Benefits of National Confab to Manifest in Next 5 Years -Darah

Prof. Godini Darah, a delegate representing Delta at the ongoing National Conference, says the benefits of the conference will begin to manifest in the next five years.

On Wednesday, Darah told newsmen in Abuja that there would be greater improvement in the welfare of the country’s economy when the conference’s recommendations were implemented.

"The conference has added qualitative value to the content of political practice in Nigeria. It has redefined relationships. It has removed unnecessary powers from the Federal Government. It has also reduced the amount of money the Federal Government is using to dominate everybody. The states now have 57 per cent of the revenue instead of 35 before.

"That will reflect in the life of the people. It will pay for more teachers, doctors, nurses. It will tar more roads and create more jobs. The conference result is not to be experienced in 2014, It is to be experienced in the next five years as the states that are now constituent units become more robust, more orderly and having more investment.

"Quality of politics is also going to improve at that grassroots level and the purpose of democracy is to transfer qualitative parties to the grassroots and leave the centre to international affairs. This conference has achieved that. We have demilitarized the constitution. We have also raise the democratic contents of governance”.

He also said it was not fair to compare the ongoing conference to other similar conference in the past, partly those organized under military rule.

"They were held under what I called the bayonet (the military held gun) and the people who were meeting did not have the freedom that we have here. The beauty of this conference is that the president distances himself ideologically and politically, because he trusted those he chose. Go and do it for me, when you bring the result you will empower me to implement.

"And, he did not fly any kite midway that I am going to contest 2015 please. He never! That you cannot value in terms of money. And, I t is because the man is a minority man that he had that moral bravery to open his heart up. if he was from one of the majority groups he would have sabotaged the conference. So, this is best we have ever had.’’

Darah also told newsmen that he was impressed satisfaction with the work done by the delegates in their four-month brainstorming saying: "I gained more knowledge. What you think you knew before, when you came to floor, somebody who has been in that field will say no your figures are late, I have a better figure.’’