President Goodluck Jonathan has concluded plans to organize a
Sovereign National Conference, Sunday Trust learnt in Abuja at
the weekend.Top government officials who spoke on condition anonymity said the Federal government has already gone far with the preparation and planning of the SNC where all ethnic groups in the country will nominate their delegates to the confab. Sources in the National Assembly said Jonathan had requested both Senate President David Mark, and Speaker of the House of Representatives, Aminu Waziri
Tambuwal, to nominate two senators and two House members to represent theFederal legislature in the SNC.
However, the source said, Mark and Tambuwal both turned down the request to nominate MPs to the conference insisting
that, the National Assembly will not be a party to it. “I can confirm to you that both Senate president and the Speaker have received request from Mr. President to nominate two members from each of the chamber to be delegates to the SNC. But they have turned down the request because we believe it is illegal and it was an attempt to give it a legal coloration when lawmakers are part of it,” a principal officer said. “Our understanding is that, the government is desperate in its attempt to Balkanize Nigeria by insisting on the SNC and we won’t be here as true representatives of the Nigerian people and allow it happen,” the legislator said.

Speaking at the commencement of the Senate’s third legislative
session on Tuesday, Senator Mark said, a conference of Nigeria’s ethnic nationalities called to foster frank and open discussions of the national question can “certainly find accommodation in the extant provisions of the 1999 constitution which guarantee freedom of expression and association.”
“I hasten to add that it would be unconstitutional to clothe such a conference with sovereign powers,” Mark said.

The senate president maintained that the National Assembly, consisting of the elected representatives of the Nigerian people cannot be ignored and that “to circumvent the
constitution and its provisions on how to amend it and repose sovereignty in an unpredictable mass will be too risky and a gamble and may ultimately do
great disservice to the idea of one Nigeria.”

Mark further argued that, such a conference whether sovereign or not is not a magic wand and that the heights attained by great nations were not made by sudden flights.

Your subject captioned is not appropriate...

Why are the Northerners oppossed to sovereign national conference?
Why do they think that a section of this so called Nigeria leave the unholy union amalgamated by the british colo masters?

SNC is the only key to Nigerias true unity.
They are only interested in the Niger deltas oil.

David mark and Tambuwal shame on both of you bunch of hypocrites.

[size=15pt]PEOPLES REPUBLIC OF NIGER DELTA

capital: PORTHARCOURT or CALABAR[/size]

ilugunboy: Your subject captioned is not appropriate...

How would you rightly caption it? Tambuwal and Mark are northern elements and they don't want snc! How would you put it?

akpomeme:

How would you rightly caption it? Tambuwal and Mark are northern elements and they don't want snc! How would you put it?

Ilugunboy is right, the subject is not properly captioned. Both of them do not represent the whole North, they are heads to two different chambers "representing" the people of Nigeria. If they are kicking against the SNC and other members of their various chambers are keeping quite over the issue, then it can be presumed that they all are in agreement (for obvious selfish reasons if I may say).
Please, before you kick up further ethnic dust here, that will definitely hurts some peoples eye, change the subject to some thing more appropriate.

I don't know where people get their news from, I think you should make available your source to us. And was it not some days back on this same forum that Mark made a call for SNC,and he is rejecting it now. I don't even understand these law makers again.

The North is the problem of this country. Every progressive effort is always opposed by the North.

Are we still talking about Mark and Tambuwal being "The North"?
We should all be careful what we say on social media.
Hope you guys read the part that says "Sources in the National Assembly said Jonathan had requested both Senate President David Mark, and Speaker of the House of Representatives, Aminu Waziri Tambuwal, to nominate two senators and two House members to represent the Federal legislature in the SNC. However, the source said, Mark and Tambuwal both turned down the request to nominate MPs to the conference insisting that, the National Assembly will not be a party to it."
Where in the above bold comments says the North refused or where was it stated that they represent the whole North?
They are just two individuals from the North representing their various constituencies; besides, they are heading the National Assembly and House of Rep respectively, of which the both them don't constitute the whole members of the two chambers. If they are required to nominate representatives and they decline, do we think they are doing it on their own volition? Is it not due process for them to discuss it in the house and agree before making their decisions know? Are all the members of the National Assembly and House of Reps Northerners?
We are always quick to point fingers without logically thinking things through. If we as the people of Nigeria elected them to represent us, and we are open to the idea of the SNC (of which they are kicking against) instead of pointing accusing fingers, can't we - as the people who gave them the mandate to represent us - compel them to concede to the request?
If we continue to play the blame game whenever there is a National issue, how do we intend to solve the problem at hand? Let's even assume the Northerner are our problem, my people, what is the way forward?