Why Nigeria is due for new Constitution – Anglican Primate

Archbishop Henry Ndakuba, the Primate of the Church of Nigeria, Anglican Communion, has said Nigeria is due for a new Constitution, which he stressed should be made by the sovereign assembly of the people of the nation to replace the current 1999 Constitution as amended.

NaijaOnPoint.com.ng (NOP) reports Archbishop Ndakuba, who said this on Thursday, while inaugurating a standing committee meeting of the Church, stressed the new Constitution, he urged should be people-oriented, is required to address the nagging issues bedevilling the country.

Ndakuba said the National Assembly (NASS) had done well with the several constitutional amendments, saying that Nigeria was due for a new Constitution, which will take into consideration the concerns already expressed in the Sovereign National Conferences.

The cleric said that the various calls for the restructuring of Nigeria should be considered as well, as shying away from doing it was not helping the nation.

No government can stop people who are hungry from protesting – Ndukuba

Speaking further, Archbishop Ndakuba said the recent #EndBadGovernance protest was a clear indication that the people were tired of failed promises by government to stem the rising cost of living, which had imposed severe hardship on most households in the country.

Ndakuba said that the protest was a clarion call to governments at all levels, especially at the Federal Government, to heed the cry of the people.  According to him, government should not victimise anyone, as no government can legislate or stop people who are hungry from protesting.

He said that the epileptic power supply, in spite of the privatisation of the power sector and tariff reviews, the astronomical rise in the cost of petroleum products had made life much more difficult.

Primate seeks state of emergency on social welfare

Archbishop Ndakuba also on Thursday called for a state of emergency on social welfare in the country while urging the National Assembly to criminalise delay in pension payment. He said that there was urgent need for special programmes for the most vulnerable segments of the society, particularly, the unemployed and the aged.

The cleric decried the continuous verification of pensioners and the none observance of the provision of the Constitution that mandated review of pension, every five years.  He commended President Bola Tinubu and all Nigerian workers on the signing into law of the N70,000 new minimum wage.

Ndakuba, however, called on the government to extend the scheme to cover pensioners, many of whom are living on starvation wages.

“We urge the National Assembly to criminalise the non-payment of pensions to entitled persons as and when due. Attention should also be paid to the most vulnerable segments of the society, particularly, the unemployed, the aged, young unemployed or skilled male and female adults.

“The latter is the engine room of every society. There is therefore, an urgent need for an articulation of appropriate policy and programmes to cater for this often-forgotten segment of the population or imperil the future of the country.

“When you see the numbers on our streets, you will agree that the need is urgent. A declaration of emergency in social welfare in Nigeria may not be out of place,” he said.

The cleric urged the Federal Government to prioritise the interest of Nigerians in the ongoing engagements between Dangote Refinery and NNPCL.

Ndakuba commended the Supreme Court’s pronouncement on Local Government Autonomy, saying that there would be a multiplier effect in education, health, and food security across the all LGAs of the nation.

He said that it should also be able to arrest the rural-urban migration, calling for a whole-society approach in monitoring its implementation, as the project should not be left in the hands of politicians alone.