Don’t discard entire Confab report, Afenifere urges Buhari

 

THE Pan-Yoruba socio-cultural group, Afenifere weekend charged President Muhammadu Buhari to forget any misgiving he has about the 2014 national Confab report and be courageous to make use of those aspects that will take the country out of its present sorry state.

Former President, Dr Goodluck Jonathan handing over reports of the 2014 National Conference to President Muhammadu Buhari

Secretary-General of the group, Basorun Sehinde Arogbofa spoke with Weekend Vanguard in Akure.

Arogbofa speaking for the group said there was the need for the President to implement the report of the 2014 confab which, according to him, contains all the solutions to the challenges facing the nation

According to him, “It will be a disservice if the report is thrown into the dustbin by the President. Such a report cannot be wished away We will appeal to our President who is the father of the nation and the number one citizen to have a second look and summon the courage to pick up the report and make use of those aspects that can make the country move forward.

“President Buhari should be bold enough to look at the report. Nigerians and not spirits or ghosts took the decisions. Ego doesn’t pay where the welfare of the people is concerned. We are surprised that the President would take such a position that he has no intention to glance at the report or make use of it.

“Those who met for the confab are all Nigerians, important Nigerians for that matter that cut across age, positions and tribes. They met to discuss the problems of this country and came out with over 600 consensus resolutions. The reason adduced by the President for taking such a position “is not the best and it defiles logic. He was quoted to have said that money was spent on the 2014 Confab while the Universities in the country were on strike. The problems in our university was just one of the problems that the Confab addressed and proffered solutions to.

Speaking in the same vein the National Publicity Secretary of pan-Yoruba socio-political organisation, Afenifere, Mr. Yinka Odumakin said that the renewed calls for implementation of the Confab report is an indication that only the recommendation can resolve the current wave of self determination calls in Nigeria.

He also called on President Muhammadu Buhari not to ignore such calls in the light of the ongoing bombing of pipelines in the Niger Delta region by Niger Delta Avengers,NDA, and protests by the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB.

Odumakin, who said this in an exclusive chat with Vanguard urged the President to urgently set up a committee on the report or prevail on the National Assembly to commence work on the recommendations.

His words: ‘’The confab report is the manual that can save Nigeria now. He should take the report and give to the National Assembly or set up a committee to work on it, when that is done, he will see that he will have a country to govern. At the moment he does not have a country. The calls to restructure Nigeria is the only way out for Nigeria at the moment. On two fronts, the economy has collapsed.

‘’The centrifugal forces are now at play and Nigeria is on the verge of disintegration. In the last two weeks I have seen Biafran currency, I have seen the Middle Belt currency, IPOB is on the prowl, Avengers are avenging, herdsmen are on rampage and there is unease in the country. Now, the President of the country wanted to travel and some people threatened him not to travel, that’s not the kind of country we have to be proud of.

‘’If the President today picks the report of the national conference and ask the National Assembly to start working on it, I can assure you that all the people making those agitation will put down their weapons. But if he says that he want to continue with Nigeria the way it is now and think that he can use gun boat to save the country that is on the verge of collapse, he will not succeed.’’