Governor Seriake Dickson of Bayelsa State has thrown his weight behind the call for the restructuring of Nigeria, saying that failure to do that would make the country's implosion imminent.

Dickson canvassed the views on Sunday shortly after a thanksgiving service to commemorate the 21st anniversary of the creation of the state and Nigeria's 57th independence anniversary, held at the King of Glory Chapel at the Government House.

He insisted that the structure of the country as it is currently was not sustainable.

Dickson, who described those calling for restructuring of the country as the “true patriots”, regretted that a number of leaders miscontrued the call for restructuring to mean secession.

“My view is that there is an urgent national imperative for us to review the country.

“Maybe some people have problems with the word restructuring, but we have to re-examine our nation’s foundation and see how we can make necessary adjustments that will promote a more stable and prosperous Nigeria.

“The structure of the country as it is not sustainable.

“Very often, a number of our leaders miscontrue the call for restructuring to mean secession, no, those calling for restructuring are the patriots of Nigeria because we want to lay a foundation for a Nigeria that will last for the next 50, 100 and 200 years and above to come.

“Those people forget that in the next 10, 20 years, the country will be one of the most populous nations on the face of the earth. You can’t have that kind of high density human population, arguing every day and every time about the injustices and imbalances, there will be an implosion.

“So, it is best for us now to have a consensus. If there is any problem at all, it is how do we go about it not whether we should attempt a restructuring or review or not.

“That to me is taken for granted and I am happy President Muhammadu Buhari said he was not opposed to restructuring,” Dickson said.

The Governor said the Ijaw and the Niger Delta support the call for restructuring so that Nigerians could decide on how to run the country.

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