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The Aftermath of the Illegal Confab…… By Muhammad Bashir
The convocation of a national conference-once with the agenda of a national reconstruction and development- is a project worth embarking even though reactionaries like Bala Usman will not agree with me. The people of Iraq have also held their own just a year or so ago. And theirs has been a success given the volatile security situation of the country under American military occupation. On the contrary-where the raison detre behind such a conference remains nothing other than selfish presidential blueprint to pursue a self-perpetuation or regional marginasation agenda as was the case with recent Obasanjo’s one-man show deceitfully tagged ‘National Political Reform conference; the outcome remains a failure and the aftermath national confusion, chaos and probable disintegration of the country involved.
When the entire forces of democracy from across the country were demanding him to hold a conference Obasanjo has labeled its proponents as the enemies of the nation but when he crossed the Rubicon about his third term ambition - an ambition he and his hirelings roundly denied having earlier and which unfolded itself during the confab sessions – he overnight conceived, organized, hosted, launched and bankrolled an illegal, unconstitutional conference without the consent or approval of the National Assembly – an assembly of bloody fortune – seeking legislators who disappointed their electorate and who have been subdued, suppressed, subjugated and cowed into Ghana – Must - Go submission by Obasanjo as eve nts in the wake of the confab report have come demonstrate further.
Most Nigerians were left reflecting as to whether the plot is to perfect a presidential tenure extension or a grand conspiratorial design to deny some people, sections of the country their political right to presidency in 2007. Besides, I recall reading a report in the Weekly Trust edition of 8th January 2005 that Obasanjo will be using a national political conference to create widespread confusion with debatable issues like resource control and power rotation to be the contentious topics of the conference. Next to that – he will invoke the sections 141,142 of the 1999 constitution which state that the president has the right – if the political atmosphere in the country is chaotic to the effect that no peaceful election could be held in the fixed election year - to extend his tenure by two additional years within which he can remove his deputy for another person if such a removal will guarantee the peace and stability of the nation.
To drive home his objective, the president summoned the anger of the Muslim community right from the compositional stage of the conference. How can he select both the chairman and the secretary from the same religion when he knows fully that Nigeria is a multi – ethnic and multi – religions nation in its history? It is therefore discernible that way against its control and power rotation are meant to play the Southern region against its Northern counterpart – the president’s selection of the leadership of the talk – shop is meant to set Nigerian Muslims against their Christian fellows. And that is all he needs to realize his hidden ambition.
Unfortunately for the president, the confab failed to endorse his sponsored, ill – trifled constitution with a six – year single term of which he was groomed to be the first beneficiary as jerry Gana-led squad was caught shamefully trying to smuggle in by the rest of the conferees. The villa moved both the heavens and earth to get the new draft admitted but the leadership stood its ground. The most incredible shocker came from the unprecedented stand of state governors, who after a series of closed door meetings between them and the president maintained a capital a N0 to the demand for their own support. To make points shorter, the confab has been so for a failure to Obasanjo. On the other hand if the souths allow their interest to breed a national crisis – then Obasanjo will emerge the winner. God forbid.
Muhammad Bashir wrote from Tudun Wada Kaduna Email: bashirsenior@yahoo.com
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