By SIMON EBEGBULEM

BENIN — The Midwest Consultative Forum, led by former governor of old Bendel State, Dr. Samuel Ogbemudia, Monday, submitted its position paper to members of the national conference committee in Benin, Edo State, saying that resource control was top on its agenda.

On the composition of the conference, the forum suggested that a delegate should be picked from each of the 389 ethnic groups in the country, adding that participants at the conference should not exceed 460 delegates.

The forum said: “There should be no imposition of delegates by governments. Ethnic groups should be allowed to appoint their representatives themselves. The conference should not last longer than six months.”

The forum’s meeting at the residence of Dr. Ogbemudia in Benin was attended by Itsekiri leader, Chief J. Ayomike, Chief Benjamin Elue (Anioma), Chief Usige (Isoko), Chief Joseph Arogundade (Afemai), Dr. Emaifo (Esan), while Chief Chris Ogienwonyi and Chief Solomon Ogbewe represented the Bini.

The group stressed the need for President Goodluck Jonathan to send a bill to the National Assembly that will give the conference legal backing, just as it said that the resolutions of the conference should be subjected to a referendum.

On the issues it outlined to be discussed at the conference, the forum pointed out that it want the country to adopt part-time parliamentary system, creation of additional two regions, which include the creation of a Midwest region out of the present South-South and the second one from the Middle Belt, making it eight regions in the country.

The forum also wants the Federal Government to continue to be in control of “defence, currency, customs and foreign affairs, while the states should be allowed to control their resources and take charge of many other ministries currently under the Federal Government.

It said: “We are also going to discuss fiscal federalism because it is our believe that revenue formula should be reviewed to be based on revenue generation not revenue allocation, so that you can keep a substantial part of whatever you generate from your region and contribute to the central government.”

Other issues are “autonomy for local governments, abolition of federal character, two-party system, legal reform, devolution of power, secularism of the Nigerian state, neutrality of the civil service, judicial restructuring, removal of immunity, scientific and accurate census, and electoral reform.”