Onaiyekan, Jega call for National People’s Conference to address political system

TRACKING___Former Catholic Archbishop of Abuja, John Cardinal Onaiyekan, the immediate past chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Attahiru Jega, and other civil rights actors, are advocating the convening of a National People’s Conference to address Nigeria’s political structure.

The coalition under the umbrella of the Nigeria Working Group on Peace Building and Governance made the call in a communiqué at the end of a meeting of civil society actors in Abuja, on Friday

The group, which also has as members Dr. Hakeem Baba Ahmed, General Martin Luther Agwai, Prof. Jibrin Ibrahim, Dr Nguyan Shaku Feese, Dr Usman Bugaje, Adagbo Onoja and Amb. Fatima Balla, said that the absence of a binding narrative had left room for the emergence of a series of conspiracy theories with immense capacity to divide the country along the sharp lines of ethnicity and religion.

They recommended that apart from People-Centred Dialogue Process and Nigerians in their communities, associations, civil society groupings, women’s groups and youth groups should accelerate ongoing discussions to deepen the emerging consensus.

Besides, they called for the prosecution of criminality and violent confrontations between farming and herding communities which had claimed thousands of lives and deepened ethnic, religious and regional polarisation.

Civil society, the media, professional associations, socio-cultural groups, women, youth, students, and people living with disabilities, according to them, should act in one accord as key catalysts for civic action.

The group said this was because civic action representing key voices was needed to be amplified in mobilising citizens as a basis for compelling governments at all levels to act in the overall interest of the citizens.

The group observed that the increasing insecurity across the country continued to gallop toward the abyss.

It said this was due to the lack of political will and the inability of the country’s security architecture to manage the multiple challenges.

It said that kidnapping for ransom was an acute concern across the country.

It said that the northeast was witnessing resurgence in Boko Haram activity and thousands of people were internally displaced by banditry across rural communities in the northwest.

The group said that the criminality in rural areas further complicated the situation by undermining food security as many farmers had been unable to go to their farms for months for fear of losing their lives.

It said corruption was getting out of control and there was a concerted effort to dismantle anti-corruption agencies and render them ineffective.

Other participants at the meeting were Ambassador Zango Abdu , Auwal Musa Rafsanjani, Dr. Chris Kwaja, Dr Hussaini Abdu, Kemi Okenyodo, Mr Jim Gala, Mrs Aisha Muhammed Oyebode and Tsema Yvonne.