The Federal Government has reacted to calls by Nigerians for the
constitution of an Interim National Government to midwife the 2015 general
elections to usher in a new democratic government.
The Minister of Justice and Attorney-General of the Federation, Mohammed
Adoke, made the position of the Nigerian Government known in a press
release on Thursday.
He said that while the Federal Government recognizes and appreciates the
inalienable right of Nigerians to freely express themselves and proffer
solutions to perceived national challenges, the government is concerned
that Nigerians are being unwittingly led to believe that a prescription
such as an interim national government can be adopted as viable solution
to the nation’s challenges.
He refereed to the idea of an interim government as being totally alien to
the constitution.
According to him, “For avoidance of doubt, it is pertinent to state that
the framers of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999,
did not envisage the constitution of interim national government to
superintend over the affairs of government.
“It is therefore not surprising to observe that no provision for interim
national government was made in the constitution.”
He enjoined Nigerians to continue to rely on the constitution, which
contains adequate provisions on how the democratic process can be
activated, to elect their leaders from time to time as the contraption
called “interim national government” remains alien to Nigeria’s
constitutional framework.
He added that the arrangement should not be promoted by well-meaning
Nigerians under any guise or circumstance.