Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi, has expressed his support for the push by 60 members of the House of Representatives seeking the return of Nigeria to parliamentary system of government.
He made his position known while addressing a delegation of the lawmakers, led by the House Minority Leader, Rep. Kingsley Chinda and Rep. AbdulSamad Dasuki, who visited him in Abuja at the weekend.
The lawmakers visited the monarch to solicit his counsel, blessings and support for the three proposed bills which seek to restructure elections at local, State and federal levels.
The Bills are: Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (Alteration) Bill, 2024 (HB.1115); Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (Alteration) Bill, 2024 (HB.1116) and ; Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (Alteration) Bill, 2024 (HB.1117).
Oba Ogunwusi commended the lawmakers saying that there was the need to create a healthy competition among the six geopolitical zones in the country.
He added that parliamentary system would effectively unlock and harness the country’s huge natural and human resources for effective development.
The monarch described the current presidential system as accidental, regretting that the parliamentary system of government practised after the independence was short-lived because of military incursion which toppled democracy.
Speaking earlier, Rep. Chinda expressed grave concerns that there are many challenges facing the country. He noted that the on-going consultations were aimed at getting the buy-in of critical stakeholders and actors in the Nigerian project to support their cause of pushing for the return of the country to the Parliamentary system.
On his part, Rep. AbdulSamad Dasuki expressed optimism that the move towards parliamentary system of government would help to address various concerns raised by all Nigerians.
Recall that the lawmakers had earlier visited the northern elder statesman, Prof, Ango Abdullahi, and the leadership of Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF), who also supported the move.
