Remembering Chief Anthony Enahoro on Restructuring…
In the hay days of IBB’s brutal dictatorship (1985 – 1993), foremost nationalist, late Chief Anthony Enahoro, the man who moved the motion for Nigeria’s Independence (never mind FFK’s claim to the contrary), formed a group known as the Movement for National Reformation (MNR)
Chief Enahoro’s MNR mission was to champion the restructuring of Nigeria along six geopolitical zones of North West, North East, North Central, South West, South East and South South.
He opined that the emerging challenges of nationhood at the time made it inevitable that Nigeria be restructured in such a nanner as to devolve powers to the regions and have a weak centre that would have jurisdiction only over common issues like foreign affairs, defense, immigration, Customs etc. He pursued this objective with relentless vigor. He registered a political movement in that name.
Eventually, in 1987 IBB put together a Political Bureau – something akin to Goodluck Jonathan’s National Conference. Chief Enahoro took his campaign for restructuring of Nigeria to IBB’s Political Bureau chaired by J.S. Cookey.
Chief Enahoro’s position formed part of the final report of the Political Bureau. Somehow, Newswatch Magazine, then ran by three foremost journalists – Ray Ekpu. Yakubu Mohammed and Dan Agbese, got hold of the details of that report and published it.
IBB junta thought it was abominable for Newswatch to publish the report when government had not released a White Paper on it. This was report of a conference which sittings were public. IBB sent his boys, then headed by Military Intelligence boss, Haliru Akilu, to descend on Newswatch editors. The trio of Ekpu, Mohammed and Agbese were rounded up, and their magazine – Newswatch – proscribed for 6 months for publishing the report.
Eventually, IBB dribbled Nigerians with the Political Bureau Report. And nothing was heard of it ever again until IBB was forced out of power in August 1993 by a coalition of pro-democracy forces after he annulled the historic June 12 1993 Presidential election won by business mogul Chief M.K.O. Abiola
Today, almost 40 years later, Nigerians are still talking about what Chief Anthony Enahoro campaigned vigorously for 40 years ago. In 2017, IBB himself formally recommended Enahoro’s model.
There is an African proverb that says that what an elder sees when sitting, a child cannot see even when atop a tree. IBB owes Chief Enahoro and Nigerians an apology. And not that kind of yeye apologia he gave in that his yeye book.
Today, I remember you Chief Anthony Enahoro. May your soul rest in peace.
(c)Frank Ofili
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