The Nation Newspaper

Tag: remain

  • Nigeria will remain united, says Maku

    The Minister of Information, Mr Labaran Maku, has said Nigeria would remain united.

    He urged Nigerians in the United States to have absolute faith in the country.

    The minister spoke in New York City while addressing Nigerians during an Independence march.

    He said: “We must have absolute faith in Nigeria and I have seen a lot of faith in some Nigerians here in the United States.

    “ I have seen Nigerians here troop out in their thousands to celebrate our nation’s independence.

    “This is great. This is wonderful and faith is what makes a difference in a nation. If you have faith, you can turn any situation into glory.

    “If you have faith, miracles are possible, if you have faith, development and transformation are possible. So, the most important thing is faith in a nation.’’

    He called on Nigerians around the world to be united and stressed that “diversity is the strength of Nigeria.

    ‘The same way you have diversity as the strength of the United States of America. No great nation is truly monolithic.

    “So, we are many and we are diverse, these are the different resources you can put together for the development of Nigeria.’’

    Maku said it was important for Nigerians to continue to respect the nation’s diversity and love one another across ethnic boundaries and cultures.

    He urged Nigerians in the diaspora to show interest in the development of the country by contributing to the development of the country.

    He said: “Let us benefit from your talents, from your knowledge, from your resources. Those resources should be repatriated to the country of Nigeria. See how Chinese in the diaspora developed China.

    “We expect Nigerians in the diaspora to contribute to our national development and we know that Nigerians are very talented in their professions. They are the leading lights in America and Europe.’’

    The minister also encouraged Nigerians abroad to have faith in the democratic process the saying that “change is slow but change is certain.

    “Every country you see today in Europe, had a very humble beginning, very difficult beginning, some of them more difficult than what we face now.

    “So, every generation builds its own layer on the development of a country. Our country is a very young country; 52 years old.

    “So, I believe that our country has a great future. The problems we face today are changes for the future generations.

    “Even the gaps we have in development are opportunities for investment and contributions to the development of the country.’’

    Maku assured the crowd that the 2015 general elections in Nigeria would be the best and added that bad leaders would not be elected into office.

    The minister, however, assured Nigerians that the Federal Government would soon achieve its goal of regular and uninterrupted electricity supply.

    He said the government was building 10 power plants across the country to stop irregular power supply.

    “It is the priority of the sitting administration in Nigeria to make life bearable for its citizens through the provision of regular power supply, good roads, rural infrastructure and sound education.

    Maku said government would do everything to restore credibility to the education system.

    “The government in Nigeria has passion for education. We want to ensure that every child has a qualitative education.

    “Nigeria is investing in education, especially the primary school education in order to achieve the standard that America has in the area of education,” he said.

    Maku said government had concluded plans to restore national infrastructure, including the railways.

    He said there would be trains travelling between Lagos and Kano states beginning from 2013.

    “ Nigeria will surely be the best economy in Africa by the year 2025,’’ the minister assured

  • Nigeria must remain united

    On my way to church with members of my family on a Sunday morning, in Lagos, we had just got to Maryland to link Ikeja when we became stuck in a gridlock, waiting for the traffic light to flash green to continue our journey. In the gridlock, I looked through the window watching pedestrians, but, suddenly, a statue caught my attention in the centre of the road.

    I always passed through the road during my secondary school days, but the statue never really meant anything to me until recently. The statue in question is of three men; perhaps from the three major ethnic groups – Hausa, Igbo and Yoruba – lifting the geographical map of Nigeria with probably the best feeling of patriotism.

    The art work tried to promote the unity of the country and the cooperation between diverse people habiting it. But can we say the people are truly united today? To begin with, politics in Nigeria has lost its value, giving way to tribalism with winners of elections are either determined by loyalty to a tribe or being a member of the tribe.

    It is perhaps only in Nigeria that people vote for a particular candidate in any election based on ethnic affiliation or religious persuasion. Employment into public and private offices has also been affected by the virus of tribalism. People with the right ideas, purpose, missions and qualifications are not given the opportunity to showcase their skills to contribute to the development of the society.

    There is also the menace of Boko Haram that is tearing the fabric of the nation to shreds. Many have propounded different reasons that brought into existence a sect that detests western methodology of education. In fact, in an interview he granted Financial Times of London, the Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mallam Sanusi Lamido, said the activities of Boko Haram were a result of inequality in revenue allocation that did not favour the North.

    Others linked Boko Haram to poverty, while some said it was all politics by the Nothern elite to get political power back to the region.

    Whatever the case may be, should we kill ourselves before we can make our opinions heard by others? How many more will die from the actions of these evil men, who are hiding behind religion to carry out their outrageous activities while the Federal Government tries in vain to stop the wanton killings?

    It is important to note that Nigeria has been united since its amalgamation in 1914. We, as a people, must ensure the nation remains united. We should not allow a sect with a corrupt ideology to tear the nation our founding fathers fought to bequeath to us, no matter how hard they try. We must show the strength and the power to resist any politician, who wants to pit the diverse ethnic groups against one another to further their satanic interests.

    Like late pop star Michael Jackson sang in one of his hit songs, Man in the mirror: “If you want to make the world a better place, just look at yourself and make that change.” If we want to see change, we must be changed. Nigerians must change their attitude of electing people based on ethnic sentiments or religious orientation.

    If all the tribes can put aside their differences and join hands together to lift our country to greater heights, then we can all look at that a statue such as the one in Maryland, Lagos and feel hope of a better tomorrow for ourselves and our children and our children’s children. May God bless Nigeria as we celebrated 52nd independence anniversary.

     

    Winifred, 300-Level Mass Communication, UNILAG