…….Bode George Tells Tinubu
By Ayo Jones
Former Deputy National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Chief Olabode George, yesterday urged the Bola Tinubu administration to peg a litre of petrol at N300 from December 15 until January 2025 ending as one of the ways of easing the pains of Nigerians during the yuletide period .
Fuel currently sells between N1,040 and N1,100 per litre across the country depending on the location.
George who made the appeal at an interactive session with selected journalists in Lagos yesterday said the move will give Nigerians a temporary relief from the current economic pains. He emphasized that a decrease in fuel prices would lower the cost of food items, allowing Nigerians to celebrate Christmas in a joyful atmosphere, filled with prayers for the President and the country during the holiday season.
To bridge the funding gap , the PDP Chieftain suggested that government can do this by exploring funding options from philanthropists .
“Doing this, you would be sending a message of happiness to every home during this Christmas and New Year. This is a challenge I have thrown to him and I know he can do it,” the PDP leader said.
George commended the conduct of the recent Ghana Presidential election, stating that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC can take a cue from it.
“Ghana should be a wake up call to Nigeria. The issues are not tribal, not religious or mundane things but they are real things that affect the lives of the people. They needed a selfless, committed individual that is loyal to the people and they got it,” he said.
He argued that votes results should be transmitted from the poling units to the server straight and make it impossible for intermediaries to interfere with the results, waste time and confuse everybody. He called for a good training for adhoc staff and creation of whistleblowers to alert people to any possible ugly development. He also insisted that the Presidency should not be the one to appoint the chairman of the commission.
Bode George also spoke on the judiciary, saying given the rottenness in the system, there ought to be serious repercussions and punishment for any errant judicial officer .
He also called for the implementation of the 2014 National Constitution Conference stressing that the move would frontally address Nigeria’s problems .
“Our Constitution is a joke. It is absolutely nonsensical because there’s only one man sitting at the top there and is responsible for everything. What we have is a military constitution — one boss. It is not democratic. What is the business of the Federal Government with Local Governments. In the US, the JFK Airport in New York is controlled by the Mayor of New York.
“What we need is a total decentralization and devolution of power, not in the form of the regions as we had in those days though; but today we have states. We have zones. States should be allowed to take their destinies in their hands,” he stated.