Right groups disown Ohanaeze’s memorandum on single term

ENUGU—THE Coalition of Human Right and Prodemocracy Activists in South East geopolitical zone of the country, Tuesday dissociated itself from what it described as the “unpopular campaign” by the apex Igbo socio-cultural organization, Ohanaeze Ndigbo for tenure elongation.

The group said Ohanaeze’s endorsement of a single term of six years for the president and governors, coming in the face of the current instability in the country, was diversionary and very insincere.

Ohanaeze had in a memorandum dated June 28, 2012 and submitted to the National Assembly Committee on Constitutional Review on behalf of the Igbo Speaking people of Nigeria, called for the adoption of a six-year single tenure for the president and governors.

It insisted that “apart from stopping the inevitable distraction from the time and attention of the office holder in the quest for a second term, a single tenure eliminates the crucial and unfair advantage enjoyed by an incumbent with access to vast official, which are not available to his or her co-contestants in the conduct of electoral campaigns.”

But reacting to Ohanaeze’s  position in a statement signed by its Coordinator, Chief Chris Echukwu, the coalition noted that the call for six-year tenure tantamount to tenure elongation which is “most unfortunate.”

“This position is diversionary and very insincere with due consideration to the issues of instability at the moment.  Whereas the current situation calls for sober reflection on the state and structure of the nation, it is curious that Ohanaeze or any group for that matter, instead of finding lasting solution to the structural imbalance and the security dilemma of the country will start pursuing shadow by campaigning for tenure elongation as if to say that it is a very important issue for now that is capable of solving the current problems of the country,” the group stated.

“To be nearer home”, it continued, “we don’t see how this solves the problem with the marginalization of the Igbos.  We have been consistent with the demand for Sovereign National Conference in the first instance and the restructuring of the country in order to have meaningful and stable power devolution and not power rotation and all sorts of hackneyed self serving tenure elongation.”

“What do we stand to gain as Ndigbo with six-year tenure and all these insincere arrangements that have skewed out the Igbos in the scheme of affairs?   We warn that no group of people should make any pronouncement whatsoever for Ndigbo without due considerations of the people,” the coalition added.

Declaring that the position submitted by Ohanaeze was not the stand of Ndigbo in any form, the Human Right and Prodemocracy group said that Ndigbo had not changed their stand and focus from the time they started fighting for independence.

Drawing the attention of the Constitution Review Committee to “A Memorandum on Behalf of the Igbo-Speaking people of Nigeria submitted to the National Constitutional Conference Commission (NCCC) dated Tuesday, February 8, 1994”, the coalition pointed out that the issues canvassed in that document remained the position of Ndigbo.

“It will be necessary for Ohanaeze fellows and entire Nigeria to take that document to observe that the 1994 Memorandum Ndigbo submitted was not just done on mere interest, but National and International desire,” the group stated.

source: vanguard news