President Bola Tinubu on Friday in Abuja received The Patriots, a Group of Eminent Nigerians, and emphasised that retooling the Economy for Sustainable Growth and Development was a major priority of his Administration.
Tinubu made the declaration when he received Members of the group led by Emeka Anyaoku, former Commonwealth Secretary-General, at the State House.
This is contained in a Statement by the President’s Spokesman, Ajuri Ngelale.
Tinubu also assured the Group that their request for the Convening of a National Constituent Assembly with the Mandate to draft a New Constitution would be reviewed.
Anyaoku, speaking on behalf of The Patriots, appealed to the President to send an Executive Bill to the National Assembly, proposing two Measures.
“The convening of a National Constituent Assembly with the Mandate to produce a Draft People’s Democratic Constitution.
“The Constituent Assembly should be of directly elected individuals, on a non-political basis, from the 36 states of the federation, possibly three individuals per state, and one from the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
“They should be assisted by seven Constitutional Lawyers, one drawn from each of the six Geo-Political Zones and the FCT.
“The deliberations of the Constituent Assembly should take into full account the 1960/1963 Constitutions, as well as the Recommendations of the 2014 National Conference and indeed of the various National Conferences that considered the Nigerian Constitutions,” he said.
Anyaoku also said the Patriots requested legislating for a National Plebiscite to which the Draft Constitution emerging from the Constituent Assembly should be subjected.
“The Draft Constitution, produced by the Constituent Assembly, should be put to a National Referendum and if approved, should then be signed by the President as the genuine Nigerian People’s Constitution,” he said.
Responding to these requests, the President expressed his respect for The Patriots and their Contributions to National Discourse.
“I have listened to you carefully, and this is not a Group that I can ignore. This is a group of Patriots reflecting the heart and aspirations of Society. I thank all of you for being here.
“I have faced the challenge of this Democracy that I inherited from your struggles. I must recognise the fact that these challenges are most required for Good Governance.
“We have no other choice, and I believe also that it is most difficult to manage the twist and turns of Democratic Governance,” said the President.
He assured the group that he had listened to their requests on Referendum that should lead to Constitutional Measures fit for the Nation’s Diversity and Governance to avoid conflicts and break-ups.
“I believe in the unity of this Country and I want to assure you that whatever is necessary to put happiness and good governance in the hands of all Nigerians is what I would do,” he said.
Tinubu noted that the clamour for Constitutional Reforms was a longstanding Issue in National Discourse.
He acknowledged the examples presented by the Patriots on Pluralistic Countries, such as Canada and India, which had maintained unity by addressing their Diversity through their Constitutions.
Credit NAN: Texts excluding Headlines
