QUESTION 6 OF 23 PRESIDING QUESTIONS FOR 2023 PRESIDENTIAL QUESTS: THEIR AMBITIONS VERSUS OUR CONVICTIONS

 



SECTION A: REFORM OF GOVERNANCE STRUCTURE FOR DECENTRALIZATION/FEDERALISM; FOR ECONOMIC REVOLUTION & SECURITY RESTORATION

Final notes on decentralization of governance structure: Constitutional democracy forbids that governance reforms are done without recourse to the constitution which is “a set of rules and principles providing guidelines about how a State should run, how powers should be distributed, controlled, and what rights a citizen shall possess”.

The necessity of decentralization/federalism/devolution of powers for economic revolution and security restoration in Nigeria does not require a new constitution that will completely displace the current military-drafted 1999 constitution (as amended) of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. The National Assembly, though empowered by the same constitution to undertake constitutional reviews, should overlook the moral and mental consequence of retaining the current constitution bequeathed by the last military regime in Nigeria by merely amending several segments of the inherited document.

In other words, we do not require an entirely new process of developing a truly Nigerian people’s constitution to unbundle the current exclusive legislative list and populate the concurrent list in favour of more legal, geographic, administrative, political & economic powers to the States, FCT and LGAs and also engender the confidence of Nigerians in democratic governance after about 23 years (since 1999) of operating the current military-drafted constitution. Is that true?

a. Extremely true                b. True           c. False          d. Extremely false

 

Dr. Adetolu Ademujimi is a Medical Doctor, Author, Reformer, Coach and Public Policy expert who wrote in from Akure in Nigeria. Email: ademujimi@yahoo.co.uk; Twitter: @toluademujimi; Instagram: @adetoluademujimi; Linkedin: @adetolu ademujimi

 

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