It is not possible to restructure Nigeria – Yakubu Gowon

Former head of state, General Yakubu Gowon, says restructuring Nigeria will be difficult because of the complexity of the country.

Speaking in Minna, Niger state capital on Friday, Gowon urged Nigerians to have faith in the indivisibility of the nation.

He wondered why people were agitating for restructuring when Nigeria is made up of over 500 ethnic groups.

“Nigeria is made up of over 500 ethnic groups, languages and dialects and so many various groups called nationalities and they want restructuring,” he said.

“This restructuring everybody is asking for, we will have about 500 different ideas of restructuring. There is call for restructuring to reduce the number of states to only a few either back to the old region or to the zones.

“Those are some of the ideas that I do not know whether it will be possible for any state today to wish to be merged with another state. Let us see whether our politicians will see guidelines to be able to achieve what they want.

“But I have my problem whether the states will be financially capable to they will be able to run there states properly.”

Gowon is known for his belief in ‘One Nigeria’.