Restructing: Why LGs should not be ignored

THE call for the restructuring of Nigeria is gaining more support by the day. Although, the governing party, All Progressives Congress (APC), made restructuring of the nation a priority in its manifesto during the last general election,  the party has allegedly reneged on the promise.

Advocates of restructuring believe that more power and resources have been allocated to the Federal Government in our constitution, to the detriment of the states.

They believe that this is  an impediment to our nation-building efforts. It has equally led to lopsided development and agitation for power by component units. This is because having federal power would speed up development in the region where the holder of state power comes from.

Also, the incessant secessionist agitations from a section of the nation is hinged on the perceived domination of other groups by the North.

To the advocates of restructuring,  a situation where all security agencies are controlled by the Federal Government would endanger the security of the component units.

In spite of the opposition of the present Federal Government to the issue of restructuring of the federation, the calibre of people making the call, including a former Head of State, a former vice president, a national leader of the governing party and sociocultural groups like Afenifere and Ohanaeze Ndigbo, among others, shows the desirability of the call. Restructuring is a panacea to the challenges facing Nigeria.

Nonetheless, one theme of most of the protagonists of restructuring is their call for the devolution of power to the states.

General Ibrahim Babangida put the argument succintingly: “I will strongly advocate devolution of power to the extent that more responsibility is given to the states, while the Federal Government is vested with the responsibility of overseeing our foreign policy, defence and the economy.”

Babangida added that state police should be established to cater for the security of states. However, what actually baffles me and compelled me to write this is the neglect of local governments in the call for restructuring.

As good as the idea of restructuring is, the major impediment to it is the elitist approach which would make the restructuring beneficial to the elite at the detriment of the grass-roots people.

In actual fact, no person in the grass roots who has witnessed or is conversant with the misfortune which state governors have brought on the hitherto flourishing local government system would pray that more power should be given to the states.

Adewuyi Adegbite

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