₦airaland Forum

is less than what the smallest commercial bank made in Nigeria. No South-West state ought to be unable to discharge her responsibilities if Odua Group runs efficiently. The story of Odua Group is similar to what happens in your states. There is gross under-performance and inefficiency everywhere. This house has fallen.



Agbowo Shopping Complex lies prostrate. Strategically located opposite the University of Ibadan, the huge complex is now home to rodents. The complex was built by Chief Bola Ige in 1983 and consists of 104 shops, a theatre, two department stores, a night club, more than 20 large office units and an ample parking space. During its hey days, it was home to Cinema De Baba Sala. Lekan Salami Stadium at Adamasingba has seen more beer parlours than football teams in recent times. Trans Wonderland which covers a total area of 67 acres and was inaugurated in 1989 is now a shadow of itself. The same thing applies in almost all your states, maybe except Lagos in a few instances. Muda Lawal Stadium at Abeokuta is home to several beer parlours and scarlet ladies. A friend once joked by saying that the only industry they have in Abeokuta is the beer-drinking industry. Osogbo is a big village that has defied modernity. The new Shoprite Complex now stands where Owena Motels used to be at Akure as legacy gave way to consumerism. Ekiti, as homogenous as it is, represents little more than a glorified rural set-up.

During the last West African Senior Secondary School Certificate examinations, only Lagos State was among the top 10 states in Nigeria. Ekiti was 11th, Ondo was 13th, Ogun was 19th, Oyo was 26th while Osun was 29th. A region that once produced scholars now has scholarship relegated to the background. State universities churn out graduates each year but none can boast of any meaningful invention. In one instance, a state university (LAUTECH) has been closed for over 400 days with over 34,000 students left to their own fate. No single government-owned hospital in the South-West has a brachy therapy machine yet cancer kills about 10 people every hour. We have to depend on private and foreign-owned laboratories for our tests and medical diagnostics. Private pharmacies are relied on for the dispensary of most drugs.

Your Excellencies, our roads are full of craters and potholes. You say you’re constructing new roads but the old ones are falling apart faster than you can build new ones. We don’t have new housing estates unlike before. Lateef Kayode Jakande constructed over 30,000 housing units in four years. He introduced low cost housing estates at Amuwo-Odofin, Dolphin, Oke-Afa, Abesan, Ijaiye, Ipaja, Iponri, Ikorodu, Badagry, Surulere, Epe and other areas in Lagos State. He also built the General Hospitals in Gbagada and Ikorodu in addition to about 20 health centres. Are you building to last, Sirs? I remember the days of Ibadan Municipal Government where the Local Governments were the closest to the people. They constructed roads and even built schools. In Ibadan, such schools were referred to as IMG Schools. You have reduced the Local Governments to mere appendages by appointing caretaker chairmen (who are better known as undertakers) and in the very few instances where elections are conducted, they are rendered ineffective by you.

Do I need to talk about your various broadcasting outfits? In the days of yore, any broadcaster worth their salt must be on Ogun Broadcasting Corporation Radio popularly called OGBC Radio. Individuals such as the late Gbenga Adeboye, Toba Opaleye, Ambrose Shomide, Larry Izamoje and several others held sway at the station. Radio O-Y-O shone like a million stars with the music merchant, Yanju Adegbite and Deola Alagbe. The television arms were pacesetters in their own rights. Hardly does anyone listen to or watch them again. For them, it is Ichabod- the glory has departed. The Broadcasting Corporation of Oyo State (because) is now more popular for her annual December Fun Fair where the premises are partitioned into several spaces for pepper-soup eaters and beer drinkers.

Dear Governors, God has blessed you with the most arable land in Nigeria- nay, West Africa. You have rain for longer periods than the North. Our land is suitable for tomatoes yet we depend on the tomatoes that come from the North. We can plant yam in abundance yet we always wait for Abuja and Nasarawa yam. We are the largest cocoa farmers in Nigeria yet we don’t have a single chocolate factory. Ogbomoso cashew is the best in the world yet no single state in the South-West has a cashew processing factory. We have the largest cassava farms down South yet the only starch-making factory in the South-West is privately owned. There is simply no value addition.

This is the time to engage creative thinking. You must be the drivers of the ideas that will take the Yoruba people into the future. You must find ways to make your people look inward instead of outward. We can achieve food sufficiency. Build new farm settlements and give incentives for agriculture. Create hubs for real mechanised farming across the states. Construct silos for the preservation of harvest. Open up the rural roads and this will reduce the cost of transport which will further impact the price of food. We can create new apps that can help us take a leap into the future. Invest in science and technology. Give grants specially for apps development that have commercial applications. We can create new jobs that will greatly reduce the rate of unemployment. Create SME hubs around each state with shared facilities. Give tax breaks for new businesses. Resuscitate old industrial estates and start new ones. Set up free wifi points at all state universities. Equip them with e-libraries. Encourage them to re-tool the curriculum for relevance. Let there be at least one world class hospital in each state. Each hospital can specialise in different areas: one in cancer treatment, another for heart-related issue, yet another for pediatrics, another for kidney ailments and so on. Invest in human resources- the people. Educate your people. Energise your governments by injecting fresh blood with new ideas. Set key performance indicators and measure them.

