PRESS RELEASE
A Diaspora Group, Inspire Nigeria (IN), based in Edinburgh Scotland, UK, met and issued the following Communique:
An emergency meeting of Inspire Nigeria was convened against the background of the worsening insecurity in Nigeria among other developments. The following is the communique from the meeting:
• IN believes that Nigeria is better together than as splinter independent nations. However, that Nigeria must be one where equity and justice reign and all Nigerians are equal under the law.
• IN commends INEC’s creativity in devising new ways of carrying out part of the continuous registration exercise online as a Covid-19 measure. We are persuaded that the creativity can be stretched to allow the complete process to take place online. We call on the government to extend voting rights to Nigerians in Diaspora. They contribute enormously to the economy of Nigeria. They cannot be good for remittances but not good enough to be accorded suffrage.
• IN commends those states that have either abolished or are in the process of abolishing pension for ex-governors and call on others to follow suit. It beggars belief that any well-meaning ex- governor will want to contribute to the impoverishment of their citizens through these dubious collections.
• IN welcomes the passage of the PIB after several years of cycles of heightened expectations and disappointments. We call of the National Assembly to revisit the share of oil revenue to host communities from the passed 3% to a minimum of 5%.
• We commend the Lagos State House of Assembly for passing a bill mandating security agencies to treat suspects humanely and with dignity.
• We commend the House of Representatives for initiating the state police bill and implore them to ensure its passage. We call on the 36 State Houses of Assembly to ensure they provide the required support for the bill once passed to them.
• We call on the National Assembly to pass the electoral reform bill, including provision for electronic transmission of election results.
• We view with grave concern the continuous deterioration of security despite the huge funds committed into security and the recent change of security heads. The situation appears to have become so bad that a number of governors and senior government officials and elder statemen have called on citizens to protect themselves, the latest being the Katsina State (the president’s home state) Governor. These calls are alarming as they are usually the signs for the onset of a failed state. We call on government at all levels to prioritise security of lives and property without laxity or discrimination.
• We view with grave concern the closure of schools as a result of insecurity. Children have a right to education under safe and secure conditions.
• We call on the federal government to call terrorists what they are, and treat them as such, and not glorify them by calling them bandits and treating them with kid gloves. The government must realise that the country is at war!
• We call on the federal government to ensure people reserve their freedom of speech and right of opinion, including aspiration for self-determination. The case for a united Nigeria is not served by arresting people who promote ideas of self-determination. They should be immediately released. It is astonishing that the security forces stretched so lean they can barely cope with the level of insecurity should have time for such distractions as Igboho and Kanu.
• We call on the government to immediately begin restructuring as promised by the president under the APC manifesto.
God bless the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
Signed
Demola Lani
Secretary, IN
Evong, E.S.B
President, IN
W: Inspirenigeria.org |FB: @inspirenigeria | T: @inspirenigeria | IG: @inspirenig
31 July 2021
