A group, the National Civil Society Council of Nigeria (NCSCN), has appealed to President Bola Tinubu to appoint the next Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) marshal from the country’s southeastern part to ensure balance.
At a press conference in Abuja yesterday, the NCSCN executive secretary, Dr. Raymond Edoh, appealed to President Bola Tinubu to consider and act on the request with goodwill.
According to him, the earnest hope of the civil society community is that the “Renewed Hope” administration of President Tinubu, which has been divinely orchestrated into power, will strive to correct the ills of our past and repair the broken walls of our national unity and integration.
He said Tinubu should also take advantage of Mr. Dauda Ali Biu’s retirement as corps marshal of the FRSC to scout for the most competent and qualified personnel or officers in the corps from the Southeast to balance the equation of our beloved country.
“It is against the foregoing arguments and considerations that we passionately appeal to His Excellency, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, to reconsider magnanimously the fate of the South East Zone in the appointment of the Corps Marshal of the FRSC in favour of any qualified personnel from the South East Zone.
“The NCSCN is not naïve to the fact that politically speaking, the zone may not have merited such kindness from the present Administration.
“However, fully aware of President Tinubu’s highly nationalistic and patriotic heart, we passionately appeal to His Excellency to use this as a show of his large and accommodating heart to balance and set the nation on a new and sustainable trajectory of national integration and development,” he said.
NCSN director of media, Alhaji Gambo Jagindi, alleged that available and verifiable records show clearly that the configuration of the nation’s security and para-military architectures does not properly reflect and represent the federal character principle of the nation.
“We may all recall that the Federal Character Principle in Nigeria was borne out of the need to ensure evenness in spreading government appointments to promote inclusion, representation, a sense of belonging, and balance in the polity,” he said.
Also , Yemi Success, director of mobilisation, said, “The underlying philosophy of the federal character principle is providing equality of access in public service representation to curb dominance by one or a few sections.
“The principle was first introduced into the Constitution in 1979 for public offices and federal institutions to reflect Nigeria’s diversities.”
