Navi Pillay, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, has urged the ongoing National Conference to make the effective distribution of Nigeria’s wealth foremost in its discussions.
Pillay told the News Agency of Nigeria in Abuja at the end of her three-day visit to the country that poverty eradication was a global concern.
She expressed the hope that the conference would be open to all Nigerians.
Dhe said: “I am surprised that such a rich country as Nigeria has so much inequality, poverty.
“Some states are far poorer than others.
“The world is now being marked by the super-rich and the very poor.
“We’ve addressed it at the international level.
“The world is concerned about eradicating poverty.
“The statistics that have come out is that 85 individuals in this world own the same wealth as billions of people.
“I hope everybody participates in the national conference and discuss why, when we’ve got all the natural resources, we are so poor.
“Why isn’t there a proper distribution of the wealth of Nigeria (among Nigerians), will be one good issue.”
President Goodluck Jonathan on Monday inaugurated the National Conference, which is expected to discuss any subject matter except the corporate existence of Nigeria as a nation.
The conference is also expected to advice the government on the legal framework and options for integrating the decisions as well as the outcomes into the constitution and laws of the country.
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