ADELEKE ADESANYA AND GIFT ROBERT
A human rights lawyer, Chief Mike Ozekhome, has warned the National Consultative Front on the need to be careful on its mission to rescue Nigeria from the various problems assailing it.
Ozekhome spoke on Tuesday during a virtual meeting held by members of NCFront on the need to rescue the country from the brink of collapse.
According to him, several efforts have been put in place to revive the country but later sabotaged by some unpatriotic people.
He said, “The fact that the sour is not bleeding, does not mean that the sour is not still there, you only need to scratch it a little and then you will see that the sour still bleeds.
“But I have some worries, some concerns about this body, my concerns originate from my earlier experiences, in matters like this in terms of having the peoples constitution, the own blood constitution, the obstreperous constitution.
”In all respect and humility I was there in the 2005 national political conference some of you here, we were there together, I was there at the vision 2009, I was there at the 2014 national conference, making three conferences the last three held in Nigeria, I was there physically. Dr Dosumu ambassador, we were even together, aside the pathetic and distinguish civil society of the federal government of Nigeria, Dr. I the last one including Mr.Wale Okunuyi, we were together in the last one including Olisa Agbakogba, the last one of 2014,”
“When we made about over 600 recommendations, to reengineer, re-do and re-fabric the sinking construction called Nigeria, which has not been attained nationhood since January 1 1914, when lord laggard amalgamated the southern and northern prostrate to found Nigeria.
“But what I notice is that as soon as the conference was over, and recommendations emanate from it, some people go behind and question the integrity of that conference, question the integrity of the membership of that conference, and say we are not going to obey the recommendations of this conference.
“so notwithstanding the fact that 2014 national conference had 400 and 92 delegates drawn From every stratum of the Nigerian society, representing the youth, women, students, retired and serving military officers, police officers, labour, organizations, trade union, private sector, government itself, traditional rulers, market women, every strata, the challenge either physically or mentally, they were represented, sports were represented, every stratum four hundred and 92 delegates for more than five months starting from March 17 2014.
“We worked hard and hard march 17, morning afternoon night, we set up committees, we broke into plenary station set up committees, I was in the judiciary and legal human right emetic committee, we finally aggravated all our grief, came back and I berthed them, and we have about over six hundreds base on issues and recommendations and I speak to you, no person, including the participants present of the present government, some of who were at that conference, have deemed it fit to judge those recommendations with a
“When you ask them, they questioned, the new question, the revised question, the narrative, is how did you get there? Who sent you? Was it the people who sent you there or you were just selected? Afar all it is only the mid-west constitution that was rationed out through a popular plebiscite on the 10th of August 1963, that remove mid-west from western region that was the only constitutional conference we ever had where the people ever carried out a plebiscite, that’s the argument.”
“So my worry therefore Sir’s, Ma’s, is what has changed? What has changed? What is our new narrative? The people here now, we here, great Nigerians egg heads, brilliant people, intellectuals, fine Nigerians who want the best for Nigeria, when I see person like Dr. Bugaje then, the man who has fought again and again, he doesn’t know whether he is a Hausa Fulani or he is an Edo man or Ijaw man, Yoruba man, or Igbo man,”
“when I see somebody like Gali Umar Mahafa, may God bless the soul of Dr. Junaid Mohammed, people who speak with passion for Nigeria, that we should have a Nigeria, not a ‘Nigeria anyhow’ just for the sake just for the sake of a Nigeria, but a Nigeria input with MkO Abiola’s words with great peace of the grave yard, we have enough peace of the cemetery, but for the but for genuine peace that is built with social justice, equity, and federalism, that the Nigerian we are asking for,”
Ozekhome in his statement further said he is not trying to discourage the committee, but wanted them to get the nitty-gritty from day one, so they don’t begin to go on a voyage of discovery, the voyage to no destination, thereby losing their precious time, precious energy, precious resources, while working for Nigeria, he said:
“These are my worries so that we do not engage in a fruitless journey, I’m not trying to discourage us, but I want us to get the nitty-gritty from day one, so that we do not engage in a fruitless journey like George era, discoverers of the young, people like lamer brothers, kapathy, mongo park, prince early the navigator, we begin to go on a voyage of discovery, the voyage to no destination, losing our precious time, precious energy, precious resources, because why we are here, working for Nigeria, some people don’t believe in it, they are working against Nigeria, they believe more in their towns union, go to any place on Sundays and see village unions, town unions etc.
“so with all solemnity sir’s, ma’s, this are my great worries and they are worries we should not trash or just easily put away, until we finally get a constitution, for example or finally arrive at a document to re-work, re-tune, re-engineer Nigerian whose behalf they will say who authorize you, who is the principal that sent you the messenger, they will not even bother to look at the message, they will leave the message to look at not just the messenger but who is the principal.”
Members at the meeting include Prof. Pat Utomi, Dr Usman Bugage, Chief Mrs Awolowo-Dosunmu, Veteran Comrade Wale Okuniyi, and others.
They all harped on the need to rescue Nigeria from collapsing, especially given the different challenges confronting it.