The Northern Elders Forum (NEF) has lambasted President Muhammadu Buhari for failing to restructure the country.
According to the Northern Elders Forum (NEF) spokesman, Hakeem Baba Ahmed, the North is the first victim of President Buhari’s bad leadership.
Ahmed who spoke at the second Annual Ripples Dialogue in Lagos posited that the president’s refusal to restructure the country is indicative that things may get worse before March 2023.
He said; ‘The North is the first victim of President Buhari’s misgovernance. We are the first victims of Boko Haram. The North supports restructuring, justice, and fairplay. Secession is not a choice, what northerners are doing in the south is as important as what southerners are doing in the north.’
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On 2023 and power rotation, he said he was more interested in competence than the ethnic nationality or religion of the next president.
‘I don’t care what tribe or religion the next president will be, what we need is a president who can rebuild trust among Nigerians.’
Also speaking at the forum, which had as its theme: ‘Rebuilding trust in a divided Nigeria: Advancing the conversation,’ Governor Ifeanyi Okowa of Delta State and Afenifere leader, Ayo Adebanjo, said they believe in a united Nigeria and stressed the need to rebuild trust among ethnic nationalities.
However, a former member of the House of Representatives, Uche Onyeaguocha, said ethnic nationalities that wished to leave the union should be allowed to secede.
Okowa identified the absence of a national ideology, lack of political will to fashion a constitution that will promote true federalism, disenchantment of youths in the ability of the country to provide for them, and lack of faith in the electoral process as some of the factors responsible for the trust deficit among Nigerians.
He also blamed bad governance at different levels of government as a major contributory factor to disunity in the country.
AFRICA TODAY NEWS, NEW YORK