Peter Obi, former governor of Anambra state, says restructuring will boost the nation’s economy and end insecurity.
The former governor spoke on ”restructuring, security challenges and development” at the fourth Adada public lecture organised by the association of Nsukka professors (ANP) at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN) on Tuesday.
According to NAN, Obi said it is unfortunate that governors depend on oil revenue but through restructuring, governors will look inwards to make their states productive.
He said state, local and community police will also be set up to tackle criminality within their areas. “It is unfortunate that some governors believe in going to Abuja monthly to get federal allocation from proceeds of oil,” he said.
“They have forgotten the price of oil in the international market has depreciated and will continue to depreciate.
“No developed country in the world depends on crude oil but they invest in their children, agriculture and encourage small and medium enterprises by giving out soft loans and other incentives. There is urgent need to restructure the country for the economy to grow to desired level.”
He said Nigerians who do not believe in restructuring should stop misleading others by claiming it is a deliberate plan to divide the country.
“Rather, it should be seen as a move to build the ailing economy and restore adequate security in the country,” he said.
The former governor said restructuring will also help to ensure adequate funding of primary and post-primary schools as well as higher institutions.
“We should invest in our children’s education, which is greater than any price of crude oil in the international market,” he said.
“Restructuring the country will bring out the comparative advantage of every state and our natural resources that are lying waste will be fully harnessed to boost state economy.”
Making an example of the Netherlands, Obi said restructuring will enable states to make robust investment in agriculture, achieve food security and create more employment opportunities.
“In the 1960s and 1970s, agriculture was the major foreign exchange earner for the country. In the north, we had groundnut pyramid, in the west we had cocoa and the east had palm oil and Nigeria was among the best economies in the world.
“Today, the Netherlands as a country uses its exports from agricultural products and flowers to get billions of dollars in foreign exchange to sustain its economy.”