The Governor of Ondo State, Mr Rotimi Akeredolu, has canvassed urgent structural solutions to douse ethnic agitations in Nigeria.
Akeredolu, the Chairman of the South West Governors’ Forum, stated for fairness and justice in the country, most of the gadgets on the Exclusive List, as strengthened by Section 251 of the 1999 Constitution must be amended and moved to the Residual and Concurrent lists.
Akeredolu spoke at the forty fifth convocation lecture of the Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile-Ife entitled “When Is A Nation? Exploring the socio-Political Crisis In Post Independence Nigeria”
Governor Akeredolu while making a case that the numerous ethnic nationalities in the united states have to be allowed to thrive on their own, stated that Items such as education, fitness care, judiciary, police, jail offerings and aid manage need to be on the Concurrent List.
He maintained that the Federal Government have to divest itself of too many burdens and permit the thing devices to flower, adding that states should control their assets and keep their inside security whilst the Federal Government coordinate and no longer take over.
He lamented that the states are nearly completely established on hand-outs from the Federal Government, announcing no country is empowered to take independent selections for the benefit of its people.
His phrases “Approvals should come from the centre on simply everything. This Constitution vests all the lands in a State in the State Governor who holds identical in have confidence for the people. The incessant assaults on farmers with the aid of criminal herders, who destroy the crops of these long-suffering downtrodden individuals of the society, expose the impotence of State Governors.
“Strange elements have been invading states to prospect for mineral resources without recourse to the authorities. Farmlands have been destroyed and the people are continuously exposed to ecological disasters to assuage greed.
“Unscrupulous elements provide prospecting licenses to people who cross into lands with marauders. The safety of these States is compromised, heavily.
“This Constitution also offers for “Federal Character” for “National Cake Sharing”. There is a Commission that oversees the sharing of places of work and different spoils of politics among the main ethnic groups.
“This manifest injustice is promoted as care for equity. In the identical breath, the equal document is silent on the rotation of offices to complete the tragicomedy. Federal Character is good for as long as it affords sure folks the opportunity to gain from the sacrifice of benefit on the altar of mediocrity,” he added.
The Governor, who recognized adoption of a common language appropriate to all the ethnic nationalities as a medium of verbal exchange as one of the aspects of a Nation, insisted that power need to be rotated between the North and South.
He stated he would be completely satisfied to see a southerner emerge as the President of the united states come 2023 whilst noting that there is nothing horrific if such a southerner chooses to adopt the Hausa language as the frequent language for the country.
“It should now not be imposed. There need to be an settlement to use it as the official potential of communication without coercion”, he submitted.
Governor Akeredolu additionally condemned the present day situation in the us of a which ensures that emphasis is on revenue allocation and no longer generation.
He stated “Some states are in courtroom to ask the Federal Inland Revenue Services, an corporation of the Federal Government to palms off the collection of income taxes as this duty rests with the states.
“The Federal Government, via the Office of the Attorney General and Minister of Justice, is asking all States to “remit” Stamp Duty, tax gathered on contracts awarded by using State Governments, to it.
“We will ask to be apprised of the justification for this contemporary onslaught. The Federal Government additionally desires to take over “Inland Waterways”, some thing that means. Our fishermen will soon want licences to fish from the Federal Ministry of Water Resources, Akeredolu said.
The governor contended that the six geo-political zones in the united states ought to be sustained to hasten the technique of real integration among the diverse groups, adding that every geo-political region need to act as a unit of representation in all sectors.
He mentioned that the group-political zones need to be free to decide their legal guidelines and the application, as well as plan their own curriculum of training to meet abnormal challenges.
“It should have its own apex court which will determine all matters affecting it. The federal judiciary should take care of issues in the Exclusive Legislative List as used to be the case.
“This geo-political be allowed to take charge of economic things to do in its jurisdiction and pay taxes to the Federal Government as appropriate. It have to take over most of the roads tagged “Federal”, restore and toll same, if necessary.
“Most of the items in the Exclusive List must be transferred to the Concurrent and Residual List. The Federal Government ought to divest itself of these burdens and allow the factor gadgets to flower. Let these gadgets manipulate their resources and maintain their inside security. Let the Federal Government coordinate and not take over.
“If these hints are observed, the present day tensions will have been eradicated without breaking any sweat. The way of life of laziness that has become endemic will change. No issue unit will count on hand-outs from the Federal Government.
“There will be no basis for it. All will be inspired to work assiduously for economic prosperity. No unit will rely on the so-called bail-out funds to pay a generally indolent forms which is phase of the issues of the country.
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“The geo-political zone will organize its civil service to reply to wants of the public. Redundancy will be discouraged. Our dear usa will have solved most of the modern-day issues if these humble submissions are taken seriously,” he concluded.
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