Emeka Anyaoku: No leader can fix Nigeria with 1999 constitution

According to former Commonwealth secretary-general Emeka Anyaoku, Nigeria cannot prosper under the 1999 Constitution as modified.

Speaking at the book launch of “The Noble Academic and Patriot: A Biography of Emeritus Professor Akinjide Osuntokun,” which took place at the Nigerian Institute of International Affairs on Victoria Island in Lagos, Anyaoku made this statement.

According to the elder statesman, Nigeria must abolish its current constitution and find a new one in order to go forward.

As many had anticipated, he stated that it would be challenging for any leader to restore the country to the former Constitution.

To those who believe that political leadership is the root of Nigeria’s current problems, he said, “I would say that as long as we have the 1999 Constitution as our foundation, not even leaders like Angel Gabriel or Malaikah Jibrin can successfully tackle the divisiveness, the underperforming economy with the resulting poverty, the insecurity, the enormous corruption, and the other major challenges currently facing Nigeria.”

Read Also: Gunmen kill two soldiers at Abia army checkpoint

According to Anyaoku, Nigeria is a pluralist nation, with groups of people with diverse histories, cultures, dialects, and faiths that have long lived in distinct geographic regions.

“The universal lesson is that pluralistic countries that tackled their pluralism, that is, their diversity, with true federal constitutions are those that have survived as single political entities in unity and progress,” he said. Switzerland, Canada, and India are a few examples of these nations.

Therefore, he remarked, “I think that our pluralistic Nigeria must have a truly federal constitution if it is to achieve true unity and political stability, as well as to successfully tackle the serious challenges that the country currently faces.”