Now that the evil genius has joined the debate albeit from the Northern part of the country, it is time for us to take a second look. Not necessarily because the Northern political elite hold the Level of power and public opinion nor because the issue is about them, but because they have refused to support the necessity of the Issue and even kept mum when their son was holding the stick .
They kept mum because the unitarist structures have always been to their benefit .
Weeks ago,former INEC chair,Atahiru Jega also joined the crowd of advocates of Restructuring by stressing that it is now more than ever before that there is an urgent need for it.
Since,Jega’s intervention, the issue has developed a life of its own.
But we must admit that agitations for Restructuring the country’s geographical and political structures actually came with the annulment of the freest election in our country in 1993.
It has become a malignant rumour pleasant as it is to to those who looked back and saw the injustice which though came in the 1966 introduction of Unitary but became more pronounced with the 1993 presidential election annulment.
Talk of Restructuring,its like you wanted to wage a war against North’s military and political elite who had since July 29,1966 after the counter coup led by Yakubu Gowon reversed the nation’s federalism, turned it into a military contraption with all its Unitarist content far more than the late Aguiyi Ironsi’s sudden destruction of the spirit of Federalism in May 1966 via his Unification decree.
Since the resurgence of the debate in post election annulment, It is curious that since then, any talk of going back to the status quo pre- 1966 is seen as a War against the North by the South .
It is quite apparent that the North by refusing calls to return the country back to pre- 1966 has had its more than fair share of governance.
The South felt the evil consequences of arrested development because of Unitarism which threw merit above board; parceled the country into a military dominating group;political ruling group and Economic dominating group.
Even not the advent of Olusegun Obasanjo,the first elected southern civilian President could give birth to Federalism.
He treated the clamour now led by his kinsmen in mainsrream Yoruba political elite with disdain.
This is obvious even when it is clear that the Federal character and Quota System his military regime introduced have killled the spirit of competition which First republic parliamentary System created for the country.
Now back to Babangida.
Why leadibg the debate now?
Why is it now that he is picking the gauntlet after his kinsman,Muhammadu Buhari left power and ran a government that in spirit and action was clannish and widened the country’s ethno- religious divide.
You ask yourself, why is it now that Jega- a University professor who presided over Independeent National Electoral Commission, INEC, now leading the vilified campaign.
It is also curious that there appears to be a link to advent of power shift to the South through a Bola Tinubu presidency and the resurgence of terrorism and armed banditry in the North.
Why are Northern leaders not crying wolf when Buhari, their son was in power?
It is also suspect why the introduction of Sharia as a state religion was carried out in year 2000 when Obasanjo, al Southerner came to power.
We need to look at the connection between the introduction of Sharia starting from Zamfara in 2000 and the clamour for Restructuring when another independent- minded Southerner mounted the saddle in 2023.
In retrospect ,the gradual erosion of our values occasioned by the economic decline commenced with Babangida’s regime when he and his military adventurers seized power in 1985.
It is also evident that the political class he created during his eight -year military presidency raised a new brand of political class which has destroyed our values and reversed by fifty Years the nation’s march to modernisation, civility and progress.
Yes, today Babangida has the right to clamour for Restructuring, if it will repair the damage the military and their civilian elite has inflicted but he must first convince and galvanize the political elite from the North who in a way see Restructuring as removing the feeding bottle from their mouth.
Is Babangida crying now because of apparent economic Restructuring which the Tinubu presidency portends to be embarking upon with the Restructuring of the economy and free market enterprise which rivals that of fuel subsidy, the floating of the naira and removal of monopoly of certain commending heights of the economy being enjoyed by today’s political and business elite created by Babangida and his fellow military and civilian ruling class.
Yes, the gap- toothed General often spoke about state Police, but the fact remains that without practicing fiscal federalism which will put more money in the pocket of state governments, the state Police apparatus can’t enjoy funding.
While it is not too late for the evil genius to campaign for devolution of powers to the states, such would not have a meaning until states control their mineral resources cornered over the years by the Federal government.
Babangida should also carry his campaign to the National Assembly which today has the prerogative to restructure the country but it is doubtful whether the ruling political elite will be ready to adopt the Senegalese example by reducing their numbers to reduce cost of governance.
It should be clear to IBB that today’s political class especially those in NASS are all there for monetary gains and should not be expected to tamper with the structure which has conferred them primitive accumulation of riches which laws governing their oversight functions have conferred them.
Except the citizenry across the country is adequately mobilized to rise up against the existing political ruling class, Restructuring the polity being clamoured by IBB may prove difficult since the NASS is the only legitimate means of changing the status quo.
If the North’s leading political and ruling class is sincere about Restructuring, the clamour should start with their sons and daughters in NASS who today hold the yam and the knife to remould Nigeria.