Six-year single term: Adeniran, Nwosu, Sani, Bello differ with Reps

FORMER Minister of Education, Professor Tunde Adeniran; the national chairman of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Dr Ralph Okey-Nwosu; ex-acting governor of Kogi State, Honourable Abdullahi Bello and a former general secretary of the Arewa consultative Forum (ACF), Mr Anthony N. Z. Sani, have disagreed with some members of the House of Representatives promoting the six-year single term for president and state governors.

They spoke to the Nigerian Tribune in separate interviews.

The lawmakers are also pushing for a return to a parliamentary system of government to replace the existing presidential arrangement.

But the former minister said the country needs a new constitution that reflects the wishes and aspirants of the people.

According to Professor Adeniran, such constitution, which Nigerians can claim ownership, should be initiated and consummated by them.

The former presidential aspirant said: “We need a new constitution sourced from the Nigerian people, propounded, promoted and consummated by them.”

Also speaking, ADC national chairman, Okey-Nwosu expressed doubts that the National Assembly is capable of charting the real pathway for national progress because nation building is never an ad hoc project.

“This National Assembly is self-serving. We cannot rely on them for the construction of our national pathway for anything meaningful. Nation building is not an ad-hoc thing; it involves an integrated process by foresighted public servants and missionary patriots.

“Poor and shortsighted attitude to public policy produces nothing beyond the piece of paper work and myopia. The country is under the chain and weights of corruption, greedy and opportunistic political hatchet jobbers.

“The culture in place requires a lot more strategising to discern appropriate dashboard to move the country in the right direction. All these ad-hoc measures meant to score cheap political victories cannot stand the test of time.”

On his part, Bello, who is a former Speaker of the Kogi State House of Assembly, said the solution to Nigeria’s political problems does not totally lie in the system of government because no system is insulated against challenges.

Bello said those lawmakers behind the change agenda should realize that it is not the system of government that is responsible for the current national circumstances, but bad governance.

“No system of government will assist us if we don’t change from our current devastating extractive public character in governance and nurture inclusive institutions, where the welfare and wellbeing of the nation and the people are paramount as against the interest of the few official state actors like the representatives themselves,” Bello said.

Similarly, Sani faulted the promoters of the six-year single tenure for hinging their premise on performance.

He said: “When some elbow-throwing grievance groups clamouring for government preferment hanker for single tenure for president and governor as panacea to feckless performance, it is because such people ignore performance as ingredients for socioeconomic development.

“Else, they would know that single tenure has no incentives and motivation for high performance precisely because there is no difference between those who perform and those who do not performance.”

“When motivation is removed as instrument of management practices,it is no more leadership but something else. We have seen how single tenure for Vice chancellors have not improved management practices in our universities.

“As regards the submission that single tenure would remove abuse of incumbency, we cannot solve that problem and create a different one.

“To solve the problems of abuse of incumbency without killing incentives and motivation for performance,

“Chile and Uruguay practice multiple tenure but which are not consecutive. That is to say a president cannot conduct an election in which he or she is a candidate. That way, incentives and motivation for performance are not sacrificed in the altar of expedience.”

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