By Chidinma Uchechukwumgemezu

Ohanaeze Ndigbo, apex Igbo socio-cultural organisation, says there is no future for Nigeria except the country is restructured.

Ohanaeze Ndigbo has expressed profound joy at Northern Nigeria’s acceptance to restructure the country in mode of the Independence Constitution.

President General of the parent Igbo body, Chief Nnia Nwodo made the expression while reacting to an interview granted to Vanguard by Elder statesman and former Vice-Chancellor of Ahmadu Bello University, Prof. Ango Abdullahi.

Abdullahi had in the interview stated that Nigeria was better off with the federating regions that were the political structure of the country before the military incursion in politics by 1966.

In the interview, Abdullahi had said “Let us go back to the concept of true federalism which I believe in but which was destroyed – the concept of true federalism which was working for us and should have worked for us for a long time was in 1960 and this was disrupted in 1966. That moved us away from federalism to a unitary system of government under a military regime. That was the beginning of all the problems that we are having today.”

In his reaction to Abdullahi, the out-going President General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Nwodo, said “At last reason and patriotism is beginning to prevail! I congratulate the elder statesman for harkening to reason. We are on the brink of disaster if we do not restructure! Every patriotic Nigerian must harken to this call now!”

Similarly, the acting Secretary-General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Uche Achi-Okoaga said that it was apt to say that restructuring is long overdue in Nigeria and amounted to overemphasis.

“Restructuring does not connote to turn Nigeria inside-out. It has to do with shifting from frivolities, analogous and straightjacket institutions, and governance structure and to Identify with digital, enterprising, and professing embellishments of the developed climes.

“Insecurity, for instance, look at the number of soldiers we are losing to Boko haram, bandits, or insurgents (as you may have it). This is still in the same era where drones are now used to detect and flush out criminals in their hideouts. If there is any improvement in the security architecture Nigerians have not heard or seen and we just cannot continue to do things the same way and expect different results.

“In the area of elections, we should move away from incidences of ballot box snatching and infer cases and enter the era where Nigerians can open their laptops or handphones to vote for candidates of their choice even their places of work or business while the government would not need to shut everything and everywhere for election.

“To some people, when they hear restructuring they think it is to change the name North to Nothing or South to Something. I liken the scenario to an instance. Thus, when a building is dilapidated you reinforce or strengthen it but if the dilapidation is beyond repair you pull it down to avert impending calamities.

“It is the case with Nigeria, it requires to be reinforced or strengthened in all ramifications – economically, politically, legally, socially, etc and where necessary pull down completely to rebuild.

“I urge any other person, groups, or segments still skeptical about restructuring to embrace the raging and intractable wave of restructuring in order to save Nigeria from total political disintegration.

“I call on the Federal Government to quicken the steps towards restructuring before the 2023 general elections,” Achi-Okoaga said.

Today.ng