Oil Discovery in North will Hasten Restructuring, Says Afe Babalola

Oil Discovery in North will Hasten Restructuring, Says Afe Babalola

The founder of the Afe Babalola University, Ado Ekiti, Aare Afe Babalola (SAN), has said the discovery of crude oil discovery in the North will quicken the restructuring of the country.

Babalola spoke in Lagos yesterday at the maiden edition of the Goke Omisore Annual Lecture organised by the Voice of Reason.

He was, however, represented by the Provost, Postgraduate School, Afe Babalola University, Prof. Kunle Olowu, as chairman on the occasion.

In his remarks as chairman on the occasion, Babalola said his prayer was that there would be more oil discoveries around the country because “it will make it easier for the country to embark on the process of restructuring and thereby solve the age-long problem of oil-producing states.”

The elder statesman reiterated his belief that the 1999 Constitution was the bane of Nigeria’s prosperity, saying it should be completely discarded.

He said the 1999 Constitution “encourages indolence, lack of creativity, greed, avarice, wanton struggle for positions in the central government and untoward attitude of begging for monthly allocation from the Federal Government.”

Babalola added that as a result of the constitution, politics had become the most lucrative business in the country.

While saying that he had seen the draft of the new constitution being proposed by the National Assembly, Babalola said if it scaled through it would make politics less attractive and pave the way for the emergence of “transformational leaders” in the country.

“The proposed new constitution would make politics less attractive. It will enable Nigeria to have transformational leaders, who will be visionary and enterprising; who will serve for free; who will only earn sitting allowances and who will use government money for the development of the country.

“The new people’s constitution will put a most deserving end to the current prevalence of transactional leaders who are only out to make money for themselves.”

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