Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai has joined his voice with national analysts calling for devolution of power between the Federal Government and 36 states in the country.
The governor who was one of the speakers in a monitored radio program called ‘Radio Now’s Urgent Conversation’ yesterday stressed that state police and devolution of the judiciary is important to save Nigeria from the brink of collapse.
According to El-rufai: “I will dwell on three of the issues that I believe are critical to the immediate needs of the country to pull back from the brink. “The first, it is imperative for Federal, state, and community policing.
We do not have enough police. One centralised police for the country just has not worked. “Secondly, we must amend the constitution and relevant laws to ensure control of oil and gas, mines, and minerals in the states that already have control over land under the land use Act with royalties and taxes payable to the Federal Government and the Federation Account “Number three, we must rectify the anomaly of a Federation that has a more or less unitary judiciary,” the governor explained.
Also read: Ekiti Govt relaxes curfew, restrictions, orders schools to reopen Monday While stressing his earlier points highlighted, the governor said, “My first recommendation is to implement the three key devolution proposals that I mentioned above. Give us state police now, vest all minerals in the state now, and decentralise our judiciary now, not tomorrow, not later.”
El-Rufai also stressed that banditry is a national problem and it is the responsibility of relevant stakeholders to calm nerves through their utterances and not fan the embers of division.
“It is an understatement to say that Nigeria is in one of its most difficult moments. The genuine fears for their lives and property felt by many citizens across the country need to be assuaged. All responsible persons must show compassion to our compatriots that have been affected while calming nerves.
“Banditry is a national problem, with victims from all parts of the country, and we should address it with a common resolve,” El-Rufai said. According to the governor, the country requires elite consensus to take the poison out of identity politics.
In the same vein, Ekiti State governor, Kayode Fayemi who joined the program via zoom, said: “I concur with virtually everything that my brother (Governor Nasir El-rufai) has put forward. Conflict is part of human existence and Nigeria has experienced his own circle of it since independence.
However, the spate of it in the last two years should certainly be a major cause of concern for not just the government, citizens, stakeholders as well as external interests who desire the best for our country…. “We are right to be impatient, but must never let the perfect become the enemy of the good, there is some good taking place, but we need to pull everything together for our country to be what it’s meant to be.
“What has led to ethnic profiling is that we have not done enough to bring to book those that were caught for crime in our country and we must do everything in our power to do more in bringing to book these criminals”.
Among the panellists are Governor Nasir El-rufai, governor Kayode Fayemi, Senator Eyinnaya Abaribe, Dele Ologede, Sam Adeyemi among others.
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