The chairman,
13 man National,
Diaalogue/Conference
Committee
Abuja
Nigeria.
Distinguished Members,
The composition of your assignment. I modify it in this: Dr. Femi Okurounmu is Our Lord and Savour Jesus Christ I this committee and the rest of you (12) are the disciples of Dr. Okuronumu. And don’t forget, at the end of your report to Mr. President whether you like it or not there must be Judas-is-cariot among you. But I will say, let that Judas-is-cariot ambition do not overpowers your collective assignment of your report to Mr. President as I look at your track records being an unquestionable characters. The world may be looking upon all to fulfill your mission duty without personal agrandisement against collective interests of our nation for your names to enter into the golden history book and not into the bad book because the present day majority Nigerians are corrupt and the world has reconed them in that regard.
Therefore Dr. Okurounmu, let our Lord and Saviour helps you as the chairman in this onerous task together with your committee members to excel. I pray in Jesus Christ name. Amen
Before 1914 and the emergence of the colonial masters, there was no name called Nigeria. The north is distinct on its own the south is also distinct on its own too.
And each of these areas were controlled by their leaders they either elected or appointed to rule them against internal and external aggressions.
The first colonial masters that arrived the south of this country were the Portuguese through Vasco da Gama during the slave trade period and later taken over by the British and the French nationals and it was called the “slave coast”. This is the coastal region of Western Africa extending westwards from the mouths of the Niger along the Bight of Benin to Ghana named for its former trades in slaves.
Then in 1914, a British colonialist called Sir. Lord Lugard came and amalgamated against barriers for the British trades in the south and the north for their easy movements and benefits and it was before called the protectorates.
HISTORY
History tells us that Nigeria has over 250,000 languages. I, as a student of History, my Teacher told us in the school on the amalgamation of the North and the South by Sir Lord Lugard of the blessed memory. But he did not make us to know neither in my reading I have come across who and who signed the amalgamation terms of agreement between the North and the South. I have also never come across in my history reading and writings to know and state that so, so, so and so persons signed for and on their behalf for the North and the South respectively. And to this end, in one of my articles I wrote, I made it public to those who know the signatories of this amalgamation between the North and the South to inform me and up till this day, it was not made open to me or to the public from those Professors of History.
The question therefore is, where do we start to debate in the proposed dialogue/conference proper? Would it be made know by this committee or at a subsequent date before the said dialogue/conference proper takes off or will it be in the said dialogue/conference hail debate? This is one thing this distinguished committee shall educate the public before the D Day comes.
3. TIMEOUT
Through this so called amalgamation by our former colonial masters interests to suit them as Nigeria came onboard, the Southerners in particular have suffered tremendously the lost of lives and properties in the hands of our Northern brothers if our national anthems bath in the past and present is all about our unity as a country and why will it be so? Therefore, and since we are hoping to celebrate our so called centenary next year, the federal authority should hold on for whatever committee that had been put in place until this committee reports are made available to Mr. President, and after the proposed dialogue/conference is over whether Nigeria shall be one or may split to a multiple entity like the former Soviet Union in the 90s of the last century. This is to ensure against its waste in its activities on stress and lost of tax-payers money as well as man-hour lost on its programme.
4. CONCLUSION:
The proposed dialogue/conference is a national issue to be cut across Nigerians and not on the basis of political parties or National Assembly matters because events have overtaken these dimensions too long which the National Assembly don’t think of it for one day. I am a stake holder in Rivers State and the voice of the less privileged members of our society. This distinguished committee should please not fail to mention my name to Mr. President as 1 have clocked 74 Years, an elder statesman and a politician known across the state for 54 Years and once an elected member of the old Degema Local Government Council of cabinet rank and later a pioneer Deputy Chairman, Asarsi-Toru Local Government council on 3rd May, 1989 all in Rivers State.
And by 11th February, 2013, 1 have been telling Mr. President what he should do in our polity for the first time of our History a Niger Delta man become president of this country. This is made known in my first open letter to Him as herewith attach a copy to buttress this special area stated. However, I thank Mr. President in his Broadcast to the Nation on our 53 Independence anniversary who appointed you for this onerous task: I also used this medium to advise Mr. President to call back his Boy, Governor Amaechi of Rivers State into the Love Boat of the Niger Delta against brickering each other for love and harmony with one voice for the benefits of the governance and posterity yet to come to know our footprints as an entity of the Niger Delta projects in particular and Nigeria as a whole in general were our illustrious Sons and daughters fought for it before the civil war and during the civil war and post civil war era. Today, Boko Haram in parts of the North are operating unwarranted offensive dismemberment of the cooperate existence of Nigeria which assignment Mr. President asked you to do what Nigeria needs.
