A leader of the Yoruba socio-cultural organisation, Afenifere, Chief Ayo Adebanjo, has alleged that Northern Muslim military officers imposed the current constitution on Nigerians.
Adebanjo lamented that no other region contributed to the creation of the constitution before the North handed it over to former President Olusegun Obasanjo in 1999.
He made the claim while speaking at the opening session of a video conference organised by a group, the Governance Index, tagged, “Coronavirus Pandemic: it is time to reevaluate the political structure of the country,” held in Lagos.
The elder statesman also alleged that President Muhammadu Buhari is not interested in Nigeria’s unity.
Adebanjo explained that Buhari’s refusal to restructure Nigeria was responsible for the mirage of problems facing the country.
He said: “The present constitution is an imposed constitution by the Muslim military in the North. Nobody contributed to it. Even General Abdulsalami said he did not know what was in the constitution before he swore in former President Olusegun Obasanjo.
“I will say without any hesitation that we are all deceiving ourselves. President Buhari is not interested in keeping this country together, that is why we are having this problem, that is why we are putting square pegs in round holes, and that is why we tell him to keep to the constitution by the appointments he is making, but he said no.
‘’I can only work with people I have confidence in, which is against the federal character principle that the whole country is talking about. Buhari simply turns deaf ears to the agitation for restructuring that has been on for over five years.
“Buhari ignored the recommendations of the 2014 constitutional conference, he ignored the manifesto of his own party, and even ignored the recommendations of his own party, that is why I say we are not practicing democracy in this country.
“There is no sincerity on the part of the far North in putting this country together.”
AFRICA TODAY NEWS, NEW YORK