Economic Crisis: Obasanjo Urges Devolution Of Power, Resources To States

A former Nigerian President, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, has urged for the devolution of power and resources from the federal government to state and local governments to better manage available resources and alleviate the ongoing economic crisis.

Obasanjo attributed the crisis to a lack of productivity among Nigerians and mismanagement of resources.

By decentralizing power and resources, he believes that competition at the central level will decrease, allowing for more effective resource management at the local level.

Obasanjo, who was represented by a former Governor of Niger State, Dr Babangida Aliyu, spoke as a guest of honour at the public presentation of the book “Court and Politics,” authored by Dr. Umar Ardo. The book chronicled the first-hand experience of the author in politics and the courts.

According to him, “24 years of practising the presidential system is not enough. The important thing is to devolve power and resources to the states and certain jobs from the federal to state and local governments.”

In his remarks, the Chairman of the committee for the book launch, Alhaji Shehu Musa Gabam, said that Nigeria would continue to have challenges in politics and the electoral process as long as courts continue to base their judgements on technicalities rather than facts of the issues.

Gabam who is also the National Chairman of the Social Democratic Party SDP, noted that part of what brought Nigeria to where it is today is that “we have a body, the Independent National Electoral Commission, empowered by the law to conduct elections, and another arm of government, the Judiciary (Court), that decides on who is elected.”

He urged Nigerians to be united and courageous in telling the authorities to do the right thing, adding that being cowards was not the solution.