EMEKA Ugwu-Oju is the
President of South East/
South South Professionals,
SESSP. In this interview, he
argues that any attempt to
tamper with the eventual
outcome of the proposed
national conference, might
lead to anarchy, describing
the confab as a panacea to
Nigeria’s future. Ugwu-Oju
also spoke on other issues.
Excerpts:
The proposed national
conference is generating
mixed reactions across the
country, particularly
among those, who argued
that it was informed by
ulterior motives. What is
your position on it?
We believe the country is
not working. The country,
in many areas, is moving
backwards in terms of
factors like the quality of
education, infrastructure
and governance. Anything
that would help rescue the
situation is welcome.
The national dialogue is
one of the areas that can
help address the country’s
deplorable situation. Many
intelligent, experienced and
respectable Nigerians have
seen the national
conference as one of the
keys to reversing our
retrogression.
On that basis, it is an idea
that we should try to
explore, however, it is not
an end in itself, but a
means to an end.
Do you think the
conference will address the
fundamental issues
threatening the corporate
existence of Nigeria?
Right now, the president
has inaugurated a
committee to determine
the modalities and maybe
some of the things that
could help as a guide.
There is nothing like no-go
areas; it is an open slate
that Nigerians should use
to draw whatever they
think could reshape the
country.
At the South East-South-
South Professional
Association of Nigeria, we
have started consulting the
people and we intend to
go round the country but
now, our emphasis is still
on the South East and
South-South.
I believe the president saw
that with the way things
were going in the country,
we might not even have an
election if we did not have
the conference. Those who
are saying why now should
give the president the
chance to deliver.
Going to the last incident
that happened in Benin —
I was there personally, it
was a situation where the
people there would have
lynched the governor of
Edo State, Adams
Oshiomhole, had he not
been smuggled out.
When you have people
there, who are leaders of
their nationalities and
youths with the
temperament displayed in
that public arena, it will
give you some inkling on
what some people have
not seen.
They see the national
conference as a way to
make them continue to
believe in being part of a
country called Nigeria. The
governor said it was a
waste of time that would
not lead anywhere.
The antagonists of the
confab are hinging their
opposition on the fact that
anything short of sovereign
national conference, will
not address the issues
holding the nation down?
This is because you are
playing with words. People
are not being rational. A
committee is set up to
work out the modalities
from the people. We see a
country that is totally
disintegrating and we are
just managing it. There are
so many no-go areas in
this part of the country
called Nigeria.
The committee is to draw
up a template and people
agree that the template is
what could rescue Nigeria
or if not, how people can
go their separate ways
peacefully. After 100 years,
they can go their different
ways peacefully or that we
should know how the next
100 years should be.
In that instance, the
template should determine
how the next 100 years
should look like. What will
make it work is for that
template to be accepted by
the people whether it is
sovereign or not.
What they want is that we
agree to be part of this
country or not. If we
agree, then we must be
able to say this is how we
want the country to look
like. Nobody should change
that agreement.
The most important thing is
for the interest of each
ethnic nationality to be well
aggregated and
represented in the new
Constitution.
Do you agree with the
President’s suggestion that
the eventual outcome of
the conference will be
forwarded to the national
Assembly for ratification?
The president has only
expressed an opinion. Let
them finish the conference
then we will see if anyone
will change the outcome. I
do not believe the National
Assembly can alter the
outcome of the conference
because it can lead to
anarchy.
Even if the outcome means
some people would be out
of jobs, then let it be; the
will of the people is
sacrosanct to any other
personal feeling.
We are not going to sit
down if what we are going
to agree upon would be
tampered with by anybody,
be it the Presidency or the
National Assembly because
that would amount to a
waste of time.
The president has set up a
committee that would sit
for six weeks, to chart a
modality for the
conference. If whatever
comes out is not
acceptable to the people,
they will not go and waste
their time.
People confuse things.
There is no conference
going on now; it is to agree
on the ways to go about
the conference because
people just do not want to
waste their time. That is
why some people are
making their positions
known.
For instance, if people
from the South-South say
they want the conference
to be subjected to a
referendum, then anything
short of that would mean
they would boycott the
conference.
If we do not bother about
the situation on ground,
the country will continue
disintegrating and who
knows where the whole
crisis would lead to in the
long run.
Before the president came
with the idea if the national
dialogue, many people
from the South East and
South-South were thinking
of having a plebiscite —
whether to still be part of
this country or not.
So, if there is no dialogue,
we will have it the other
way round. I am sure this
is part of the things the
president must have seen.


www.vanguardngr.com/2013/11/nass-cant-alter-confab-outcome-ugwu-oju/

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