As the 2023 election is around the corner, eminent Nigerians have called on Nigerians to do away with sentiment when voting leaders into public office in 2023, but vote wisely with their brain.
These eminent personalities who spoke at the Fourth Annual Lecture of Freedom Online publication held in Ikeja, Lagos on the topic: “Nigeria’s political indices:/Bright or bleak future?” saying that Nigeria required a leader that can unite the country and move it forward as past leaders had further contributed to the challenges facing the country through their acts of misgovernance
They warned that if such were not addressed it would have dire consequences on the country.
They made the call while speaking at the Fourth Annual Lecture of Freedom Online publication held in Ikeja, Lagos on the topic: “Nigeria’s political indices:/Bright or bleak future?” saying that Nigeria required a leader that can unite the country and move it forward as past leaders had further contributed to the challenges facing the country through their acts of misgovernance.
They therefore, urged Nigerians that, come 2023, they should vote wisely and usher in good leadership that would take care of the problems facing the country.
It was their unanimous opinion that it would be wise that any government that emerged in 2023 should be ready to form government of national unity with a national agenda, due to the division in the country, which he said was quite glaring.
“It is important that in 2023, we would usher in good leadership. Whoever should become president in 2023 would form a government of National Unity. Let there be a political Agenda that political colouration would not take the centre stage. Money politics should be discarded.”
“There is hope but there is a lot of work to be done. Even if moneybags come to you, take their money, but do the right thing. You know what the right thing is. Next time they would keep their money,” he added.
Ahmed Makarfi, the former governor of Kaduna State, said the private sector has a lot of roles to play in determining who leads the country, urging that they should play such a role well given the current situation in the country.
In his contribution at the occassion, Former governor of Ogun State, Gbenga Daniel, who delivered the keynote address, he said the forthcoming 2023 General Elections offered the citizens an opportunity to rewrite the country’s destiny, adding that whatever decision they made in electing new leaders next year “will be with us for arguably eight years.”
Daniel, in making the declaration, said Nigerians had to realise that the only way to see a developed country was to ensure that they vote with their brain and not their stomach as, according to him, a night with hunger was far better than four years of pain and struggle.
“Nigerians have to realise that the only way to see a developed Nigeria is to ensure that they vote with their brain and not their stomach. A night with hunger is far better than four years of pain and struggle.
“The next election offers us an opportunity to rewrite the destiny of this country. The decision we make next year will be with us for arguably eight years. That’s long enough to make the country better or make it worse,” the former governor said.
Speaking to the topic of the day, “Nigeria’s political Indices: Bright or Bleak Future?, Gbenga Daniel said as a leader, he was of the belief that the future of Nigeria is bright, both in politics and other economic indicators, expressing optimism that with the right decisions and policies, Nigerians can change the narratives and state of the nation currently to an enviable position within the shortest time possible.
This was just as he quickly recalled that based on recent discussion he had, and despite the current challenges Nigeria was passing through, the international community still believed in a futuristic, economically buoyant Nigeria if she got her acts together.
“Indeed, I can say that the future of Nigeria is bright, as a leader; both in politics and other economic indicators, I cannot admit that our future will ever be bleak. I am an optimist and believe strongly that with the right decisions and policies, we can change the narratives and state of the nation currently to an enviable position within the shortest time possible.
“A few days ago, I had an audience with a diplomat and in the midst of our discussion, the future of Nigeria came up. It was surprising for me to see that despite our current challenges, the international community still believe in a futuristic, economically buoyant Nigeria. In fact, many of them fear the endless possibilities that Nigeria can drive if we get our acts together,” he said.
The former Ogun State governor, however, suggested that Nigerians must disavow their minds from the prevailing ethnicity and disunity that had enveloped the society in order to kick start the process for development, noting sadly that at every turn in the history of the country, nothing meaningful was ever achieved when the country tilted towards regional or ethnic self-interest as evident from the pre-independent struggles.
According to him, “Until we formed a coalition of a united Nigeria with commitment and input from all regions and stakeholders in the country, we did not gain independence.
“Our Independence was to happen in 1953 after Chief Anthony Enahoro’s motion but our disunity caused a set back. In 1960, we were more united in the charge for freedom and we got it. So for us to really develop the country, every stakeholders in the country must forgo whatever bitterness they nurse.”
“Admittedly, there have been a few missteps. Many, after our independence. And these were occasioned by the struggle for power, distrust among ethnic groups and regional scheming for relevance. A new but latent one, religion seems to be gradually creeping in. Some policies were made with parochial interests while some were a child of necessity. Some of these decisions encapsulated into our present condition,” he added.
