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Nigeria created to lead black race, says Obasanjo

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… warns politicians against divisive tendencies

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has cautioned political leaders against actions that will further divide the people along ethnic or religious lines.

He lamented that Nigeria had never been as disunited as currently being witnessed, even as he asserted that the country had been created to lead the black race.

Obasanjo said this at a colloquium organised to mark the 113th anniversary of Kings College, Lagos.

He stressed that the task of keeping Nigeria as one must be achieved.

The former President said, “Today, we are politically disunited; economically, we are nowhere; diplomatically, what they say to me wherever I go is that Nigeria is not at the table. We need to have a government that understands what it means to govern and the responsibility to govern; not arrogance of ignorance, not crying nepotism.

“There are three races in the world, the white, the yellow and the black. For now, the Americans are leading the white race. The Chinese have taken the lead of the yellow race. I believe Nigeria with a population of 225million people is created by God to lead the black race. So whatever we do, we disappoint ourselves, we disappoint Africa and disappoint the black race. We must stop disappointing ourselves and when we stop disappointing ourselves, we will take care of the continent and the black race.”

According to Obasanjo, national identity is the foundation of social position, adding that weak social position causes distrust as people are reluctant to engage with one another.

He said, “We do not trust ourselves while confidence is totally destroyed and where there is no confidence, there is no togetherness. If we have no dream, then, what can be the inspiration for the aspiration of our youths? What can they look up to or aspire to? We must take being a Nigerian as first and being anything else as second.”

Speaking on the theme of the colloquium ‘Building Nigeria of our dream’, the former President said economic emancipation and citizens’ well-being are central to the national dream.

He said, “If you want to build the Nigeria of your dream, you must have a dream or dreams; we only have a Nigerian dream and if we have a Nigerian dream, what is it so that we can all key into it? But if we do not have a Nigerian dream, do we need to have a Nigerian dream? And if we need to have a Nigerian dream, what must it be?

“The Americans can say they have the American dream, the British can say they have the British dream but in our case, do we really have what we can call the Nigerian dream? For me, the Nigerian dream will start from the national identity, which we can all hold on to. National identity is the foundation of social position. Even when you look into our constitution, there is something we call national ethics.

“Chapter 2 (23) of the constitution says, ‘National ethics shall be discipline, integrity, dignity of labour, social justice, religious tolerance, self-reliance and patriotism’ Even if you take the two stanzas of the national anthem and pledge and bring it to our ethics, we have enough to give us a Nigerian dream. If we have a Nigerian dream, there will be vision for our youth. If we cannot agree on our dream for Nigeria, maybe we can agree on Nigeria we want and we work towards the Nigeria we want.”

The Director General of World Trade Organization (WTO), Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, who presented the keynote address virtually, said her dream for Nigeria is modest.

She said Nigerians are the most enterprising and industrious people on the planet.

She said, “It gives me great pride. You just give Nigerians the basics and access to these fundamentals of education, health, finance and infrastructure, and Nigerians will do the best.

Looking back to the start of the century, the record shows that Nigeria can sustain the strong growth we need to improve people’s lives when we do the necessary reforms, and manage the macroeconomic fundamentals.”

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Just in: Tinubu swears in Rivers Sole Administrator Ibas

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Just in: Tinubu swears in Rivers Sole Administrator Ibok-ete Ibas 

President Bola Tinubu has sworn in Vice Vice Admiral Ibok-ete Ibas (Retd.) as the Sole Administrator of Rivers State.

The administrator was sworn in on Wednesday after a short meeting with the President.

Tinubu announced the appointment of the retired naval chief at a nationwide broadcast on Tuesday, when he declared a state of emergency in Rivers State and suspended Governor Siminalayi Fubara, Deputy Governor, Ngozi Odu, and the state House of Assembly members.

The President said his decision was based on Section 305 of the 1999 Constitution, saying he could not continue to watch the political situation in Rivers escalate without taking concrete action.

The suspension of Fubara and other elected representatives has been rejected and condemned by many eminent Nigerians, legal luminaries, groups such as Atiku Abubakar, Peter Obi, Femi Falana, the Labour Party (LP), the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the Nigerian Bar Association.

However, the emergency rule has been praised by the pro-Nyesom Wike Assembly led by Martins Amaewhule, accusing Fubara of contravening the Supreme Court ruling on the political situation in the state.

Ibas was the Chief of Naval Staff from 2015 to 2021.

He is from Cross River State where he had his early education.

The new sole administrator went to the Nigerian Defence Academy in 1979 from where he proceeded to have a successful career in the Navy, rising through the ranks to the very top.

He is a member of the Nigerian Institute of International Affairs (NIIA) and the Nigerian Institute of Management.

President Muhammadu Buhari who appointed him as Chief of Naval Staff conferred him with the National Honour of Commander of the Federal Republic (CFR) in 2022.

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Breaking: Tinubu declares state of emergency in Rivers State

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Breaking: Tinubu declares state of emergency in Rivers State

 

President Bola Tinubu on Tuesday night declared a state of emergency in Rivers State following the protracted political crisis in the state.

Tinubu made the declaration during a nationwide broadcast, saying it is for six months.

He announced the suspension of the Executive Governor, Siminalayi Fubara, his deputy and all the members of the House of Assembly for six months.

He immediately named an administrator, Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas (Retd), to take charge of the affairs of the state for the six-month period.

Section 305 of the 1999 Constitution interprets a state of emergency as a situation of national danger or disaster in which a government suspends normal constitutional procedures to regain control.

A state of emergency allows the President to immediately make any desired regulations to secure public order and safety. (Channels TV)

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BREAKING: Tinubu addresses Nigerians on Rivers political crisis

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BREAKING: Tinubu addresses Nigerians on Rivers political crisis

 

President Bola Tinubu on Tuesday night will hold a nationwide broadcast to address the crisis in Rivers state.

Bayo Onanuga, special adviser to the president on information and strategy, said the broadcast will be transmitted by the Nigerian Television Authority (NTA) and the Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria (FRCN).

The broadcast is expected to be held by 7pm today.

 

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