Elderstateman and Ijaw leader, Chief Edwin Clark, is offering advice on the June 12 political history and the present but he says he can’t comment yet on President Bola Tinubu government because petitions are still being heard in courts.
Clark, like his Yoruba counterpart, Chief Ayo Adebanjo, supported the Labour Party’s candidate Peter Obi during the February 25 election.
In an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria, he said,
“I don’t want to commend on that one much because the election tribunals are still sitting.
“I don’t want to make statements that are prejudicial. So let the law take its normal course.”
He, however, tasked Nigerians to ensure that the country remain peaceful and crisis-free in spite of its numerous challenges.
Clark, also a former Federal Commissioner for Information, said this when he spoke in Abuja on the 30th anniversary of the annulment of June 12 Presidential Election.
“We all desired that we live in a country that is peaceful, that is free from crisis, security and economic challenges and the low corruption level.
“Corruption in the country is so high which I always say since 2014, that government should declare a state of emergency on corruption.
“The rate at which corruption is going on in the country is terrible where every arm of government cannot be trusted,” he said.
The 96 year-old national leader called for a peaceful country were all Nigerians were equal before the law.
“We want a Nigeria where all of us live together peacefully and there is no discrimination and we should all obey the provision of the Constitution which states there should be no state religion.
“There should be no promotion of a particular religion over and above others.
“When we were in the 2014 National Conference as an elderstateman, we made a lot of recommendations for the survival of Nigeria as a country.
“A united country free from crisis, where all the citizens are equal before the law and anyone of them can rise to any position you want to lead,” he said.
He said that that the immediate past administration in the country did not provide the necessary ingredients for Nigeria’s democracy to grow.
“Everything was done by the executive and we had the 9th Assembly that did not perform well.
“Many Nigerians accused them of rubber stamping and today we are owing so much money which would have been debated on the floor of the chamber,” he said.
On Tinubu’s administration which was few weeks in office, Clark declined making comments.
“I don’t want to commend on that one much because the election tribunals are still sitting.
“I don’t want to make statements that are prejudicial. So let the law take its normal course.
