By FESTUS AHON
A constitutional lawyer, Dr Akpo Mudiaga Odje, has commended President Goodluck Jonathan for assenting to the Amended 1999 Constitution.

He also commended the National Assembly for sending the Amended 1999 Constitution to the President for his assent.

Odje who spoke to Vanguard, weekend, noted that “with the President’s assent to the two versions of the Constitutional Amendments, the hitherto constitutional uncertainty over the 2011 elections has now been laid to rest.”

He described as unpleasant the prior existing state of affairs where the country had three sets of Constitutions in force before President  Jonathan assented to the Amendments.

Stressing the need for a voter or a registered Nigerian citizen to be included as one of the persons to file election petitions in Nigeria, Odje regretted that, “the one man one vote slogan up till now still lacks legal and constitutional recognition.

“It is sad to note that  the “one man one vote” cannot be enforced by an individual in a court of law except through a candidate who contested the election or the political party,” he added.

Speaking further,  Odje stated that “if re-elected, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan must take more pragmatic steps in resolving the justified agitations of the people of the Niger Delta and its freedom fighters, by fully implementing the Ledum Muttee  Report.”

on the Niger Delta, such as increase in derivation, employment for her teaming youth and the immediate expunction of obnoxious Laws like the Land Use Act, Petroleum Act, Section 44(3) of the Amended 1999 Constitution and Section 18 of the Interpretation Act to mention but a few.”

On the closure of Schools till 31st January, 2011 for the Voters Registration exercise, Odje regretted the Federal Government decision, noting that; “children have been idle and unproductive since early December 2010 and extending the holidays to January 31, 2011 will further inflict inertia, non_chalance and truancy on the children.”

According to him, education was one of the rigorous and continuous processes of imparting knowledge on children. He added: “Once there is a prolonged interruption of that process, the children become the greatest casualties of such obnoxious Government Policies.

“Till date the Federal Government is yet to meet the minimum requirement of 26% of a Nations budget to be allocated to Education as directed by the United Nation Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). A nation that abandons Education may run the obvious risk of producing timid and primitive leaders in future.”