President Goodluck Jonathan on Thursday night met with leaders from the South-south at the presidential villa, to discuss how to strengthen the union between the northern and southern parts of the country.
At the meeting, the president and the leaders from the south discussed the issues of violence in the country which has been largely played out in northern Nigeria. However, the grouse of the southern leaders is that the targets have been primarily northern Christians and Southerners
The southern leaders who claim to represent the 17 southern states are pledging their loyalty to the Mr Jonathan administration and their faith in Nigeria’s unity
Their leader Edwin Clark said the southern states are prepared to dialogue with their brothers and counterparts from the north to ensure that the violence is checked.
Mr Clark, who called for the convening of a national conference, also argues that the National Assembly alone cannot craft a constitution that will be agreeable to all constituent parts the nation.
He said: “We are not talking about a Sovereign National Conference; we are talking about a national conference. A conference whereby Nigerians will meet to discuss the basis of unity in this country and also to look into our constitution and decide whether it is the best instrument we have for this country.
“We believe that the National Assembly cannot do it alone. We believe that if there is a National Conference which is constituted by representatives from over 250 ethnic nationalities in this country, they will be able to produce a document to form the basis of their unity.”
The former Information Minister said that the recommendations of the national conference would then be forwarded to the National Assembly.
