Nigeria @ 55: We Must Join Hands to Build Nigeria – Oshiomhole

Nigeria @ 55: We Must Join Hands to Build Nigeria – Oshiomhole

Thursday, October 1, 2015 5:31 pm


Governor Adams Oshiomhole of Edo State inspects the parade mounted by men of the Nigeria Police to mark Nigeria’s 55th Independence Anniversary, in Benin City, on Thursday.

Governor Adams Oshiomhole of Edo State inspects the parade mounted by men of the Nigeria Police to mark Nigeria’s 55th Independence Anniversary, in Benin City, on Thursday.

Jethro Ibileke/Benin.

Governor Adams Oshiomhole of Edo State, Thursday, expressed optimism that Nigeria will overcome its numerous challenges with time and become stronger.

The governor who spoke at Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium in Benin, during the celebration of the nation’s 55th independence anniversary, said Nigeria has started to reclaim her lost glory in the comity of nations since President Muhammadu Buhari took the reins of governance. He said for the nation to remain united despite the poverty, insecurity and tension witnessed during the last general elections, shows that the nation will overcome all its problems, adding that the task of building Nigeria belongs to all Nigerians.

He said the nation had made costly mistakes in the past and lessons have been learnt from those mistakes, urging Nigerians to renew their faith in the nation as better days are ahead. “We have every reason to celebrate this occasion. Our great country has experienced ups and down over the past 55 years. Some of us were fairly old enough, 55 years ago to witness the celebration of our Independence in 1960. Since then, we have experienced civil war, we have enjoyed oil boom, we have witnessed oil crisis, military coups and counter coups. We have had governments elected and overthrown and over the past 17 years Nigeria has returned happily to a democratic rule in which our people now determine who governs our country at various levels. In all of this, it is my view that our country is stronger today than it was 55 years ago. Regardless of what some commentators may say, I believe that our country is more united today than it was 55 years ago.”

He added: “In 2011 in demonstration of our unity, Nigerians across all primordial sentiment, elected a President that presided for four years. Earlier this year Nigerians across all divides, also exercised their right as a free people and democratically elected the current President. I believe for all of us, who had opportunity to review both electronic and print media, many had predicted that we will not survive as a nation in 2015. In fact, many predicted that the last election will mark the end of Nigeria as a country. In the process, some questioned the wisdom of the amalgamation between Northern Nigeria and Southern Nigeria. As we can see, the unity of our country is not at the mercy of our detractors. The commitment of our people to live together cannot and will not be weakened by narrow political calculations of individuals. When we look at what we have passed through these past years and the fact that we are here today as one united country, I believe that we are on the right path. There is no nation without its own fair share of challenges. There is no nation that is perfect and of course we have our own problems. In fact, when you watch the electronic media you will find that we are much, much better than some countries in Europe.”

He added: “I am happy that at this point in time, Nigerians have elected a President that commands respect both home and abroad. We now have a President that we can proudly say that is my President. He has already stated some of the challenges that explain our paradox. Our President has clearly identified that we need to stand in unison to confront corruption. The task of rebuilding Nigeria belongs to Nigerians. Today we celebrate 55 not because we have overcome
hunger, not because we are happy with the level of poverty or insecurity but because we are confident that having learnt from the mistakes of the past, we now have a leadership that is ready to provide leadership for us to begin to address all of those problems. I ask us to support the President, have faith in our country and together we can rebuild Nigeria to a level and put in place the right socio-economic policy frame work that will ensure that the wealth of our nation is reflected in the quality of life of our people.”


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