Proceedings at the National Conference started on Monday with lengthy arguments over a newspaper publication alleging that the leadership of the Conference was involved in premature preparation of a report that would be adopted as representing the position of the conference.
As soon as the matter came up on the floor through a motion by Ish’aq Moddibo Kawo, arguments started as delegates were divided on whether the Conference Deputy Chairman, Professor Bolaji Akinyemi, who was mentioned in another allegation involving the writing of a new constitution, should respond to it or not.
Chief Mike Ahamba, SAN, and others were of the view that the publication should be dismissed as it was meant to distract the Conference from is set goals. Chief Ahamba claimed that those who are disappointed by the progress the conference has made so far are bent on scuttling it, but admonished that it should be resisted and not allowed to succeed.
Those who shared that position also challenged those behind the publication and who claimed to have been lobbied by the Deputy Chairman to step forward and justify their claims with evidence; failing, the Daily Trust newspaper that published the stories should be asked to apologise to the Conference.
However, former President of the Senate, Dr Ken Nnamani, raised a counter motion demanding that Akinyemi be allowed to explain himself since he was present at the sitting.
The same position was canvassed by Dr. Haruna Yerima who argued that the allegation should not be dismissed because “morality demands that the Deputy Chairman clears his name.”
The Deputy Chairman, in a brief comment, denied ever lobbying anybody to adopt a new constitution which the publication alleged he was spearheading.
He explained that a few days ago, as was customary when they are contentious issues that have the potential of threatening the smooth progression of the Conference, he had approached political leaders at the Conference from both the north and the south separately, to discuss their differences regarding the issue of whether or not there was need for a new Constitution arising from the proceedings of the Conference.
He said it was normal for him or any member of the leadership to seek such diverse opinions from delegates across geo-political lines towards resolving any contentious issue that usually arise from the Conference before such issues are eventually put up for division at plenary.
Akinyemi, a former Foreign Affairs Minister, went ahead to mention names of people he met to discuss the issue and stated without any ambiguity that the issue of lobbying for adoption of a new constitution for the Conference was absolutely false as he only set out to ensure harmony between two opposing groups.
