Nigeria can’t make progress unless restructured – Adebanjo, Clark, Anya insist

The majority of Nigerians embrace the conclusions made at the 2014 National Conference, according to prominent nationalists who encouraged President Bola Ahmed Tinubu Wednesday to start implementing the report.

Chief Edwin Kiagbodo Clark’s autobiography, Brutally Frank, was read and presented at the MUSON Centre in Lagos, where they made their remarks, according to The Guardian.

 

 

Attendees of the conference who identified as nationalists vowed that the 600 or so suggestions made there would establish a genuine and competitive federalism, which would guarantee the nation’s continued advancement.

 

They claim that until political leaders muster the guts to reorganise the country, it would keep going in circles trying to solve its problems.

 

Among the dignitaries present at the event were: Prof. Bolaji Akinyemi, a former minister of external affairs; Lady Maiden Alex-Ibru, chairman and publisher of The Guardian; Chief Sam Amuka Pemu, publisher of Vanguard newspapers; Nike Akande, former minister of industry; Kofo Bucknor-Akerele, former deputy governor of Lagos state; Henry Odein Ajumogobia, former minister of petroleum resources and foreign affairs; Senator Musiliu Obanikoro, former minister of defence; and Dr. Dakuku Peterside.

 

 

The event’s chairman, Senator Anthony Adefuye, lauded Clark for his nation-building efforts in his opening remarks, saying that the 96-year-old was still going strong.

 

Nigeria will remember him for a long time. What I’m about to say is something that I hope you all remember. The national conference in 2014 was the brainchild of Chief Edwin Clark. He united all Nigerians so that we may live as one. At that national meeting, we all sat down and made some decisions. Nigeria would not be in its current position if those judgements had been implemented, he claimed.

 

“The book is a compendium of what Nigeria was and what we wish it to be,” said Chief Ayo Adebanjo, the day’s honorary father, who praised Clark as an unforgettable figure.

 

 

“At the 2014 national conference, I became closer to Clark,” he continued. Both of us were seated among the elderly. The contributions of these elderly individuals displayed wisdom, experience, and patriotism. For the younger audience, I have a word of caution: do not mess around with the 2014 national conference report.

 

Regardless of your feelings about it, the conference will be remembered as the finest decision made by former President Goodluck Jonathan for this nation. There will never be another gathering in Nigeria with the kind of composition that was captured there. I state this publicly again without fear of contradiction. No part of the country is immune to it. Additionally, we were fortunate to have a chairperson who skillfully handled sensitive matters.

 

Our nation’s current duty is to advocate for the immediate adoption of a federal constitution in line with the recommendations made during the 2014 National Conference. Get to where we’re going by taking both reports—that one and the one from the El-Rufai Committee—and forming a committee to bring them together. Everything else is an act. No matter how much you talk about national unity and economic prosperity, we will not achieve anything unless we amend the constitution.

 

With the promise that Nigeria would return to the 2014 conference report in the end, Prof. Anya O. Anya hammered on its necessity in his well-wishes speech.

 

 

According to him, Edwin Clark is too complex to be adequately described in a single or even two sentences. He first encountered Clark at the 2014 national conference. But his devotion for his nation is something you just can’t take away from him.

 

Full implementation of the recommendations made at the national conference is, in my opinion, inevitable. Plus, the rationale behind it is straightforward. Every one of the more than 600 decisions had the backing of over 70% of the audience. Can you believe that we convened a group of Nigerians and that every single choice we made had the backing of 70% of the population? It occurred when you least expected it to. For that reason, I have faith that we shall return in the end.

 

Anya said that Nigeria is a fantastic nation and asked the youth of Nigeria to keep believing in it.

 

To the youth of today, allow me to say this. Remain optimistic about Nigeria. Nigeria is an amazing nation. A nation’s destiny is sealed in Nigeria. Some of my spiritual leaders have assured me that eventually Nigeria will be praised for its righteousness. Nigeria is not experiencing this era at the moment. Some of the younger folks I’ve spoken to about my time in Nigeria don’t think the Nigeria I described actually existed. He did, however, mention that it had existed and would return due to that fact.