The word dialogue as the contemporary English dictionary explains: is a discussion between two groups, countries etc and conference is a large formal meeting where a lot of people discuss important matters such as business, politics etc:
AND
In the new International Webster’s comprehensive dictionary of the English Language encyclopedic edition explains on DIALOGUE: A conversation in which two or more take part (2) A literary work in which two or more characters are represented as conversation. (3) An exchange of opinions or idea: free interchange: of different points of view:
WHILE
Conference: A formal meeting for counsel or discussion: an official council, as of two branches of a legislature. (2) Conversation, discourse.
As the 2 dictionaries explain above, I consider the explanation of New International Webster’s Comprehensive Dictionary of the English Language Encyclopedic edition on DIALOGUE as the best option of your committee assignment of our country-Nigeria; while on CONFERENCE, I consider the explanation of the contemporary English Dictionary being the best option of your committee assignment too to our country-Nigeria as follows:
(A) DIALOGUE shall be separated from CONFERENCE;
(B) DIALOGUE centres between the North and the South or vis-á-vis, as the Dictionary explains are the 2 Groups for the REFERENDOM (PLEBISCITE) whether to stay together or be separated as multiple countries;
(C) The proposed REFERENDOM (PLEBISCITE), if the Southern Regions majority votes in favour of separation, then there will be no way Nigeria shall be called a component entity again i.e the DIALOGUE proper; Note: “This is not to be debated in the so called National Assembly session again because event has already overtaken it by the referendom so to be.”
WHILE TOO
(d) The NATIONAL CONFERENCE we are now talking is for grassroot representatives who shall only be for the composition of the NEW NATIONS constitutions whether the Regions shall be a New Nations or STATES that may like to stand on its own shall indicate so with its New Name without the interference by this New National conference members but for records only by the conference, and those states that cannot stand on its own can bargain with like states on a draft constitution to work out its details which may be duly acceptable by parties against the future for what we are passing through in this country by our former colonial masters after they have left, these greedy, suppressing, victimizing, indiscipline, nepotism and irresponsible and self centred politians we presently have in this country,
(e) And my suggestion for the proposed conference, this is to work out only the details after the Referendom (Plebiscite) for each LGA in the federation shall be represented 2 persons at the grassroot for each LGA, and there shall be no representative(s) from political parties in this regard but the one to be inaugurated in this regard shall be mentioned below for the purpose;
(f) The National Assembly has failed the nation so there shall be no ratification of its contents at the National Assembly and the State Houses of Assembly as clamouring in some quarters;
(g) The proposed conference representatives therefore are as follows;
(i) 774 LGAsx2persons = 1548 persons
(ii) 36 State Governors/Abuja being the true representatives of the people = 37 persons
(iii) 36 state Speakers and their Deputies with Abuja
= 74 persons
(iv) Each State Traditional Council Shall be
3 persons, one from each of the Senatorial Zone and one from Abuja = 328persons
(v) While the President shall nominate 6 persons of Senior Advocates (SAN) in each of the Regions: one
of them chairman and another secretary of the conference while the rest 4todirecttheconference = 6 persons
TOTAL = 1993 persons
Nigeria with a population of 160m people going to be represented by the above figure on such a crucial matter of the Nation, it is not too big by reducing it as some people may criticize.
The National Assembly duty is to approve the Act only that shall be sent by Mr. President after your committee report for a referendom to Mr. President’s ascent.
Let us not forget so soon the split of the Soviet Union in the 90s (nightees) and the Sudan experience of 10 years bloody civil war which finally gave the people of Dafor a Referendum by the United Nations (UN) and since we have experienced 30 months of civil war in the past and the way the Boko Haram are going, if the South gets up and resist their nefarious activities, there shall be a more serious civil war more bloody that of the Sudan experience.
I therefore conclude to say, let the people go to the Referendom (Plebiscite) first without a looser for peace to reign supreme as we are about to clock 100 years of our unknown amalgamation without its details by the people of this country. And let all Nigerians rise up to this challenge for a lasting peace in our polity, and finally, let said conference at your conclusion report, recommend for it to hold in either Lagos or Port Harcourt and not in Abuja for some significant reasons.
Chief Y. O. Georgewill,
The peoples’ Voice,
Rivers State,
South South Region.
