Fmr Works and Housing Minister, Dr Emmanuel Nsam , urges Buhari to conduct a referendum

DR. Emmanuel Nsan former Minister of Works and Housing under Muhammadu Buhari when he was a military Head of State has declaed that Nigeria is in fact sitting on the keg of a gun powder which could explode any time now.

he stated this while condemning the decision by President Muhammadu Buhari not to study and implement the recommedations of the 2014 Confab report.

According to him, he said there is an urgent need to take a second look at the recommendation,

His words: ''Honestly, I totally believe that we take a second look at the recommendation of the last confab against the background of the moment. In this case, I suggest that a referendum can be given a chance for Nigerians to vote whether they want the report implemented or rejected. I am a believer in freedom of choice. If there is any section of the country that says patriotically “please let me go”, because of some reasons, they should be allowed to do so. Perhaps, those in power may consider, unity, economy, solidarity and military implication and survival of the new nation and can then say yes, let us go our separate places.
While speaking on the agitation for Biafra and other separatists movements , he minced no words in saying  that ''Agitations for separation have been experienced across the globe and not only in Nigeria.''

According to him, ''In Europe and the Middle East where brothers decided to go their separate ways for peace to reign. For instance, India and Pakistan; the defunct USSR and closer here we have Southern and Northern Sudan. The various components of USSR have long been separated into different republics. So, Nigeria’s situation cannot be different.''

Dr Nsan categorically said that those who want to secede from Nigeria to go or alternatively the call for restructuring of the country should be done as  a matter of urgency to calm frayed nerves calling for Nigeria's break up.

Continuing, the former Works and Housing Minister said, ''For me, we should either allow people who want to go to do so without much ado or alternatively we go for total restructuring of the country by returning to old federalism.  Total fiscal federalism. Why did we even part ways with it? It was because of military interregnum. Otherwise, we survived very well during the old Eastern, Western, Northern and then Mid-Western regions. Now that we have tried presidential system and it’s not working well, why can’t we restructure the country? The late Ogbemudia continued calling for it till his death. And if fiscal federalism is given a chance, the clamour for separation will reduce but outside that, Nigeria is sitting on a keg of gunpowder.''

On the activities of IPOB and other agitators, he said, ''And I can assure you that even if you talk of zonal structuring, every section of this country has the capacity to survive it. This again, brings me to the on-going agitations by various ethnic militias including Niger Delta militants, IPOB and others. All these are symptoms of the malaise.''

''These agitations are indicators that there is something wrong. Get the correct answer to the syndrome and the whole matter resolves itself. And in this instance, let us take a look at what has been recommended and then the solution may have been found. What Buhari ought to do now is to listen to Nigerians, it could be very beneficial.'', he added.