Former Nigeria Head of State, Ibrahim Badamosi Babangida on Monday said that he does not want Nigeria to break up but at the same time said that the time has come for the country to be restructured.
General Babangida made his position known in his Eid-el-Fitri message to Nigerians where he condemned the rising spate of hate speeches and divisive comments from different groups across the country.
The former military President said the fact that the country has not realised its potentials as a great nation was not enough reason for people to want to demolish its foundation but noted that restructuring can no longer be wished away.
“Restructuring has become a national appeal as we speak, whose time has come. I will strongly advocate for devolution of powers to the extent that more responsibilities be given to the states while the federal government is vested with the responsibility to oversee our foreign policy, defense, and economy.
“Even the idea of having federal roads in towns and cities has become outdated and urgently needs revisiting. That means we need to tinker with our Constitution to accommodate new thoughts that will strengthen our nationality,” he stated.
Recalling his experience during the civil war, IBB asked those beating the drum for secession to perish the thought.
“I need hardly say I am very worried by the current ongoing altercations and vituperations of hate across the country by individuals, well-known leaders, religious leaders, group of persons and organisations,” he said.
“Nigeria, my dear country, is not a stranger to crisis, nor is she immune to it. In a profound sense, she can be said to have been created out of crisis, a nation state that will continue to strive to subdue and transcend crises. In over a century of its formalised colonial architecture, Nigeria has grown and made remarkable progress in the midst of crises,” he said.
“The most tragic and horrendous episode in Nigeria’s history has been the 30 months civil war of July 1967 to January 1970, in which many of our compatriots lost their lives. Indeed, many others also suffered terrible injuries of human and material dimensions.
“So, who really wants to go through the depth and dimensions of another civil war in Nigeria again? Who does not know that that civil war was preceded and started by intolerance and a series of hate pronouncements, hate speeches, hate conducts and actions that were inflicted upon one another by the citizens?
“Today, with a deep sense of nostalgia, I still carry within my body the pains of injury from the civil war: there is nothing romantic about war; in any form, war is bad, condemnable and must be avoided.
“Personally, I reject the proceedings of hate and their dissemination and urge my fellow citizens to strongly condemn the scourge and orgy of the current crisis which, in my view, is an outcome of vengeful appetites within the multiple contexts of our democratic governance and the profound inequalities that have distorted our social relations.”
He also voiced support for the adoption of state policing, saying that the initial fears that state governors will misuse the officers and men of the state police have become moribund.