‘Let’s end Nigeria and stop deceiving ourselves…’

…If they say the Presidency should not come to the South in 2023

 

BY OUR EDITOR

The governorship candidate of African Democratic Party (ADP) in the 2019 gubernatorial election in Lagos State, Mr Babatunde Gbadamosi, has advocated for the breaking of Nigeria’s unity should the North continue to insist on retaining the Presidency in 2023.

Gbadamosi, in an interview with THE PUNCH, also said it was unfair that the Igbo have been shut out from the office of the President of Nigeria.

He said it was not feasible for the North to retain power in 2023 adding that he disagreed with those that said the unity of Nigeria was not negotiable.

“It is not. If they insist then let us break Nigeria. Let each region go their separate ways. It is either that, or we have a loose confederation with an option to secede, depending on the available option upon the start of the confederation.

“I disagree with those that say the unity of Nigeria is not negotiable because there is nothing in this world that is created by humans that is not negotiable. It is only the law of God that is not negotiable.

“Are they saying the unity of Nigeria is some kind of gods that we must worship? If the concept of Nigeria is not serving the people that live in that space then let’s break it and let each person go and paddle their own canoe.

“Those that are saying if we break up some of us would go hungry let us go hungry because it is the hunger that made Singapore what it is today. Singapore has zero oil and yet they have three of the biggest refineries in the world.

“We have this problem of being unified with people who have no ambition. If Nigeria is not working, just like the Soviet realised that the USSR was not working and they broke up and allowed each country to go and do their own thing and are making huge technological advances, we should do that. It is not about size for those that keep arguing that we are better when we are bigger,” an apparently irritated Gbadamosi said.

READ: 2023: What if the Igbo want to be president?

On the debate as to which zone of the country should produce the president in 2023 and the mostly northern opposition to the choice of the Igbo, the former ADP gubernatorial candidate said if truly Nigerians believe in the slogan, ‘One Nigeria’, then every zone must be given a chance at the Presidency.

“I think it is unfair that the Igbo people have been shut out from the office of the President of Nigeria for as long as Nigeria has existed. I think it is grossly unfair and it is deliberate.

“I think it is also to the detriment of our unity if indeed we want to remain a united country, then we need to give everybody a chance because if we are not ready to do that, we need to break up and everybody should go to their separate ways.

“We say we are one united country; everybody must be given a chance to steer us in the direction they think would make a place for everybody. The northerners have had their chance from different parts of that region (North-Central, North-East, and North-West),” he rationalised.

Gbadamosi also spoke about the 1999 Constitution and the secularity of Nigeria while chiding the Chief Justice, Tanko Muhammad, for taking a biased position in favour of Sharia Law.

He said: “You say we are a secular state and yet the word Sharia appears in the Constitution uncountable number of times, but our country is not a theocracy. Who are we playing with? Is it some kind of joke of some people playing with our intelligence?

“We also have a Chief Justice of Nigeria that has made some statements that are triumphal like a conquering invader that they are more in number and can change the laws. So, what kind of justice can the Christians receive from his court?

“Some issues need to be addressed – let us rewrite the constitution so that the one that was written in 1999 can go out of the window. You cannot apply something that we did not approve of all of us. Even in countries where they have one major religion like the United Arab Emirates, for instance, they are fighting hard to de-emphasise religion in matters of the state. These are countries that want to make progress.

“We need to wake up to decide whether we want to live together or live apart.  If they say the Presidency should not come to the South in 2023, then let us end Nigeria and stop deceiving ourselves.”