Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, has stated that the excessive centralization of power, as well as concentration of resources in the Federal Government, has not in any way benefitted the country and the citizens.

The former Vice President stated this over the weekend while delivering a convocation lecture titled ‘Diversity, Education and Autonomy’ at Achievers University, Owo, Ondo State. Atiku, who reiterated his call for the autonomy of the constituent parts, said the country needed to tailor its development policies and practices to acknowledge its diversity and benefit from it. While tagging the current development strategies in the country as a wrong approach, Atiku called for a change of direction.

Atiku said: “Rather, we have had excessive corruption, mediocrity, generations of citizens who hope to become rich without work, emasculation of state and local initiatives, and a lack of creative and healthy competition among states as they all look towards Abuja for handouts every month.

“We must reverse the concentration of power and resources at the center. And we must make serious and conscious efforts to identify the potentials and strengths of each state and section of this country and work to maximize its contribution to the development of our country as it is supported to develop itself.

“That is how you allow greater autonomy while pulling together. Greater autonomy for states will allow ideas to germinate from anywhere and blossom.

“Reduction of federal powers and responsibilities and greater autonomy for states would, for instance, allow a state with very low demand for university spots to decide whether its priority is another federal university or investments in primary, secondary teacher education to ensure that its young population has basic education, preparatory for possible university or vocational education in the future.”

Atiku also advocated severe punishment for parents who refuse to send their children to have ‘free primary and secondary education,” insisting that basic education must be free and compulsory, said parents should be forced to send their children to school just as they are forced to vaccinate their children against infectious diseases.

According to the former Vice President, there would not be over 13 million out of- school children if there were severe consequences for parents who refuse to send their children to school.

He, therefore, revealed that his father was jailed by the local authorities for refusing to send him to school.