A former Interim National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress, Chief Bisi Akande, has described the 1999 Constitution as the problem of Nigeria, saying without overhauling it, the country may not experience the much-needed development.
He said the constitution which, according to him, was designed for the people of the country by the military, promoted “criminal impunity in the governance of the country.”
Akande, a former governor of Osun State, said this during the public presentation of a book titled, ‘Nigeria: The path we refuse to take,’ written by the Secretary General of the pan-Yoruba socio-cultural organisation, Afenifere, Chief Sehinde Arogbofa, at the Federal University of Technology, Akure, Ondo State, on Tuesday.
Akande was the chairman on the occasion.
The APC chieftain argued that if Nigeria must make headway politically and socio-economically, the 1999 Constitution must be done away with while the piecemeal amendment to it at the National Assembly must be stopped.
This call, he said, became imperative because the current amendment would aid the nation’s disintegration.
To avoid this, the former governor called for the temporary replacement of the 1999 Constitution with the 1963 Republican Constitution pending the time a new constitution would be put in place for the nation.
Akande, who blamed the 1999 Constitution for corruption ravaging the nation and the attendant underdevelopment, said amending the constitution would not bring out any good result.
Akande said, “The 1999 Constitution is Nigeria’s greatest misadventure since Lord Lugard’s amalgamation of the Southern and Northern Protectorates in 1914. The constitution puts emphasis on spending rather than making money, thereby intensifying the battles for supremacy between the legislature and the executive while the judiciary is being corruptly tainted and discredited.
“The constitution breeds and protects corrupt practices and criminal impunity in governance. The 1999 Constitution can never be beneficially reviewed and the ongoing piecemeal adjustments or amendments can only totally blot the essence of national values and accelerate the de-amalgamation of Nigeria.
“All the angels coming from heavens cannot make that constitution work for the progress of Nigeria. It should only be scrapped as a bad relic of military mentality; and it ought to be temporarily replaced with the 1963 Republican Constitution to enable a transition for the writing of a suitable constitution.
“Otherwise, the 1999 Constitution would continue to dwarf Nigeria’s economy and stifle the country’s social structure pending a disastrous and catastrophic bankruptcy.”
The former governor, who warned against any “criminal revolution” in the country, called on Nigerians to begin the search for a better future, just as he prayed for an end to the problems confronting the nation.
The APC chieftain also noted that the military involvement in Nigerian politics for 29 out of Nigeria’s 57 years of independence was the reason for its “dwarf democratic experience and economic challenges.”
Akande said the military incursion into Nigerian politics had bastardised the political system so much that political discussions were no longer issue-based.
He warned that the situation had become very dangerous for the future of the society -particularly among the growing youths.
In his remarks, the author, Arogbofa, urged the government and education stakeholders to promote reading culture in schools, especially among secondary school pupils.
(PUNCH)
