Posted by By John Nwokocha and LEKAN BILESANMI on
President Olusegun Obasanjo yesterday admitted being the brain behind the recommendation of six-year single tenure for the nation's president and other elected officials in the controversial draft constitution purportedly submitted to the on-going National Political Reform Conference (NPRC).
President Olusegun Obasanjo yesterday admitted being the brain behind the recommendation of six-year single tenure for the nation's president and other elected officials in the controversial draft constitution purportedly submitted to the on-going National Political Reform Conference (NPRC).
Obasanjo explained that the Federal Government tinkered with the five-year single term for the nation's number one citizen and the other elected officials recommended by the All Parties Constitution Review Committee, set up at the inception of his administration in 1999, to arrive at the six-year single tenure.
But the president vowed that the recommendation to the NPRC was not made with the intention that he would be the first beneficiary if it was ultimately adopted as a constitutional provision, as, according to him, he was already on his way out of office.
The recommendation, as contained in the draft constitution, had triggered insinuation that it was part of a grand plan by Obasanjo to extend his stay in office beyond 2007 when the two terms he was entitled to under the 1999 Constitution that brought him to power lapse.
The president, who spoke yesterday on his monthly radio programme aired on the network of Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria (FRCN), The President Explains, said he opted for the six-year single tenure for the president because he believed it was the best for the country.
His words: "One of the things that I believe should be amended (in the constitution) is the tenure of elected officers. I have been in this country for some time and I have come to realise that if you are coming into office fresh, you need at least one year to understand what is involved.
"If you are really going to work, you need a minimum of four years to do the work so that the last one year will be for campaign.
"It does not matter whether you are re-contesting or not re-contesting. Infact, some of the problems will still be there. So, my own idea is that you need one year to study, four years to do the work and one year to round off.
"So, I know about the amendment in the draft constitution".
Ruling himself out as a beneficiary of the six-year term if it becomes a constitutional provision, he told his audience: "I have a constitution that brought me into office and which will take me out.
"That constitution allows for two terms of four years each. I have finished the first term and the second term is going on. I am talking from my farm, you are talking to me from my farm now, you should know that the president of Nigeria is about to leave".
Shedding more light on how the draft constitution, which has been rejected as a memorandum by the NPRC on the grounds that it was not submitted before the expiration of the deadline to do so, came into being, the president stated that immediately he came to office during his first term, "we agreed that all (political) parties should come together and look at the constitution with a view to making it a more workable document for the country".
According to him, all amendments carried out that resulted in the outcome as draft constitution were sent to all the state attorneys-general.
"All past reports were put together to make the draft constitution", Obasanjo pointed out.
Answering a caller's question on the House of Representatives demand that Nigeria should repudiate her $37billion debt, the president admitted that the lawmakers position was understandable.
But he asked Nigerians to give him more time to plead with the nation's creditors so that the debt problem could be amicably sorted out.
"I am sure the creditors want us to have stability and they know this is not possible with the debt overhang", Obasanjo stated.
Speaking on the theme of his address during the radio programme, Peace and Security at Home and Abroad, the president pointed out that peace and security within and beyond the nation's borders should be the concern of everybody, not only government.
He emphasized that the nation needed development which, according to him, could not be achieved in an atmosphere of conflict, violence, insecurity, as well as economic, political and social crises, saying, "We are doing a lot to maintain peace and security. Nigeria is all over Africa and the world promoting peace".
Obasanjo also spoke about food and employment generation as part of the areas government was concentrating efforts on to achieve peace and security.
"If you have no employment, you are dangerous not only to yourself but also to your family and the society. That is why this administration is emphasizing employment for as many of our citizens as we can. The on-going national conference is part of security and peace building. If people come together to talk about their problems with a view to devising the means to overcome them, there would be less friction in the society", the president stated.
He continued: "I have said it that everybody should be able to contest election in the country and it has been accepted. That is part of security that we are talking about.
"We have invested in peace and security in Rwanda, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Cote D'Ivoire. We are also talking with our neighbours.