Wellmann Group’s Colloquium: Jonathan, Oborevwori, Ozekhome, others call for united Nigeria

28th of November, 2024.

By: Jimitota Onoyume

FORMER President Goodluck Jonathan; Governor Sheriff Oborevwori of Delta State; constitutional lawyer, Chief Mike Ozekhome, SAN and other prominent Nigerians have called for a more united Nigeria to overcome some of its political challenges. They made the call , Tuesday,
at a one-day colloquium organised by Wellmann Group with the theme: ’The Coast to Coast Xray of the Nigerian project: What panacea,’ in Uvwie local government area of Delta State. Jonathan, who was chairman of the colloquium, charged political leaders, including members of the National
Assembly to see it as a duty to promote values of national unity, lamenting the negative impact of ethnic and religious divide in politics.

He also advocated for increased local production of some of the equipments
in the oil and gas sector in the country. His words : “There must be a reason why these people felt that bringing these two parts, the rainforest area and the savannah together, would form a better country. But that now creates a country with so much diversity: diversity of human beings and diversity in terms of religion. Then, from the amalgamation to date, we have not been able to develop ourselves to the extent that we see ourselves as one.

“Federal lawmakers must downplay this issue of my people and begin to take the whole country as your people. Because you are a member of the National Assembly, either the Senate or House of Representatives.
“You are not a member of the assembly of your people at the state Assembly. And I believe this is the area that we need to look at if we
must get out of this quagmire. “Presently, the forces separating us are too strong. We must see ourselves as a nation. We believe in our own ethnic
nationalities. So what you see in Nigeria is a conglomerate of small
ethnic nationalities. And we are more loyal to these ethnic nationalities than to the nation. What we have today is that the boundaries between these nationalities are getting wider. “Most countries also have these different nationalities that come together. But over the period, they begin to see themselves as a nation rather than a country. And until we begin to see ourselves as one nation we cannot move anywhere. “While Nigeria is not the only country with multiple nationalities, it is a country where people are yet to see themselves as common citizens of Nigeria. And as long as you
continue with that spirit, it will be difficult for us to develop this country.
While congratulating Wellmann Group for celebrating 20 years of operational excellence, Jonathan said he was elated with the impact of local
firms in the economy.

He also lauded the firm for organizing a colloquium on the Nigerian project, noting that it was a reflection of the company’s patriotic zeal for national
development. Governor Sheriff Oborevwori of Delta state who was represented by his deputy Sir Monday Onyeme called for a national dialogue where practicable solutions could evolve to tackle myriad of challenges plaguing the nation.

The governor said tinkering with the constitution to accommodate fresh ideas would further strengthen the nation’s federalism. “I dare say that it is in the best interest of Nigeria and Nigerians that we should all come to terms with tinkering the Nigerian federation and coming up with structures that will stand the test of time for the good of all “, he said. “The fact of the matter is that Nigeria remains a patchwork pieced together from the diverse distinct nationalities hurriedly joined by common colonial
experience. So far, the country has continued to trudge on but the inherent gaps in the piecing together continues to yawn like a toothless mouth”, he added.

The governor also advocated for restructuring that would shift more responsibilities to states , adding also that in line with true federalism states should be encouraged to develop their comparative advantages. His words : “One of the most vexed issue is that of devolution of power to the States. Like the former military President, General Ibrahim Babangida put it while
celebrating his 75th birthday, restructuring should be “…devolution of powers to the States to the extent that more responsibilities be given to the
States while the Federal Government is vested with the responsibility to oversee our foreign policy, defence and economy. Having Federal roads
in towns and cities, has become outdated and urgently needs
revisiting. “While restructuring and the attendant devolution of powers
might not be the be-all-and-endall solution to our country’s problems, tinkering with the Constitution to accommodate fresh ideas will surely strengthen our union as a country. “It is presumably agreed that we subscribe to our unity in diversity but we have to make extra efforts to strengthen the structures and make them more functional. Definitely the
comparative advantages in various States will come to the fore. “Like former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar once said, ‘Most of our States are not viable outside federal allocation. Let us create ways to make them viable in a changed federal system. We need to start producing again and collecting taxes to run the States in a more sustainable way but with greater transparency and accountability. “The panacea to all this is rather
simple. There should be a national dialogue by whatever name it is called by all and sundry to agree on fundamental restructuring of the country. It
is a win-win solution that gives room to States to develop at their own pace. Competition will ensue and it will be in the best interest of all.

“The resolutions of the former national confab should either be adopted or brought forward for further debate and adoption.” Presidential candidate of the Labour Party, LP, in the 2023 presidential election, Mr. Peter Obi , on his part congratulated Wellmann Group at 20. Obi who was a former governor of Anambra state spoke visually commending various speakers at the event. Professor Mike Ozekhome, Senior Advocate of Nigeria ,SAN, and constitutional lawyer in his lecture urged the federal government to create an additional state for South East to make the region be at the same level with other regions in the country with six states each, adding that the various regions should be assigned more constitutional responsibilities. “So that the geopolitical zones can have things like Supreme courts . The states
should enjoy one hundred percent of its produce and pay tax to the centre”, he said. He also called for reintroduction of the parliamentary system of
government in the country, emphasizing that the current presidential system was too bogus and expensive. “We should go back to the
parliamentary system of government. It’ s less expensive.

No country grows with so much going into recurrent expenditure. We need a lean government for us to survive. Our government is too elephantine, too wasteful. The Nigeria project is presently not working. Leadership at all
levels must show patriotism to this country. Nigerians are suffering “, he said. Former Permanent Representatives of the African Union to the United states, Dr Arikana Chihombori-Quao urged Africa leaders to unite to
pursue values of development, adding that tribal differences and other divisive tendencies should not be allowed to divide the people. Dr Henrietta Onwuegbuzie and others who also spoke offered solutions on how to redress challenges of poverty and underdevelopment in the