Turaki A. Hassan

11 January 2012

Members of the House of Representatives yesterday rejected a prayer calling for the convocation of a sovereign national conference to discuss the future of the Nigeria.

A motion sponsored by Rep Samson Osagie (ACN Edo) on the "unjustified killings in some parts of the country" called on leaders in the country, especially elder statesmen to, irrespective of political, ethnic or religious leanings, rise up, speak against and condemn all acts of terrorism being perpetrated in the country.

Osagie described the recent spate of attacks as "reminiscent of the events leading to the country's civil war. The signs of war are ominous and the development must therefore be condemned," he said.

During a debate on the motion, Rep Abubakar Momoh (ACN Edo) called on the House to pass a resolution mandating the Federal Government to organise a sovereign national conference.

But Osagie raised a point of order countering Momoh and asked him to sponsor a separate motion, which Speaker Aminu Waziri Tambuwal quickly upheld and ruled Momoh out of order.

Similarly, the green chamber also commiserated with the families of victims of such attacks and directed its states and zonal caucuses to visit their respective constituencies with a view to enlightening the people on the dangers of terrorism.

For his part, Rep Jerry Manwe (PDP, Taraba) alleged diversion of funds allocated to security agencies and advocated for the dismantling of so many military check points that have now become "toll gates."

http://allafrica.com/stories/printable/201201110716.html

Unfortunate

This will never happen under PDP. You think they c are for Nigeria? Either revolution or wait for 2015

It's a first step. At least it has been mentioned on the floor of the house. What needs to be done now is the "underground" work of lobbying etc. Next time it gets a mention, results may be different. The journey of a thousand miles begins with 1 step.

If people will protest, let it be about something for a cause such as this--- where everyone will discuss issue openly. As least, they know what's at stake, by the time the issue gets so much heat and attention, they will succumb to the people's need.

i'm not even sure a snc will be a good start. put simply, there are currently too many entrenched positions and the north which previously will have used its dominant political position to keep a lid on things at such meetings is  weakened and no longer has the leverage to 'dictate.' with beroms/hausa fulanis pointing accusatory fingers at each other; igbos berating notherners for not protecting its people; and ijaws insisting they want resource control; and others wanting their own ethnic agenda included in the talks, i see a lot of walkouts if not fisticuffs within the first few days of the snc. it woulb be almost impossible to achieve any form of compromise that appeases the main protagonists.   positions are now too enthrenched. snc should have happened a few years back. now people eyes don open, even the minorities are no longer fearful of taking on erstwhile powerful blocks. an snc has a good chance of bringing a civil war closer. once people make accusations and walk outs follow, then underground moves for something nasty will begin & the politicians will lose control to splinter groups with each ethnic enclave. i suspect the politicians know this and prob hope by declining snc, they can hold nigeria together longer and find solutions to its myriad problems. whichever way you look, there is no easy answer.

This na the way o. SNC

DanKan0:

This will never happen under PDP. You think they c are for Nigeria? Either revolution or wait for 2015  

Of course it will never happen under the PDP. It is a shame, given all they have experienced, that Nigerians still fail to understand what the PDP stand for .

If NLC play their cards very well, they could expand the theme of this protest to include a restructuring of the country's framework though i agree it would be seen as political rather than economical.

I can't recall anytime in the nation's history where a protest of this magnitude took place and most Nigerians are protesting based on a common issue. This is the time to push for a SNC, drastic reduction of executive and legislative pay among others.

All is not lost, the rep. was told to push a separate motion. He can propose it at the next session.

@edo.girl - I don't think an snc will cause war. The key thing is for the right ppl to be chosen as representatives of the stakeholders

nku5:

All is not lost, the rep. was told to push a separate motion. He can propose it at the next session.

@edo.girl - I don't think an snc will cause war. The key thing is for the right ppl to be chosen as representatives of the stakeholders

Who would be the stakeholders? maybe suggested list and we can write a letter to the rep