A Former Governor of Akwa Ibom State, Obong Victor Attah, has stated that unless Nigeria is restructured, the country will break up.
The former governor joins other prominent citizens, groups who are calling for a change in governing structure.
Recall that the President General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, John Nnia Nwodo, had maintained that the issue of restructuring of the country was more important than the agitation for Igbo Presidency.
Also, a South-East pressure group, the Eastern Consultative Assembly, ECA, recently called on the Nigerian government to restructure the country.
A former Vice-president of Nigeria, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar is also among Nigerians saying that the
country is in dare need of total restructuring and reform to correct its porous system.
However, the former governor has noted that fiscal federalism was the agreement of Nigeria staying together, adding that if overlooked, the country will break.
Speaking to Vanguard Attah said, “I led the movement because I was convinced of the need for it and, today it is taking a new dimension called restructuring.
“People are now talking about accepting the need for fiscal federalism and marrying it with the idea of restructuring and so on.
“So, thank God we have moved from one point and, we will soon get to another and I agree with those people who say that, unless we go back to fiscal federalism, Nigeria will break.
“You know there is a formula but the important thing is to create the situation that we always had before.
“Contribute 50 percent of what you have to the center and use the remaining 50 percent to develop yourself; even what you contribute to the center, some of it is coming back to you.
“That was the basis of the agreement for staying together and forming Nigeria. So, if we destroy the basis of our agreement, then the consequence of what we agreed should also disappear.
“That is Nigeria and, unfortunately, I am speaking like this because I believe passionately in the need and I believe that eventually all the government that should make it happens will make it happen; that there would be fiscal federalism. We should return to true federal democratic principle.”
