see, one of the most beautiful systems of governance is constitutional democracy, particularity the type with a written constitution being operated by Nigeria.
“All the parameters have been stated therein. So, if you need to do any adjustment, you can do that adjustment within the same constitution.
“I am certain that all those people agitating for the restructuring of Nigeria, if the amendment of the constitution that is being attempted now would look at the exclusive legislative list contained in the constitution and do a little adjustment of that list, it would serve all these agitations for restructuring.
“So, there is nothing sacrosanct about the word restructuring; we have a constitutional democracy, we have a scheme provided by that constitution for the amendment of the constitution itself. And thank God, as we are talking, there are efforts now in place by the two chambers of the National Assembly to amend the constitution.
“I think what Nigerians should be agitating for is to ensure that this attempt looks at the exclusive legislative list with a view to releasing those functions that are co-state functions such as the areas of population. For example, agriculture happens in the states only. The Federal Government has no land where they would do agriculture. So, if you tinker with the exclusive legislative list, I think it will satisfy the agitation for restructuring.”
The PUNCH reports that a former Vice-Chancellor of the Ahmadu Bello University and member of the Northern Elders Forum, Prof. Ango Abdullahi, had said the component units of the federation should find it convenient to go their separate ways if Nigerians found it difficult to live together.
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