TheCable

Edwin Clark, the convener of the Pan-Niger Delta Forum (PANDEF), says Nigeria is divided as a result of injustice done to some regions of the country.

Speaking at the presentation of his memoir “Brutally Frank” on Thursday, the former minister of information said he had not been celebrating his birthday since the Chibok girls’ abduction in 2014.

The elder statesman said the schoolgirls’ abduction was the worst experience any country could have.

He complained about the unequal numbers of states in each region, noting that “why is it that a region is having five states, others having four, and one has seven?”

Clark said lack of trust was breaking up Nigeria, adding that the country cannot be one by mere word of mouth alone.  

“Nigeria is so divided today. Today, I am not celebrating, but I must thank God. I am not celebrating because I lost two younger brothers,” he said.

“I have written a book, some people might want to take me to court but that is the truth. You can’t kill the truth.

“I am a Nigerian, I won’t keep quiet when Nigerians are suffering. If Nigeria is not standing properly there will be no peace.”

On May 20, Clark faulted President Muhammadu Buhari for appointing Suleiman Abba, a former inspector-general of police (IGP), as chairman of the Police trust fund (PTF) board. 

He argued that the appointment was tantamount to “compensating wrongdoing”, considering that Abba’s reappointment is a clear “disregard for the provisions of the federal character as enshrined in the country’s constitution.”