Former Chairman, Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) Prof. Attahiru Jegahas called for “a short-term restructuring” of Nigeria before the next general election to address myriads of challenges confronting the country.
Jega stated this at the 2021 Public Lecture of the Achievers University, Owo, Ondo State, in the lecture, titled ‘’Towards stabilizing the Nigeria Federation”
However, he accused the executive and legislative arms of the Federal Government of treating the restructuring issue with levity.
Jega noted that both arms of the Federal government “were not serious in making the restructuring a reality as the two arms of the government had been treating the restructuring with levity. There seems to be a lack of political will on the part of those who are at the helm of affairs in the nation’s executive and legislative arms of government.
His words: “In the present circumstances, as necessary and desirable as restructuring is, a number of challenges would have to be overcome to successfully bring it about.
“First, passion has been inflamed and allowed to circumscribe the discourses of restructuring, resulting in the emergence of hardened antagonistic positions, which if allowed to persist, would make reconciliation and consensus building very difficult indeed, if not impossible.
“The perceptions of exclusion, marginalization and exploitation are so deep-seated that they nurture and deepen divisions, polarisation and illogical if not irrational agitations by extremist groups.
“In the circumstances, conversation, debate and dialogue are, if at all, conducted at cross purposes, obstructive of accommodation of differing opinions and the pursuit of a rational and logical process of consensus-building and bringing about desirable restructuring of the Nigerian federation.
“Second, in the governance sphere, at both the federal executive and legislative levels, the political will and competence seem lacking for the pursuit of credible and popularly acceptable procedures and processes of bringing about appropriate and desirable restructuring.
“The executive seems to take a back seat in the belief that restructuring is purely a legislative matter, into which it should not dabble, thereby failing to provide the requisite, proactive leadership for driving the agenda and process of restructuring.
“On its part, the legislature seems to take an overly legalistic posture, impatient with, and indifferent to, calls for transparent, inclusive and people-oriented strategies for achieving popularly acceptable restructuring.
“A broadly participatory, inclusive and responsive process would lend greater legitimacy to the end product of any restructuring and constitutional amendment processes.
“Regrettably, members of the National Assembly have failed to recognize the desirability of doing this.
“Third, rather than prioritizing restructuring and focusing on addressing the key discernible challenges to power sharing and resources distribution/allocation
amongst the subnational, federating units, the legislature pursues a comprehensive/ wholesale constitutional amendment process, with many contentious issues taken on board simultaneously.
“This makes the process time consuming, overly contentious and controversial, and susceptible to filibuster, and likely derailment of the entire undertaking.
“Fourth, leaving the very important business of restructuring until very close to the next general elections has its own challenges, given that Nigerian politicians tend to shy away from taking tough decisions in the national interest, especial on seemingly controversial issues, too close to general elections.”
“In spite of the challenges, the prospects of restructuring are not as hopeless as some would assume them to be.
“Nigeria needs stability and increased legitimacy for elected officials in governance; needs good governance, better nurtured and deepened democratic development; and needs economic growth and socio-economic development.
“For all these, better management of ethno religious diversity on the basis of rule of law, justice, equity and equality of opportunity, is a necessary precondition.”
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