Former President Goodluck Jonathan has thrown his weight behind the meeting of Southern governors on National security.
He said;
“If the governors meet and dialogue, interrogate things that are good for this country, then we will move forward,” he said yesterday in Benin, the Edo State capital.
The former President spoke against the background of the southern governors meeting in Asaba, the Delta State capital, where they declared that there should be an “urgent national dialogue”.
The governors also urged President Muhammadu Buhari to address the nation in addition to a call for restructuring and a reaffirmation of their total ban on open cattle grazing in the South, especially herders from the North “on foot”.
This is coming as the Nigerian Senate President Ahmad Lawan leads those criticising the governors for their call accusing them of “regionalism”.
Lawan said they should first carry out restructuring in their states, where they have “diminished” the local government administration.
Jonathan, speaking after delivering an address to mark the 50th birthday of Apostle Charles Osazuwa, president of the Rock of Ages Christian Assembly, according to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports, emphasised the importance of the governors in the political set up, “especially in a country where the local governments are very week. It is the states that people fall back on.”
Not speaking exactly on the Asaba declaration, the ex-President said: “Governors themselves should continue to meet, I don’t really love a situation where the northern governors will meet, then the southern governors will cry foul.
“Then the southern governors will meet, the northern governors will cry foul, that will not help our country.
“The governors, through the Governors’ Forum, should meet, they are the people who run this country, the President is just one person in Abuja.
“I don’t really enjoy the antagonism between governors (North and South). They should come together and discuss.
“If there are issues that are affecting one or two states, I think the governors should see how they can collectively come with a way to address those issues.”
Delivering his messages at the birthday, Jonathan explained: “My belief, particularly when I joined politics is not to use a temporary privilege, a temporary position God has given to me to punish people.’’
“Some of the things I did while in office to which people still make reference were based on the conviction not to use my position to cause the death of anybody.
