Ndubuisi Orji and Fred Ezeh, Abuja
Former President Goodluck Jonathan has charged Nigerians not to lose hope in the country.
Jonathan, in a good will message, yesterday, said the citizens should rather remain purposeful in playing their roles towards making the country great.
He noted that though the country may not have met all the expectations and fulfilled all the promises that came with independence, 60 years ago, it has recorded some progress in different spheres of life and triumphed over challenges.
“Like many other great nations, our journey has been that of mixed fortunes. Our nation has been through periods of progress and times of setbacks.
“We have experienced eras of strength, unity and faith as well as seasons of weakness, trials and despair. Despite these challenges, we have remained as one, and nurtured our democracy to 21 unbroken years.
“Nation building is a journey and everyone has a role to play for us to arrive safely in our desired destination. Today, we are confronted with numerous challenges and we require the commitment of all citizens to stabilize this nation. As a democrat, I believe that democracy remains the best platform for nation building, as it affords every citizen the opportunity to have a say on how our country should be governed.
“I therefore urge us to make investments that will shore up the democratic gains and work towards building strong and virile institutions. We need to harness the greatness that lies within our diversity and the strength of our population, to recreate and build the Nigeria we desire. We must de-emphasise our fault lines and concentrate on the silver lining within our lands, he said.
No reason to celebrate
–Catholic Bishops
However, Catholic Bishops under the umbrella of Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria (CBCN) said there was no reason to celebrate the because political leaders of the country have failed the people.
CBCN President, Archbishop Augustine Akubeze, in a statement, said: “Ordinarily, we should roll out the drums to celebrate but that’s unnecessary. How can we celebrate amidst high rate poverty, insecurity, dilapidated infrastructure, poor renumeration and several other challenges?
“During the 2015 election campaign, All Progressives Congress (APC) promised to attend to the issue of restructuring, sharing of resources, and a constitutional amendment if voted. It’s somewhat regrettable that they have not kept to the electoral promises few years down the line.
“Therefore, governors, Senators, Federal House of Representative members and other political leaders must all work towards ensuring restructuring of Nigeria because the country is almost at the verge of total collapse.”
Nevertheless, Archbishop Akubeze called on Nigerians to be hopeful and strengthen their faith in God who has the power to trigger unexpected changes that could herald the desired changes in system.
“The source of our hope is in God who never fails. Human beings may fail us, but those who put their hope and trust in God will always be delivered. With hope, faith, and charity, let us pray and work for the good of Nigeria.”