I am in an expansive mood today different from the melancholy of yesterday and the front page news in the Guardian is the reason why. The first is the banner headline, ' Senate asks Presidency to resubmit confab report' and the second 'We must defend terms of our constitution, south-east govs, leaders'.says Osibajo' with a sub, ' Meets Ohaneze, five
The basic gist is that the Senate unanimously requested the Executive to resubmit the Confab report because the earlier submission by Jonathan has elapsed so they can consider it. Oh what wonderful news. Oh what a patriotic act. Finally, we want to truly put Nigeria's interest above petty politics. Not everything recommended in the report is good like asking for more states to be created (but putting it shows they carried the sentimental yearnings of those they represented to the Confab). There are also many good things there like removal of immunity for governors and a compromise position on derivation to address the agitation for resource control.
The Senate should consider the report carefully and extract those elements that will address our current challenges and make them laws. I am glad that the Senate spoke with one voice. It is a good thing. Now that the CCT trial is no longer hanging over his neck, I hope and the Acting President can do what is necessary to really act in the interest of Nigeria and move this country forward.
In the other news highlighted above, the Acting President met with Igbo leaders (note that Nnamdi Kanu and IPOB were not invited) and told them that " burying our heads in the sand and expecting the storm to blow over on its own accord is not an option". He warned that war is easy to start but near impossible to end. The Acting President is in a marathon meeting with different sections of the country and interest groups in wide consultations to understand and address the issues.
There is hope for Nigeria but I must say this, one of the biggest problem with Nigeria is the Nigerian elite who allow primordial interest influence their perspective on issues of national interest. Oh what needless arguments we had on the lack of efficacy of the approach to the anti corruption war. That doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different outcome is the definition of madness; then the issue of the National Confab that was considered a waste of time even when Nigerians from all walks of life and ethnic backgrounds gathered at great expense to debate our way forward. A few days ago on a forum I still made the point that we sooner or later will revisit it and I was challenged but I didn't know it will be so soon.
A few Facebook relationships might have cooled on account of my principled stand on what I know to be right and being vocal in communicating them. I do not believe in compromise when I am clear on a direction to take. When you get to the Shagamu interchange, you are either going left to Abeokuta or right to Shagamu or straight to Ibadan. Any compromise will land you anywhere but where you actually need to be. That is the way I see things. I believe in the truth and will follow where it leads me. I have also always believed in time being the ultimate vindicator of the truth. I didn't make the truth, I just embraced the truth and I retold it. Today, I am glad that the truth about the path Nigeria must follow is clearer to all now.