• Olusegun Obasanjo and Emeka Anyaoku

Former Commonwealth Secretary- General, Chief Emeka Anyaoku and ex-President Olusegun Obasanjo, shared perspectives on whether or not Nigeria should have a new constitution.

They spoke in Abuja, yesterday , during the opening of a three-day emergency national constitutional summit organised by a group of eminent Nigerians operating under the umbrella of the Patriots.

The theme of the summit is: “Actualising a constitutional democracy that works for all in Nigeria.”

While Anyaoku believes Nigeria needs a new, pluralistic Constitution, Obasanjo said that no such document is perfect and that it is the operators that matter.

Anyaoku dismissed the 1999 Constitution, currently in operation, as a military imposition.

The Chair of the Patriots believes that the country’s pluralistic nature requires a new constitution.To Anyaoku, the present 36 federating units have proven incapable of driving development, adding that 65 years after independence, Nigeria has become the world capital of poverty.

He said: “Nigeria is a pluralistic country, and like all successful pluralistic countries around the world, for its stability and maximal development, its constitution must address its problems.

“Second, it must address its pluralism by being formulated by elected representatives of its diverse people.

“Our present 1999 Constitution, as amended, is not such a constitution. It was not democratically formulated.

“It was instead imposed on the country through a decree by the military administration.

“And the governance system derived from it is not only non-inclusive, but also induces over-expectation of the nation’s resources on administration rather than on capital development.

“As a result, what we see is our nation’s need for a new constitution.

“There is the need for a new constitution, but this is a matter to be made by the people of our country.”

He called for “a constitution that would be in sync with the Constitution of the United States, a constitution of successful pluralistic countries around the world”.

Anyaoku added: “To those who say that the fate of a country depends primarily on its leadership, I say that the Constitution from which the system of governance is derived largely determines the character of the people who get elected or appointed to govern the country from the three arms of the government.”

On the other hands, Obasanjo said said that Nigeria doesn’t need a new constitution but rather needs the right operators of the constitution.

Represented by the Secretary-General of Eminent Patriots, Mr Olawale Okunniyi, the former President agreed that while a constitution must reflect the history, the constituents and the aspirations of a people, “no constitution is perfect.”

Obasanjo said: “From my experience in operating our constitution, I will be the first to point out some areas that need amendment.

However, for me, no constitution can ever be regarded as perfect.

“But whatever the strength or weakness of a constitution, the most important issue, to my understanding and experience, is the operators of the constitution.

“The best constitution can be perverted and distorted by the operators, and we have experienced that all over Africa, Nigeria is not exempt.

“I am more concerned about the operators of the constitution to lead in good governance and promotion of welfare and wellbeing of the citizenry.“No matter what you do to the Nigerian constitution, if the operators of the constitution, for the past one decade and a half, remain unchanged and continue in the same manner, the welfare and wellbeing of Nigerians will continue to be sacrificed on the altar of selfishness.”