 

 

Following his gratitude to the attendees for the honour, Clark—who joined the ceremony via Zoom—made it clear that he would always hold dear a Nigeria in which all citizens are treated with dignity and respect.

 

A restructuring of this nation is what we seek. Nigeria cannot exist unless it undergoes reorganisation. In today’s Nigeria, everyone thinks a simple reorganisation will do the trick. His words carried weight, and even the most hesitant among them came to the realisation that they would be better off operating independently in their own states, with greater authority and discretion.

 

“When I was 90, one of the messages I received was from my boss, Yakubu Gowon,” he explained, providing some background on how the book’s title came to be. I served in his government as Minister of Information. Gowon stated in his letter of congratulations that I am brutally honest and that I say what’s on my mind regardless of the topic. I drew inspiration for my book’s title from that message.

 

Professor Wole Soyinka, the event’s special guest, was welcomed to the literary arena by Denzil Kentebe, a former secretary of the Nigerian Content Development Monitoring Board (NCDMB). Professor Soyinka expressed his eagerness to read Clark’s work as it addressed the country’s histories.

 

You are aware of the many ties that bind me to the Clark family; it would have been my pleasure to welcome the father on his delayed entrance into the literary ranks in lieu of my late brother and colleague, JP Clark. The nation will not soon forget this book launch, even without the fierce promise of the title. I am really looking forward to reading his take on the past and present of a society whose fault lines we have only seldom interacted with, either directly or indirectly; nonetheless, the country has certainly had more than a taste of this in recent years. Regardless, he extended a cordial welcome to the literary arena upon your official entrance, esteemed Chief, Senator, and Elder Gadfly.

 

Professor Hope Eghagha, who is in charge of the Book Presentation Committee in Lagos, praised Clark for his work in bringing the country together and said that Clark’s book, Brutally Frank, is very honest about Nigerian politics and government. He strongly suggested that anyone interested in learning more about the topics covered by the book pick up a copy.

The majority of Nigerians embrace the conclusions made at the 2014 National Conference, according to prominent nationalists who encouraged President Bola Ahmed Tinubu Wednesday to start implementing the report.

Chief Edwin Kiagbodo Clark’s autobiography, Brutally Frank, was read and presented at the MUSON Centre in Lagos, where they made their remarks, according to The Guardian.

 

 

Attendees of the conference who identified as nationalists vowed that the 600 or so suggestions made there would establish a genuine and competitive federalism, which would guarantee the nation’s continued advancement.

 

They claim that until political leaders muster the guts to reorganise the country, it would keep going in circles trying to solve its problems.

 

Among the dignitaries present at the event were: Prof. Bolaji Akinyemi, a former minister of external affairs; Lady Maiden Alex-Ibru, chairman and publisher of The Guardian; Chief Sam Amuka Pemu, publisher of Vanguard newspapers; Nike Akande, former minister of industry; Kofo Bucknor-Akerele, former deputy governor of Lagos state; Henry Odein Ajumogobia, former minister of petroleum resources and foreign affairs; Senator Musiliu Obanikoro, former minister of defence; Dr. Dakuku Peterside, former

 

 

The event’s chairman, Senator Anthony Adefuye, lauded Clark for his nation-building efforts in his opening remarks, saying that the 96-year-old was still going strong.

 

Nigeria will remember him for a long time. What I’m about to say is something that I hope you all remember. The national conference in 2014 was the brainchild of Chief Edwin Clark. He united all Nigerians so that we may live as one. At that national meeting, we all sat down and made some decisions. Nigeria would not be in its current position if those judgements had been implemented, he claimed.

 

“The book is a compendium of what Nigeria was and what we wish it to be,” said Chief Ayo Adebanjo, the day’s honorary father, who praised Clark as an unforgettable figure.

 

 

“At the 2014 national conference, I became closer to Clark,” he continued. Both of us were seated among the elderly. The contributions of these elderly individuals displayed wisdom, experience, and patriotism. For the younger audience, I have a word of caution: do not mess around with the 2014 national conference report.

