Nigeria fast drifting into failed state, PDP Governors lament

Governors elected on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) have raised the alarm, warning that Nigeria is fast drifting into a failed state status.

The group, rising from a meeting in Makurdi, Benue state on Friday, stated that the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) lacked the capacity to govern the country effectively.

The Governors’ position is contained in a communique released after the meeting and read by the chairman of the PDP Governors’ Forum, Governor Aminu Waziri Tambuwal of Sokoto state, the forum expressed deep concerns over the deteriorating relations among the various ethnic groups in the country.

The Governors were deeply worried that fault lines and differences among different ethnic groups in the country were being stretched to the limits “by a government that clearly lacks the capacity to govern”.

They observed the trend has given rise to ethnic and tribal tensions, religious divisions, and various forms of social and political cleavages.

The Governors of the main opposition party concluded that Nigeria is in dire need of leadership at the federal level to avert a looming disaster.

“The meeting noted and condemned the alarming drift of Nigeria which if allowed to continue, will make Nigeria a failed state under the watch of the APC, government, the communiqué said.

The governors were similarly alarmed that security of lives and property of Nigerians are no longer guaranteed under the present government, as a result of leadership incompetence and mismanagement of the nation’s affairs.

While noting that state governments have a role to play in the handling of the worsening security situation, the governors regretted that their hands are being tied behind their backs as the entire coercive authority in the country was being monopolised by the APC- led Federal Government.

The governors noted that the time has come to take advantage of the ongoing constitution amendment process to decentralise the security architecture of the country and involve states and local governments in security matters.