Ex- Minister of Education and Chief Executive Officer of Human Capital Africa, Dr Oby Ezekwezili , has proffered adoption of new Nigeria constitution as means of addressing the agitation for secession , insecurity, unemployment, poverty and maladministration in the country.
Ezekwesili made this known this on Thursday while delivering her keynote address at the 7th Pen pushing Anniversary and Annual Lecture.
The former minister delved on the topic "Reworking Nigeria's Federalism, Perspectives On Restructuring And Fiscal Federalism" .
She emphasised that the new constitution should prioritize devolution of powers, justice, equity, and fairness to all irrespective of tribes and ethnicity.
She described the ongoing constitutional amendment by the National Assembly as a charade ay sheer waste of resources.
Ezekwesili expressed displeasure over the hijack of the nation's political space and by extension that of the continent by a set she described as "Criminal Enterprise Gang" who now sit at the table and slicing governance in the direction that best suit them while the larger interest of the people suffer.
She called on the media to be at the vanguard of demanding for a new constitution that would be powered by the people and would ultimately serve the progress and development of the country.
" The demands for a new constitution is a matter of life and death.
"The ongoing constitutional amendment can not work, it can not address our problem, it is a charade and sheer waste of resources.
" Rather than acceding to the people's demand for a fresh constitution that will help address all the imbalances and the inequalities which defined the current constitution.
" The National Assembly decided to embark on a venture that will do little or nothing to help address the need to restructure the country along the practice of true federalism.
" So this expensive charade that the National Assembly is embarking on and spending money on won't take us anywhere.
"The media should take the front seat and be at the vanguard of a demand for new constitution.
" We must have a constitutional conference that enables the people of this country to have honest conversation around things that will make us make progress and make Nigeria work for all of us.
"If there is anything that will come out of this annual lecture it must be that the media should be at the vanguard of a push for a constitutional conference.
" One that will enable the constituent part of this country, a constituent assembly elected by the people, they go, they sit, they have the discussion on the basis of the issues that makes fiscal federal system of government to work and come out with issues that are eligible for constitution which is put before the people to vote in form of referendum.
"This is what Kenya did after almost collapsing and since then you never hear them talking about break up, they will talk about the need for good leaders," she said.
She further stated that "There is nothing that is mysterious about good governance, this thing has been done elsewhere and could be replicated here in the country.
"Unfortunately, today's politics has been hijacked, what we now have is a criminal enterprise gang and this is not only in Nigeria but across the continent.
" A criminal enterprise gang has taken hold of politics and excluded the society and these people just sit at the table and just slice governance in the direction that suits them but that must not be made to continue," she said
Earlier, the immediate past Nigerian High Commissioner to the United Kingdom, Amb. Sarafadeen Ishola , urged Nigerians not to behold restructuring as a sectional agenda but must be embraced as a national rebirth strategy which would address challenges hindering effective management of the country.
Ishola, the Chairman of the Occasion, said that the country's current federalism was adopted in principle but suffered in practice and neither delivered the autonomy expected by the federating units nor promote the developmental competition required for national growth.
He noted that true federalism was about responsible governance, institutional clarity, fiscal equity and citizens driven accountability.
In his opening remarks, the Founder of Penpushing Media, Mr Dimeji Kayode-Adedeji said that the reason for the annual lecture was to elevate conversation around issues that could further enhance the growth and development of the country.
Kayode-Adedeji said the online news medium had continued to grow while contributing significantly to changing the narrative of the country through qualitative reportage and dose of philanthropic gestures that were deliberately designed to uplift the humanity.
He added that as part of the focus of the online news medium to contribute to the growth of Mass Communication undergraduates, the news platform had helped to train over 80 students from various institutions.
" We have also instituted an annual award honour for the best graduating Mass Communication students in the higher institutions," he said.
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