Ighomuaye Lucky, Benin
Ex-President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, at the weekend, said Africa politicians are replacing military coup with political coup d’ tat and that such cannot sustain the African continent.
Jonathan disclosed this while speaking on behalf of other awardees at the Igbinedion University Okada, Ovia North East Local Government Area of Edo State.
He was honored with the degree of Doctor of Science by the University.
The former president said the incident that happened in the just concluded elections in Kogi and Bayelsa states were heart-rending and that they fell short of what should obtain in the country that practices democracy.
“What happened in the last governorship elections in my state, Bayelsa and Kogi State, especially in Kogi State when that young lady was burnt alive in her house, something that should not happen in any normal society. Something is fundamentally wrong with our political system.
“Only yesterday in Ndjamena we were discussing the politics of our continent with most of us former Heads of State, Presidents, former presidents, vice presidents.
“The way Africa politics is going we are replacing military coup with a political coup de’ta and that cannot sustain the continent”, he said.
He pleaded with politicians to play politics by its rule for the overall interest of Nigerians.
“Let me plead with my fellow politicians, they should stop killing people, destroying properties because people want to own offices”, he said.
He commended the founder of the institution for his perseverance and doggedness for sustaining the university over the years, saying that the government alone cannot champion the course of its citizens’ education alone.
The ex-President said no nation can develop above its education, therefore the private and the government must play their roles to ensure that the educational standard of the nation is improved upon for the socio-economic development of the nation.
He also called on the founder of the institution to resuscitate his moribund Okada Airline to add to the nation’s aviation sector, adding that Nigerians want it back.
On the graduands, he said the survival of the country rests squarely on the shoulders of the youths and that they should be focused, stressing that he is convinced that the knowledge acquired all through their learning years would be able to prepare them to face the challenges ahead.
Earlier, the Hon. Chancellor, Sir Gabriel Igbinedion, said the institution, in its first 20 years, has graduated well over 1000 doctors while the Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria (MDCN) says it has inducted only a little over 82,000 medical doctors.
The Institution’s Deputy Chancellor, Lucky Igbinedion who spoke for his father, also said the World Health Organization (WHO) disclosed that Nigeria needs a total of 237,000 doctors for efficient healthcare delivery but only 35,000 doctors are available.