Anyaoku noted that the making of a new constitution should be driven further.
A former Secretary General of the Commonwealth, Chief Emeka Anyaoku and Afenifere leader, Pa Ayo Adebanjo, have called for a brand new constitution for Nigeria, saying that the present Nigerian constitution is not suitable to address the myriad of challenges confronting the country.
Anyaoku noted that the making of a new constitution should be driven further.
The Commonwealth chief made the call on Monday during the National Constitutional Dialogue organised by The Patriots, a Pan Nigerian Group of eminent national leaders of thought, with the theme "Lawful procedures for actualising a People’s Constitution for Nigeria" in honour of the late renowned constitutional lawyer, Prof. Ben Nwabueze.
Speaking during the event held at the Nigerian Institute of International Affairs (NIIA), Victoria Island, Lagos Anyaoku said, "If eminent Nigerians; people who have used better parts of their time serving this country have a conversation and we cannot take it forward and make sure that we have a complete solution, then we are wasting our time.
“Given the number of people that are here, we should make this conversation very effective. Many speakers have said that it is not the National Assembly that will make those amendments and it makes a lot of logical sense.
“It is for the National Assembly to constitute a law where people will come together and make those amendments themselves.
"I stand here as a leader of the largest state. How well do we see the anomalies that we have in our country? Why would a federal agency come to control the water in front of Ozumba Mbadiwe? Why would a federal agency of 1,000 kilometers away come to see the needs of my people in Ozumba Mbadiwe? Those are some of the things that we need to take forward and say that indeed we need to have a true federating state and be able to amend this constitution."
Anyaoku, who is the Chairman of The Patriots said that the present Nigerian constitution is not suitable to address the myriad challenges confronting Nigeria and called for the adoption of the recommendations of the 2014 national conference or the conduct of an “inexpensive” constituent assembly that would be nonpartisan to have a truly federal constitution.
He said, “Our present 1999 constitution as amended not only lacks the legitimacy that flows from a democratically made constitution but also has proved to be unsuitable for tackling many of the serious challenges confronting our country. It is a widely recognised fact that the crucial areas of the country have significantly deteriorated and continue to deteriorate.”
According to him, Nigeria has suffered deterioration on many fronts in the area of security of the citizens' lives and properties, economic well-being of the citizens, infrastructure including roads and education and health facilities, social cohesion and social values, and the sense of national unity.
Also speaking during the event, elder statesman, Adebanjo, called for the implementation of the 2014 National Conference, which according to him represented how the people of Nigeria want to be governed considering the representation of the people from different parts of the country that attended the national conference.
Adebanjo also said that what Nigeria needs is a brand new constitution and not the amendment of the current constitution, which the National Assembly wants to embark on.
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