Ezekwesili, Nweke, others seek new constitution, electoral reforms

Unless Nigeria’s politics is restructured in such a way that the political power, which citizens hand to those they elect disposes them to produce outcomes favorable to the collective welfare of society, democracy would remain dysfunctional.

A presidential candidate in the 2019 general elections, Obiageli Ezekwesili, who made the assertion during a political dialogue webinar on #FixPolitics, said power must produce public goods and services to improve the well-being of those that gave authority to the custodians.

Other participants in the webinar, Prof. Remi Sonaiya and former minister of information, Frank Nweke, canvassed new political leaders with disruptive thinking to reposition the country for growth and development.

They spoke at a political dialogue webinar titled: Fix Politics With Other Stakeholders, with Alero Otobo, Auwal Musa Rafsanjani, Aisha Yesufu, and Seun Onigbinde, among others.

Specifically, Ezekwesili said Nigeria and Africa needed good governance, adding that sound policies, strong institutions, and prioritisation of investments in public goods and services for private sector emergence, was the engine of economic rebound.

While condemning suggestions for rebasing qualification of prospective voters to include educational qualification, Nweke said that would amount to breaching the universal principle of adult suffrage, noting that structural problems require structural solutions and there was the need to mobilise the people to collectively demand a new constitution, political, electoral and economic restructuring of the country.

On her part, Sonaiya stressed the need to restructure the country and mobilise for political and electoral reforms, while stressing that Nigerians must be carried along in political dialogues to achieve desired results.

“The voices of Nigerians must be added to political discussions. We have a country that excludes the citizens and we largely take decisions without carrying others along and this ought not to be.

“The constitution and electoral law are major constraints in moving the country forward and there must be reforms in these areas. The people have suggested electronic voting and transmission of election results. Also, Nigerians in the Diaspora should be given the opportunity to vote in the reforms being sought,” she added.