Yakasai added that the regional system of government worked better for Nigeria and, therefore, said he supported a conscious shift to regional geopolitical zones arrangement.
By Jeffrey Agbo
Elder statesman, Tanko Yakasai, has stressed that Nigeria needs to do away with the federal system of government and adopt the French presidential system of government for meaningful progress.
The former liaison officer to late President Shehu Shagari said on Thursday in Lagos at the TheNiche Newspaper Annual Lecture that the most outstanding aspect of the French system of government is that it makes it easier to replace a non-performing government than the American presidential system operated in Nigeria.
In France, the head of state is the French President who appoints the Prime Minister as head of government.
“The Federal system of government in Nigeria was established in 1954, making it the oldest on the African continent and should be jettisoned post-2023,” said Yakasai.
“Another important reason why I am advocating the adoption of the French presidential system is that it is far cheaper to operate and, therefore, more suitable to us as a developing nation.”
Yakasai said the decision to drop the parliamentary system in Nigeria during the military era was largely influenced by American-trained elite in Nigeria rather than exhaustive debate and objective evaluation of the full potential of the parliamentary system in Nigeria.
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“In my opinion, that decision was not driven by proper rationale of the suitability of the American system in our own peculiar national situation.
“The decision has not done justice to the parliamentary system and Nigeria as a country and its developmental needs and economic circumstances.
“This is because the parliamentary system is more democratic in its nature than American Presidential system,” he said.
Yakasai, who said Nigeria is at a crossroads, noted that the political leadership under the current federal system remained far from being optimal.
“Today, 62 years after independence, it is shameful that Nigeria is described as a resource endowed but not rich nation,” the human rights activist said.
Yakasai added that the regional system of government worked better for Nigeria and, therefore, said he supports a conscious shift to a regional geo-political zones arrangement.