CSO Tasks Tinubu On Citizens’ Plight

The Movement for National Reformation (MNR), has urged President Bola Tinubu to quickly address the plight of Nigerians and reintroduce the 1963 constitution in addressing the nation’s economic problems.

Speaking at a press conference in Abuja yesterday, the convener, MNR, Jonathan Sunday Akus, their attention had been drawn to some outbursts from the 10-day nationwide protests and condemned the loss of lives, properties, livelihoods and strident clamour for a hostile and undemocratic change of the government.

He highlighted that the MNR stood in solidarity with the government and urged it to expedite action in bringing succour to the citizens without further delay.

Akus said, “It is pertinent to draw the attention of the federal govt to the fundamental objectives and directive principles of state policy that states that the security and welfare of the people shall be the primary purpose of government.  In this regard, we in MNR wish to hereby convey our condolences to families that lost their wards during the protest, and pray for the speedy recovery of those who sustained injuries.”

He said it was regrettable that a noble civic act of protest was infiltrated by forces hostile to the sovereignty and national interest of Nigeria to inflict sorrow on the nation and families as well as distract government from the main thrusts of the issues in contention. The 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended) emphasises the cardinal relevance of the security and welfare of the people [as] the primary purpose of government.

“We at MNR are of the view that the return to democratic civilian governance since 1999 has provided us a golden opportunity to re-examine the legitimacy of many constitutional issues, including the federal structure of Nigeria.

“This requires a reset and a paradigm shift away from the distorted federalism foisted on the Federal Republic of Nigeria by the heavy reliance on decrees during the long periods of military interregnums from 1966 to 1979 and 1983 to 1999.

“The broad agitation for the restructuring of Nigeria is anchored on the demand to restore and revive true federalism in Nigeria, as the document currently dubbed the 1999 Constitution is a unitary document that emerged from Military Decree 24 of 1999.

“It did not derive from a consensus of ‘We the People’ of Nigeria as the basis of a republican and democratic document, as was the case with the 1963 Constitution.

“This vitiates the document dubbed the 1999 Constitution of any iota of legitimacy. Since the 1963 Constitution was suspended and never abrogated, it remains the only legitimate federal constitution that our Founding Fathers bequeathed to the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

“Therefore, a restoration of the 1963 Constitution is the wish of all indigenous ethnic nationalities in Nigeria.

“This is a critical element of the manifestos of MNR, NADECO, PRONACO, and Nigeria’s indigenous ethnic nationalities.

“We agree with the youths that things are very bad, and it is quite understandable if they have no confidence in politicians and some elders. However, we believe that the effective strategy is to first address the structural problems.”

Reacting to the development, a statement jointly signed by National Vice Chairman HRH Dr. Samuel Adai Onimisi and National Secretary Dr. Philip Ideawor urged the youths to embrace dialogue.

“Consequently, we in MNR wish to urge President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to thoroughly investigate such unpatriotic acts and bring the culprits to justice.

“We urge citizens to embrace dialogue and conversation, as initiated by the national broadcasts of President Tinubu, regarding the policies of the Federal Government aimed at revamping the economy and restoring sociopolitical balance in Nigeria.”

Jonathan added that while MNR recognizes that some of President Tinubu’s policies have not sufficiently addressed the challenges faced by Nigerians, it strongly condemns proponents of regime change outside of the ballot box.

“We are also concerned about the silence of Federal Government Ministers, especially the Ministers of Defence, Police, and Information, in addressing the protesters to complement the President’s broadcast.”

While calling for a new constitution, Jonathan said that since its inception in December 1992, the MNR has been a strong advocate for restructuring Nigeria based on true federal tenets, where the federating units, as elsewhere in the comity of nations, play a significant role.