If it will not be too much for me to say, Sirs, may I humbly warn that you are governing over a tinderbox. You have more unemployed graduates than any other geopolitical zone in Nigeria. You have a mass of highly enlightened but dissatisfied populace. Your people are patient but their patience should not be taken for granted. I am not blaming you for the problems- some of which predate your coming to office. Those who came before you also did not acquit themselves excellently. I am not saying you haven’t done anything at all. Lagos State still remains a bright spot in our dark firmament with some occasional sparks of brilliance among others. Unfortunately, you are in a race against time and you have to prove worthy of the shoes of the ancients you have stepped into. Nevertheless, you are on the cusp of history. You would have noticed that I referred to Obafemi Awolowo earlier as immortal because while he is dead, yet his deeds speak for him. Will your deeds speak when you are gone? What legacies will you leave behind after your tour of duty is over? It may be difficult to fill the shoes of the late sage. He has set the benchmark for generations to come. However, it is your responsibility to carry forward his legacy.

I will close with the words of Benjamin Franklin. He said, “If you would not be forgotten as soon as you are dead, either write something worth reading or do something worth writing”. Sirs, the choice is yours.

Concluded

‘Bayo sent in this piece from Ibadan


punchng.com/open-letter-to-swest-govs-this-house-has-fallen-2/

pryme:
Yeah, and he is about to repeat history.

lol, some of you said he will die in prison.

he is out gathering momentum.

the serious change if anything ensues is that Middle belt and South South have been liberated from the schisms of the north

Every sane mind who has listened to Nnamdi Kanu knows he is sound and knows his onion.

He is a sound lawyer with History at his fingers.

This Amadi is a descendant of Okoroawusa. did you read where it says he lives in the North. Loosing his life investments sank in the North scares him to his pants.

we will shock people like Amadi.

check all the so called Igbo elites opposing restructure or seperation.

its foolish people who have 90% of their investments up north.

Nnamdi kanu had all his family in UK as a CITIZEN where education is free and as a lawyer had a better life. he came back on his own volution. they forget that as a citizen he can afford to remain in UK and claim benefits to survive. All he needs to do is declare he is medically unfit and depressed.

he left that for a struggle and men without balls are ranting

the Nigerian governmenty has seized his passpot and people like Amadi wont shut the fxck up.

Succintly crafted and nailed. There should be no election in Anambra and the entire Southern Nigeria should seat at home if Nigeria is not restructured before general elections.

Nigeria is irredeemable in the current state

And some will not pay salaries

This is the pilot that should fly me.

When I get my jet. You will be looked for.

Worship all the way

Colourful

@Op, which planet do you stay. Many currencies in the word carry images of their their legendary women.

sarrki:
Op asked for why did we suspend the first constitution

I just laid the facts

Dispute it bro

I have carefully read what you wrote and cannot see the fact in it. Should swallow what you said simply because it's a narrative you chose to believe.

This is the age of logic and reasoning. You can do better.

sarrki:
Nnamdi azikwe and aguiyi ironsi did

Please substantiate this with proofs

Nigeria's founding fathers negotiated a Constitution for us, at Independence, which later became the First Republic Constitution.

The Constitution took care of all issues we are agitating for today.

In that Constitution was Fiscal Federalism and Resources Control by the Regional Governments.

The cost of Governance was not as high under that Parliamentary leadership and system of government.

A Presidential Candidate did not need to campaign all over the wards of Nigeria, to be voted for.

Everything was in order, before the Military came to attack us and suspended the Constitution that made us Nigerians.

We walked into the valley of darkness and despair, hoping for a way out. The Military continued to live on our inheritance, until they had to give us what they thought should be the basis of our existence as a nation, they gave us the 1979 Constitution to further deride the ancient landmarks of our founding fathers.

Turn by turn they came at will, until they finally gave us the 1999 Constitution, which has misled us till today.

The nostalgic emotions of our people for identity has led to the agitations from the peoples of Western Nigeria for Restructuring, while the peoples from Southern Nigeria agitate for Resource Control, in addition to sectional agitation for Secession by the peoples the Eastern Nigeria and the Niger Delta.

Even the North East is asking for her identity, after the North Central State served their Quit Notices and threatened various degrees of state of emergencies.

Even the North West is not left out.

The solution therefore is not in separation, but is in lifting the suspension of our First Republican constitutional order, so that Nigeria Can Be Greater again.

That is my definition of Restructuring Nigeria.

#Restructure Nigeria for better empowerment of the individual Nigerian Nations. Help put food on everyone's table.

this is why they will loose in 2019

Epic indeed

Mazeltovscotty:
Looking at their soil texture, I can boldy say igbo can't really go far in all-round agriculture.
That is the major reason why maize and cassava has been their major produce.

which part of your brain did you harvest this response from?

