Akeredolu canvasses adoption of unicameral legislature

Stakeholders demand 1963 Constitution, state police, others

Ondo State Governor, Oluwarotimi Akeredolu, has advocated the scrapping of the current National Assembly system due to its wastefulness, urging the legislative arm of government to embrace unicameral legislature.

According to him, “we recommend, most enthusiastically, a return to the 1963 Republican Constitution. We will resolve many fundamental issues of nationhood with the adoption.”

Akeredolu reiterated this, yesterday, while declaring open the public hearing organised by the House of Representatives Committee on the Constitution Review for Ondo, Ekiti and Osun states in Akure.

The governor, who was represented by his deputy, Lucky Aiyedatiwa, added that besides adopting unicameral legislature, the membership of the National Assembly should be on a part-time basis.

He said: “No member should earn allowances not known to the Revenue Mobilisation and Allocation Committee and, more importantly, people they claim to serve. Legislators should earn under a uniform salary structure.

“Allowance peculiarities must not be about obscenity. The Senate should be scrapped. The House of Representatives too should not be unwieldy. A maximum of four representatives should come from each zone.

“We advocate a Federal Government largely reduced in size and scope of engagement. We want to see a constitution that will enhance the performance of public office holders at all levels.

“It is possible to have a government that will serve the people in deed and truth. The law of the land must aid this realistic expectation. We must reduce the cost of governance and shift attention to service delivery in this trying period.”

Akeredolu, who decried the duplication of some agencies across the federation, reiterated the need for large scale police reform and employment, urging state police.

He said: “Security is local. The success story of Amotekun in Ondo State, in particular, and other South-West states, is a pointer to the imperative of taking policing to the grassroots.

“The government at the centre must divest itself of this self-inflicted heavy burden for effective and impactful performance. At most, two ministers should be appointed to represent each zone. Items on the exclusive list too must witness significant reduction.

“The Federal Government must not be seen to be competing with the states in service delivery to the people. Its role should be, largely, to co-ordinate the activities of government with minimal interference at the other tiers of government.”

Chairman of Ondo State Council of Obas, Oba Eniolorunda Akinruntan, who was represented by the Olubaka of Oka-Akoko, Oba Adebori Adeleye, lamented that previous attempts to review the 1999 Constitution by the last military Head of State, Gen Abdusalam Abubakar, was jettisoned.

Deputy Speaker and Chairman of the committee, Ahmed Idris Wase, who was represented by Mr. Peter Akpatason, assured that the constitution review exercise would yield positive result according to the yearnings of the people.