“True Federalism or Breakup” — Nwodo’s Warning to Nigeria
Former federal minister John Nnia Nwodo is no stranger to politics, but his latest remarks have cut deeper than most headlines allow. In a sharp address delivered in Enugu, Nwodo warned that Nigeria risks national breakup before 2027 unless it urgently adopts true federalism.
His message wasn’t couched in diplomacy. “We are living a lie,” he said. “A country cannot survive when it pretends to be a federation but governs like a unitary state.” Nwodo’s call for restructuring touches a nerve — one that has been exposed for years, but never fully addressed.
From fuel subsidies to state policing, resource control to electoral autonomy, the imbalance of power between Abuja and the federating units has remained one of Nigeria’s open wounds. Nwodo argues that without constitutional reform that returns real control to the states, Nigeria will not hold.
The warning comes at a time of growing ethnic tension, economic despair, and heightened calls for regional independence across the south and middle belt. From Biafra to Oduduwa, the secessionist rhetoric may have once been fringe — now it’s mainstream conversation.
What Nwodo offers isn’t a threat; it’s a final caution. Restructure — or watch the center fail to hold.
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