According to folklore: three baby elephants were chained to restrain their movement; as they grew older, they realised that their movement was limited to the extent which the chain allowed them; they accepted it and remained like that well into old age. The amalgamation of the northern and southern regions of Nigeria in 1914 by the British is still being viewed by many Nigerians as a defective arrangement based on the economic interest of the British to secure the many benefits that the Nigerian economy provided. The decision to amalgamate the two regions did not sit well with the more enlightened politicians of the southern origin; and ever since, the call for the National Conference (NC) has grown louder by the day. The NC is an assembly of representatives chosen by the many ethnic communities or nationalities of Nigeria. Some politicians refuse the call for the NC on the grounds that it is required only in the situation of transition from military rule to civilian rule and others argue that the call for the NC is based on tribal divisions. The NC should have been convened at the time of the amalgamation in 1914 but it was not and it is has turned out to be the root cause of all the issues of inequality and social injustice of Nigeria. Nigeria has grown beyond the point where things are reduced to tribes; Nigeria is more of a corporate organisation which must be effectively managed for the full potentials in the abundance of natural resources to be converted into sustainable development and improved standard of living. Insurgency will not deliver the results that we expect; and disintegration is not an option to be considered as it will lead to total fragmentation of the body of Nigeria. The NC will address issues of common wealth and resource allocation will be administered in such a way that every community benefits. Fundamental human rights must necessarily be addressed in the course of the NC, giving clear guidelines that will provide protection for all Nigerian citizens and all peoples residing within Nigeria. Finally, the terms of relationships that should exist between organised religion and the Nigerian state should be clearly defined. The suggestion of power rotation will easily be resolved by rotating power within the three major regions of Nigeria and not causing chaos and anarchy by demanding that every local government area or every other street must have a presidential candidate. The unpatriotic attitude politicians exhibit in tribalism over the issue of power and leadership already suggests fraudulent intent in that people make it look like taking office is with the intention to loot as much as they can and take home to their communities; but in the real sense, the booty still does not get shared at the local level. It is the responsibility of Nigerians of the new generation to re-structure the type of society that they would like to enjoy and do everything possible to actively participate in politics and governance in view of ensuring that no stale ideologies that take Nigeria nowhere will be introduced to jeopardise the quest to attain a truly new Nigeria.
Posted on: Tue, 08 Oct 2013 09:40:31 +0000