Nsukka does fantastically well in Yam,

Adani, Abakaliki, and Anambra does well in Rice

Imo boasts of Maize

Biafra will shock the rest when the time comes

Aonkuuse:
are you a Nigerian?

yes i am, at least for now

Aonkuuse:
Your ambition is dead on arrival. For you to be president it is better Buhari's corps should continue. I always know that attacking Buhari was for your own selfish ambition. But the brain washed was always calling you a hero

oga allow Nigerians to decide

Tinubu tell us that this is what you discuss with your wife in your bedroom

stop forming political correctness

The time is now

Chai

Everyone who is tired of 57 years of trying to make Nigeria work should embrace restructuring.

Now, there is no term restructuring in our constitution.

We need to do constitutional amendment. The north will never allow the constitution to be tinkered with because the current one is skewed to favour them by the military.

The only way to compel the North is for entire South to boycott elections in 2019 till Nigeria is restructured.

How do we achieve this. Tell the government No restructuring No election.

Seat at home is a good tactics.

We can't go ahead to hold elections and maintain status quo

Ok na

The untouchables.

Sai Buhari

Buhari must rule till 2053....

Una never see chin chun chi.

The constitution we currently run was written by few Northern military men. And so it's skewed to favour north.

Will not be favourably disposed to restructuring? Hell no. It won't happen without a fight so . The only way to make them bow is for South to avoid voting in 2019.

Seat at home.

The election will hold but will lack legitimacy .
Nigeria must be restructured.

Lalasticlala where you dey

Elder statesman and chieftain of the pan-Yoruba socio-cultural organisation, Afenifere, Chief Ayo Adebanjo, has stated that Nigerian may cease to exist after 2019.

According to him, Nigeria may fail to exist if its leaders fail to embrace the call for restructuring.

He told Punch that it is obvious that the word ‘restructuring’ irritates northern elites except for few of them like Atiku Abubakar, Gen. Ibrahim Babangida (retd.), Gen. Yakubu Gowon (retd.), Col. Umar, etc who have been clamouring for it.

“Of course, without restructuring, there might be no Nigeria. It’s as clear as that. I often say that the word restructuring came into our political lexicon after the military coup. Why? When the military came, they suspended the constitution and then created one-line government.

“When they wanted us to return to civilian regime, they didn’t want us to have it under that constitution. In 1993, Abacha made that fraudulent document (constitution), he died and Abdulsalami Abubakar sustained it which was handed over to Obasanjo in 1999. Yet, they are saying we have to live together on the constitution made by the North.

Asked what does Nigerians stands if the country is restructured, he said, “I emphasise arbitrarily. I give you an example. Lagos and Kano had identical population. The military created Jigawa from Kano and then created local governments so much so that from the two states you have over 70 local governments. Lagos still has 20 LGAs. This is one of the inequities in this constitution that the opposition to restructuring wants us to retain.

“There are a lot of bad things in this constitution. We don’t want violence, so let’s sit down together and talk. The military men changed our structure and laid down strange conditions for distributing our revenue, like using land mass, whether productive or not.

“With what is in this constitution now, the North is contributing £1 and they are collecting £1,000. That would be the sum total of the situation. They contribute N1 but they are taking N20,000. They used all the conditions that favour them as the basis for distributing the allocation they don’t contribute to. These are the injustices. You see why the South opposing this constitution. And they are doing that because of the crude oil. Let them refute it.

“They can’t counter it other than to be politically correct because their leader doesn’t want it. And I accuse Buhari that it is because his people are the beneficiaries, that is why he is defending it. They want it to continue, but it won’t continue. And we are in this position again today because Asiwaju Bola Tinubu led the Yoruba into an alliance with APC. At 89, what else am I looking for? I’m only sorry for your generation. When people should do something positive, they are playing with words because they want to cheat you.

“I want you to emphasise that the reluctance is because they want the country to separate or they want to impose unity on us, which I call the unity of the horse and the rider. The North would be the rider and the South the horse. We say no, it will not happen. For a democracy that would work, we need to go back to the constitution we had at independence, which our founding fathers gave us. How can you be cheating me and you want me to keep quiet?”



dailypost.ng/2017/07/15/restructuring-nigeria-may-cease-exist-soon-afenifere-chieftain-adebanjo/

moninuola65:
we've started notice the movement of igbo in large numbers into our area nowadays, we don't need who will disturb our peace!
warning!

Whatever you are taking must be rare and very strong...
I blame Etisalat that gave you free MB

Noted

The only reason Igbo elites are not fully supporting Biafra is because of their investments outside Igbo land.

The smart ones are going home in the last 2 months

oyienootieno:
Yes because we don't want people who will aid people like evans..

What of people that aid Shekau and still doing so till date

Obasanjo: meaning person wey dey spread ugliness

Northerners ...fear them and strategy. Call me a bigot. But 130k will come from north while entire south will share 20k

Mr Sheriff you were in opposition for 2 years and never spoke against this government for once.

If i slap you. Your brain will reboot

succintly crafted.