The founder of Afe Babalola University, Chief Afe Babalola
(SAN), has declared that it was the military that planted the seeds of national
disintegration and disharmony which the country is currently facing.
He said that the political, socio-economic crisis occasioned
by agitation for resource control by the Niger Deltans, secession agitation by
some groups in South-East, alleged marginalization by the South-East and South-
South and call for restructuring by Yoruba was as a result of military
incursion into political space of the country for about thirty years.
Afe Babalola noted that these agitation from various
quarters arise due to the fact that the military bequeathed faulty
constitutions on the country.
He stated these in his paper, entitled, “Nigeria in search
of a Nation” presented at the recently held Yoruba Summit christened “Ibadan
Declaration” titled “Yoruba Standpoint on Restructuring” a copy of which was
obtained by DAILY POST on Friday in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital.
Babalola said, “It is therefore correct to state that the
military and their civilian apologists either by design or by accident have
planted in the constitution the seeds of national disintegration and
disharmony.
“The allegations of marginalisation and the clamour for
confederation constitute the harvest of the constitution fashioned ny the
military.
“The emergence of the military on the political scene and
their uneventful stay for about thirty years dealt a fatal blow to the existing
federal structure in Nigeria.
Babalola, however, advised in his paper that the need to go
back to the 1960 Independence and 1963 Republic constitutions can never be over
emphasised with the current situation in the country.
He said the call to return to the glorious days of Independence
and Republic constitutions was necessary because none of the constitutions
fashioned out by the military reflected the wishes of the people.
“None of the constitution fashioned out by the military
reflects the ideas which ideas which informed the making of 1954, 1960 and 1963
constitutions. What the military did was to by that constitution weaken the
component states, destroy or impair their power to develop and sustain
themselves.
“We are all witnessing to the misrule and unbridled
brigandage of decades of misrule by the military”.
“Our country’s history is replete with the inconvertible
fact that Nigeria witnessed her greatest and fastest economic, political,
social and educational development during self government and the first
republic.
“Each of the regions was fairly autonomous and could
legislate over a number of items which have today been taken over by the
Federal Government.
“It was during this period that each region began its own
regional developmental efforts. There were mutual healthy rivalries to complete
for development.”
By Daramola Adebayo