 

Regardless of your feelings about it, the conference will be remembered as the finest decision made by former President Goodluck Jonathan for this nation. There will never be another gathering in Nigeria with the kind of composition that was captured there. I state this publicly again without fear of contradiction. No part of the country is immune to it. Additionally, we were fortunate to have a chairperson who skillfully handled sensitive matters.

 

Our nation’s current duty is to advocate for the immediate adoption of a federal constitution in line with the recommendations made during the 2014 National Conference. Get to where we’re going by taking both reports—that one and the one from the El-Rufai Committee—and forming a committee to bring them together. Everything else is an act. No matter how much you talk about national unity and economic prosperity, we will not achieve anything unless we amend the constitution.

 

With the promise that Nigeria would return to the 2014 conference report in the end, Prof. Anya O. Anya hammered on its necessity in his well-wishes speech.

 

 

According to him, Edwin Clark is too complex to be adequately described in a single or even two sentences. He first encountered Clark at the 2014 national conference. But his devotion for his nation is something you just can’t take away from him.

 

Full implementation of the recommendations made at the national conference is, in my opinion, inevitable. Plus, the rationale behind it is straightforward. Every one of the more than 600 decisions had the backing of over 70% of the audience. Can you believe that we convened a group of Nigerians and that every single choice we made had the backing of 70% of the population? It occurred when you least expected it to. For that reason, I have faith that we shall return in the end.

 

Anya said that Nigeria is a fantastic nation and asked the youth of Nigeria to keep believing in it.

 

To the youth of today, allow me to say this. Remain optimistic about Nigeria. Nigeria is an amazing nation. A nation’s destiny is sealed in Nigeria. Some of my spiritual leaders have assured me that eventually Nigeria will be praised for its righteousness. Nigeria is not experiencing this era at the moment. Some of the younger folks I’ve spoken to about my time in Nigeria don’t think the Nigeria I described actually existed. He did, however, mention that it had existed and would return due to that fact.

 

 

Following his gratitude to the attendees for the honour, Clark—who joined the ceremony via Zoom—made it clear that he would always hold dear a Nigeria in which all citizens are treated with dignity and respect.

 

A restructuring of this nation is what we seek. Nigeria cannot exist unless it undergoes reorganisation. In today’s Nigeria, everyone thinks a simple reorganisation will do the trick. His words carried weight, and even the most hesitant among them came to the realisation that they would be better off operating independently in their own states, with greater authority and discretion.

 

“When I was 90, one of the messages I received was from my boss, Yakubu Gowon,” he explained, providing some background on how the book’s title came to be. I served in his government as Minister of Information. Gowon stated in his letter of congratulations that I am brutally honest and that I say what’s on my mind regardless of the topic. I drew inspiration for my book’s title from that message.

 

Professor Wole Soyinka, the event’s special guest, was welcomed to the literary arena by Denzil Kentebe, a former secretary of the Nigerian Content Development Monitoring Board (NCDMB). Professor Soyinka expressed his eagerness to read Clark’s work as it addressed the country’s histories.

 

You are aware of the many ties that bind me to the Clark family; it would have been my pleasure to welcome the father on his delayed entrance into the literary ranks in lieu of my late brother and colleague, JP Clark. The nation will not soon forget this book launch, even without the fierce promise of the title. I am really looking forward to reading his take on the past and present of a society whose fault lines we have only seldom interacted with, either directly or indirectly; nonetheless, the country has certainly had more than a taste of this in recent years. Regardless, he extended a cordial welcome to the literary arena upon your official entrance, esteemed Chief, Senator, and Elder Gadfly.

 

Professor Hope Eghagha, who is in charge of the Book Presentation Committee in Lagos, praised Clark for his work in bringing the country together and said that Clark’s book, Brutally Frank, is very honest about Nigerian politics and government. He strongly suggested that anyone interested in learning more about the topics covered by the book pick up a copy.