Sen. Dickson Demands End to Federal Character Abuses, Calls For Senate Investigation

Senator Henry Seriake Dickson, who represents Bayelsa West, has passionately called for an immediate end to what he describes as “flagrant breaches” of the Nigerian Constitution’s federal character principle.

Speaking on Tuesday in support of Senator Sunday Ngwu’s motion, he claimed that these abuses are divisive, unconstitutional, and undermine national unity.

Senator Ngwu’s motion calls for a comprehensive Senate investigation into the implementation of federal character provisions across ministries and government agencies.

“The founding fathers of this country knew that Nigeria is a nation of nationalities and that there was a need to establish an in-built constitutional mechanism for ensuring inclusiveness,” Dickson said, emphasising the purpose of the federal character principle.

“Over the years, successive operators have violated these provisions with impunity, providing opportunities only to people from their states, local governments, language, religion, and so on, causing unnecessary tensions and a loss of loyalty.”

He also warned that these violations breed discontent, reduce patriotism, and raise doubts about whether the country truly belongs to all of its citizens.

Senator Dickson cited specific examples of alleged imbalances in key institutions such as the NNPC, CBN, and military.

“In the military and security services, there are recruitment officers and Service Chiefs who recruit only people from their areas, discriminating against other Nigerians, and they build ethnic military and services for us, compromising capacity and eventually weakening us,” he claimed.

He requested that the Senate give the relevant committee “between three and six months” to conduct a thorough investigation into all Ministries, Parastatals, and Agencies, with detailed employee data broken down by State and Local Government Areas.

To ensure thoroughness, Senator Dickson proposed co-opting members from states that are currently under-represented on the Federal Character Committee, emphasising that violations occur not only at the regional and ethnic levels, but also within states and local governments.

“Even within a State, we should drill down to know how many people from a Local Government are in a location and why,” he stated.

He emphasised that the widespread nature of these violations necessitates a thorough investigation rather than a blame game, as he believes that everyone in positions of power bears responsibility.

Senator Dickson also recommended that a copy of the investigation’s findings be presented to the President for implementation, demonstrating his commitment to ensuring that the investigation leads to concrete action.

His impassioned plea highlights the growing concern about the equitable distribution of opportunities and resources among Nigeria’s diverse population, as well as a potential push for greater accountability in the application of federal character principles.