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A Chieftain of Yoruba socio-cultural organisation, Afenifere, Chief Ayo Adebanjo, has said the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) has really exposed the weaknesses of the governing structure in Nigeria and ineptitude of elected officers to manage the country.
Adebanjo, while reacting to the obvious socio-economic and political challenges Nigeria is bound to face after COVID-19, warned, “The better time to restructure Nigeria is now and any time wasted further would plunged the nation into chaos. I want to personally appeal to President Muhammadu Buhari and the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) to quickly adopt the resolutions of the 2014 National Conference organised by former President Goodluck Jonathan, especially the suggestions made on how Nigeria could successfully manage her resources.
“While it is unfortunate that the pandemic has really brought the whole world on its knees and any country that fails to prepare ahead might face more than tough time both socially and economically.”
National Publicity Secretary, Middle Belt Leaders Forum, Dr. Dogo Isuwa, expressed worry that the pandemic had exposed Nigeria’s shortcomings to governance and the laxities of the 1999 Constitution, especially to meet national emergency, food supply and inability of our government to capture the entire population through the failed Social Investment Programme (SIP), which are serious issues in any country.
Isuwa lamented that the crisis also rubbished governance. “That is the reason the lockdown order is not working.”
He faulted the housing policy in the country, saying “there is clarity now that many Nigerians do not have a home and that we lack transportation system that can aid social distancing.
“Our government has failed in almost every aspect of human existence,” he lamented.
Urging government to tackle the rot in the healthcare system, he said something more drastic should be done to reduce corruption in public service.
Meanwhile, Executive Secretary, Nigerian National Summit Group (NNSG), Mr. Tony Uranta, said the pandemic had shown the political class their flaws.
He said: “Simultaneously, Nigerians witnessed, with unbelieving shock, how stimulus packages were shared out primarily to the Northern states, using monies generated in the main from Southern states without any going to the states where the majority of said funds are generated.
“This has made it more imperative than ever that for Nigeria to survive as a peaceful union premised on justice, equity and fair play, it must be urgently reconfigured to allow for the resource centres to benefit first from their own resources.”
