Nigeria risks becoming a failed state - Atiku

Former vice president Atiku Abubakar has called for
sweeping political reform
– He said Nigeria is failing as a state and its states
need greater autonamy
– The former leader made his comments while
attending the launch of the book ‘We Are All Biafrans’
Former vice president Atiku Abubakar said on Tuesday
that Nigeria, as it is currently constituted, is failing and
greater autonomy needs to be granted to the states,
the Premium Times has reported.
Mr Atiku made his comments while speaking at the
official launch of ‘We Are All Biafrans’, a new book by
journalist and scholar Chido Onumah, in Abuja.
Mr Atiku, who was Nigeria’s vice-president between
1999-2007, said Nigerians have suffered for too long
under a poorly designed constitutional structure.
Abubakar Atiku recently praised President Buhari for his
leadership
“Nigeria is not working, as well as it should and part of
the reason is the poor way we have structured our
economy and governance especially since 1960,” he said.

“The federal government is too big and too powerful
relative to the federating units. That situation needs to
change and calling for that change is patriotic.”
“We must refrain from assuming that anyone calling for
restructuring of our federation is working for the breakup
of our country. I reject that notion.”Mr Atiku, who chaired the book launch, said the federal
government cannot foster national unity despite its
enormous power, contributing to the many crises
Nigeria currently faces.
“An excessively powerful centre does not equate to
national unity. Absolutely not. If anything, it has made
our unity more fragile our government more unstable and
our country more unsafe. We must renegotiate our union
in other to make it strong,” he said.
“We must renegotiate our union in order to make it
stronger. Greater autonomy, power and resources for
states and local authorities will give the federating units
greater freedom and flexibility to address local issues,
priorities and peculiarities.”

Mr Atiku went on to urge Nigerians to embrace a
restructured Nigeria, saying it will also reduce the
importance politicians place on elections to federal
positions.
“Greater autonomy, power and resources for state and
local authority will give the federations units greater
freedom and flexibility to address local issues for their
priorities and peculiarities,” he said.
“It will reduce the premium placed on capturing power at
the centre. It will reduce insecurity. It will promote healthy
rivalry amongst federations units. It will help to unleash
our people’s creative energies and spur more
development.”
The launch of ‘We Are All Biafrans’, which the author
said tool him three years to put together, was attended
by former education minister, Oby Ezekwesili and civil
society leaders activists including Jubrin Ibrahim and
Nnimo Bassey.
The book, which explains how the agitation for Biafra is
actually a metaphor for all the tribes in Nigeria, was
reviewed by Chidi Odinkalu, a professor of law and
former chairman of the National Human Rights
Commission.
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