National conference: North plots to scuttle resolutions 3 BY IHEANACHO NWOSU AND FRED ITUA, ABUJA ON JULY 6, 2014 · POLITICS Barely two weeks to the end of the ongoing National Conference in Abuja, delegates have drawn the last battle line in a move that may make or mar successes recorded so far at the Confab. Already, delegates from core northern states, in the North-East and North-West geo-political zones, with the exception of Christian minorities, have allegedly resorted to blackmail in a bid to force the leadership of the Conference to rescind resolutions that have been reached so far by delegates. Many observers believe that the delegates from core northern states are crying foul because recent events at the conference had shoved them to a minority. For this reason they may have resolved to fight back to scuttle some resolutions reached. Recall that few days after the Conference committee on Political Restructuring and Forms of Government gave its nod to the creation of an additional state in the South-East, core northern delegates kicked against it. Acclaimed spokesman for the northern delegates at the Conference and former Publicity Secretary of the Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF), Anthony Sani, had described the agitation for an additional state as misplaced. Sani had argued that the agitation for the creation of an additional state for the South-East in order to ‘pacify’ the zone was faulty, as no one had wronged anyone. He had said: “When people say we should create states to pacify them (South-East), the impression one gets is that a wrong has been done. It is not so. “To create states, there are conditions that must be met. One, how homogeneous the population is the landmass and lastly, the viability. All these are there. “We have insisted, in the light of so many created states, and which have led to the underdevelopment of the country, because some are not viable, that is it will be politically incorrect to still create states. We have to address that. “I feel a bit worried when the South-East insists that on the basis of equality, there must be six states. When people say appease, it is as if they have been wronged. “South-West was a region and it has six states. The old Eastern Region has nine. The whole of the North, which is half or even more than half of the country, has just 19. You do not just create states like that”. On whether the northern delegates will shoot down the proposal before the final report of the Conference, Sani had affirmed that the north would move against it, stressing that it would amount to injustice against her people. “If it is on the basis of equality that they are making that suggestion, we are going to counteract it. Have they forgotten that injustice is not just when equals are treated unequally, but when unequals are treated equally?” he had posited. Unfortunately for core northern delegates, the Conference last Thursday overwhelmingly voted in support of an unconditional creation of additional state in the South-East. North’s strong opposition to the scrapping of local government administration from the constitution was thwarted by southern delegates, with massive support from delegates from North-Central and minority delegates from North-East and North-West. Plans by core northern delegates to maintain the status quo in other critical areas were massively defeated. Rotational presidency between the North and South, creation of state police, reversal of current national anthem, among others, which northern delegates were against got the overwhelming nod of the Conference. Angered by their apparent monumental loss, delegates drawn particularly from North-East and North-West condemned last Thursday’s adoption of key recommendations of the Conference committee report on Political Restructuring and Forms of Government. A statement purportedly signed by Kano State delegate, Dr Auwalu Yadudu on behalf of northern delegates and circulated to a section of the media, rejected the entire resolution of the Conference committee on Political Restructuring and Forms of Government. The delegates alleged that some of the controversial issues approved were lifted out of a document they claimed was not prepared by a Conference committee. The aggrieved delegates operating under the Northern Delegates Forum (NDF), agreed to reject the resolutions, insisting that they must be rescinded. The aggrieved delegates further accused the Conference leadership of bias, alleging that there was calculated plan to adopt all the recommendations made by the Chief Raymond Dokpesi group’s “Terms of Agreement by Six-Geopolitical Zones”, which many of the aggrieved delegates are members of. The statement reads in part: “The Northern Delegates Forum met July 3, 2014 and reviewed what transpired at plenary. After an exhaustive review, delegates adopted the following resolutions: “We note that decisions have been arrived at in total disregard of the Procedure Rules, 2014 in respect of issues such as removal of the list of local governments from the constitution, local government councils financing, adoption of State Constitution, a motion to adopt reference and State Constitution. “The chairman refused flatly to recognize several members who had indicated intention to raise a point of order in respect of the method of arriving at decisions by voice vote. This is contrary to Order XI which provides as follows: All decisions of the conference at plenary and committee stage shall be reached by consensus or in the absence of that, the chairman shall at his discretion adjourn proceedings to allow for further consultations. In the event of failure to reach a solution, it shall be decided by a vote of three quarter majority.
Posted on: Sun, 06 Jul 2014 12:40:49 +0000
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