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By Lukman Olabiyi
Primate of Church of the Lord Worldwide (Aladura), the Most Rev. Rufus Okikiola Ositelu has reiterated the need for Nigeria to embrace good governance and become a true fiscal federation where regions/zones will compete to excel, and driven by a sense of patriotism and shared values of truthfulness, honesty, duty-conscious and others.
Ositelu spoke at an event marking his 70th birthday anniversary in Lagos. The theme of the event was “A nation at war with herself: The panacea for genuine peace.”
Said he: “We cannot continue to live in denial. Nigeria is a plural society with multiple ethnicities, languages and religions, and should be run in accordance with the basic tenets of federalism.
“Anything to the contrary is absurd and a waste of time; and sows the seed of mutual distrust and anarchy. The Nigerian state today appears to be an aberration within the universal understanding of the principle and practice of federalism.
“What we need is unity in diversity and a new constitution, which is reflective of our diversity and federal in nature. Fiscal federalism is the answer to most of the woes confronting Nigeria.”
He described the National Assembly’s attempt to review the Constitution as “mere cosmetic tinkering with the present corrupt system. The expectation of the majority of Nigerians is that the on-going review of the Constitution would avail the country the opportunity to make a fundamental statement on restructuring and restoration of the federal principle, and thus redefine the interrelationship between the component units to make the political system work more efficiently and effectively.”
