Self-interest behind Presidency, National Assembly rift, says Balarabe Musa

Second Republic governor of Kaduna State, Alhaji Balarabe Musa, on Friday said the ongoing rift between the Presidency and National Assembly was due to self-interest.

Musa said unless the system being operated was changed, Nigerians would continue to be short-changed by those in authority who have relegated national interest to the background.

According to him, the situation can, however, change if the President invokes relevant powers granted him by the Constitution.

Musa told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Kaduna that the president must use such powers to reconcile all Nigerians and allow the people take ownership of government.

“First, as the executive president and Commander-in-Chief, the President should use relevant provisions of the 1999 Constitution to reconcile Nigerians, so that everyone would believe in the unity and oneness of Nigeria.

“Secondly, change the system from the current one that is based on self-interest first and national interest second, to national interest first and self-interest second.

“To do this, the president should change the economic direction of the country and bring back the leading role of the state to take charge of the economy as we had in the 1970s or even before the 1966 coup.

“This will ensure peace, equality and justice, dignity of the human person and even development of the country.

“We cannot afford the privatisation of state assets because no country in the world relies on full privatisation to make progress,” he contended.

According to him, countries have since after the slave trade evolved a system of development that works for them and Nigeria must follow suit.

The national leader of the Peoples Redemption Party also advised the administration to remodel and intensify its fight against corruption to bring back peoples’ confidence in government.

The former governor expressed confidence that if the measures were taken, the people would take ownership of government and end the self serving crises being witnessed now in the country.