Speaking further, Daniel said the advent of democracy in the Fourth Republic in 1999 was supposed to snowball us into prosperity, but noted that while the leaders did their best, it wasn’t good enough.
He said it appeared that what was required for a prosperous Nigeria blessed with abundant human and mineral resources was beyond stylish leadership and idealism, but rather, realism in today’s world.
He said it was time Nigerians get to realise that beyond all things, they are alone and that nobody was coming to save them, and nobody would provide support to them “and the gift from any country or institution is largely of a Greek Gift in nature.”
“Once we imbibe this belief, then we can be more patriotic and work assiduously to self-growth,” he counselled.
The former governor, therefore, urged the leaders to do away with ethnic sentiments, saying it was one of the issues drawing the nation backwards.
“Every leader should forgo any bitterness they nurse, some policies are made with parochial interest,” Daniel said.
Former Anambra State governor, Obi, in his submission, said Nigerians should be concerned with the situation of things in the country as, according to him, Nigeria was currently experiencing cumulative leadership failure.
He warned that failure to have good leadership to rule the country can destroy every potential the country has.
“What we are experiencing today is cumulative of leadership failure. We are assessing our future, a future which everybody is worried about. We lack leadership, everything can be destroyed by poor leadership, that is the problem of Nigeria,” he said.
Speaking further, the former governor, also a vice presidential candidate in 2019 election, said Nigerians do it wrong at the process of recruiting the leaders, as many Nigerians, according to him, failed to be involved in the recruitment process.
“Why is the recruitment poor? All of us are involved. We don’t want to get involved. The leadership is poor. The selection process is poor.
“Please, let everybody get involved. Let us be concerned with where the leaders are coming from.“We must choose a leader that is competent and have the capacity to deliver. We need a leader that knows what development is all about.
“My contribution here today is that we have no other country, let us all contribute. We must stop all this abuse,” he said.
Also speaking, former Director-General of Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), Dr. Dakuku Peterside, said most of Nigeria leaders had mismanaged the nation resources, urging Nigerians to learn from history and focus less on event of yesterday but on the future.
“We often focus on yesterday and pay little emphasis on the future. Nigeria needs unity of vision and purpose. Nigeria don’t have a vision that will unified it as a nation, but we have individual vision. We should elect leaders who are not idealists but realists,” he said.
Peterside also said Nigerians should be prepared to make sacrifices if they wanted good leadership.
“We want good leaders, but we don’t want to make sacrifices to get the leaders. If we get bad leaders, we don’t have the right to complain.
“We don’t have a common understanding of development, and we don’t hold our government accountable, we should ask how our resources are deplored,” he said.
Former Deputy National Chairman of PDP, Chief George, in his own submission, called for a value system that would give every Nigerian a sense of belonging.
The PDP chieftain also expressed the belief that there is hope for Nigeria so far right-thinking Nigerians do not keep quiet in saying the truth, but quickly noted that “Nigeria is not yet a nation because we don’t have a common destiny and it is a country struggling to survive, as things are not yet the way they supposed to be.”
George, who was the Special Guest of Honour, and represented by his Media Aide, Prince Uthman Shodipe, however, called for justice, fairness and selfless leadership, saying Nigeria must not fail but must triumph beyond the current tides.
Aare Ona Kakanfo of Yoruba land, Iba Adams, insisted that restructuring of the country was the only solution to the problems facing Nigeria as a nation, even as he maintained that the problem of the country needed to be solved before talking of another general elections.
According to him, the approach should be to restructure the country in a way that would allow regionalism, saying that was the only way to save this country from a bleak future.
“If we don’t do that, we will be running from pillar to post,” Adams warned.
Earlier in his welcome address, the publisher, Freedom online, Mr Gabriel Akin- Adewo, said politicians needed to draw a line between governance and politics, saying that can be achieved by paying attention to the development of the country.
He noted that failure to pay attention to that had been responsible for the high rate of insecurity, and poor state of the economy, adding that over-centralisation of the system of governance further compounded the problem facing the country.
Those in attendance include former governors of Kaduna, Ogun and Anambra states, Senator Ahmed Makarfi, Otunba Gbenga Daniel and Dr Peter Obi respectively as well as former Deputy National Chairman of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Chief Olabode George and Aare Onakakanfo of Yoruba land, Iba Gani Adams, among others.
