The Middle Belt Forum on Monday said it welcomes the proposed national conference convened by President Goodluck Jonathan provided it would not possess sovereign status and would not discuss ways to break up the country.

Its position was presented at the North Central Zonal Consultations in Jos by former Minister of Information, Professor Jerry Gana. The Forum said it objected to the conference having a sovereign status in view of the existence of the National Assembly. It also said it would not countenance the breakup of Nigeria because the 21st century promises to be a century of big rather than small nations.

Prof Gana said The Middle Belt Forum wants the report of the conference to first be subjected to a national referendum before it could have the force of law, and to also ensure that the final product of the conference represents the will of the people. It also suggested that every language spoken in the country should be represented at the conference on an equal basis. It also suggested that professional associations, civil society groups, women and youth and other interest groups be represented at the conference in order for all shades of opinion to be accommodated. 

The Middle Belt Forum was represented at the North Central pre-conference consultations in Jos by leaders from Benue, Nasarawa, Kwara, Kogi, Niger, Plateau, Taraba, Gombe, Southern Borno and Southern Yobe States as well as the Federal Capital Territory (FCT). It called for the creation of more states in the Middle Belt in order to resolve what the Forum called "lingering complaints by certain minority groups."  
Professor Gana emphasised Forum's preference for Nigeria remaining together both while reading out the Forum's position to members of the Presidential Advisory Committee on National Dialogue and stakeholders who attended the North Central stakeholders Consultations as well as during a press interview. He  said, "We hope it is not a conference to dismember Nigeria. We have paid the price of unity by souls of so many of our people. Our expectation is that the conference would give Nigeria a robust opportunity to live together under one God. The 21st century is a century of big nations. We would always be better together."

On the question of the conference's status, Gana said a sovereign national conference would clash with other sovereignties such as the National Assembly which proponents of a sovereign conference should not wish away, "as we the sovereign people of Nigeria elected people into the National Assembly." Demanding that state creation in the Middle Belt be an agenda for the proposed confab, Gana said too many groups still exist around the Middle Belt which feel that they are not getting fair treatment in the states where they currently exist. "We need more states in the Middle Belt," he said. 

The Middle Belt Forum also asked for devolution of power from the Federal Government to other levels of government. "We believe there is too much concentration of power at the centre," the Forum said, asking that much of the powers should be devolved to the state and local council levels.

The Forum also proposed a thorough treatment of the indigeneship issue, which it said is a sensitive issue around the Middle Belt. The Forum said, "Indigineship is a sensitive issue. We must together analyse the situation and come up with a solution." It suggested that the proposed conference should take the form of a Parliament with committees to handle specific issues, just as it advocated six months within which the conference should last.  

Delivering his opening address earlier, chairman of the Presidential Advisory Committee on National Dialogue, Senator Femi Okurounmu said the Committee was holding consultations with sections of the country because it needed the input of Nigerians from diverse backgrounds. He said, "We want the conference to be by the people, not anything imposed from above. We've come to hear from you what issues you feel should be treated at the conference. We also want your input on how members for the conference should emerge. We also want you to say how you want the result of the conference to be treated in relation to the constitution."

The North Central pre-dialogue stakeholders consultation in Jos was marred by a late start, as the meeting which was scheduled for 10 am could not start till 1.12 pm when members of the presidential advisory committee arrived the venue of the meeting with apologies that did not impress people who had been waiting for hours.