Atiku to NGF: Convene national unity summit of all Nigerian governors

Ibadan

The presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the last general election, former Vice President Atiku Abubakar  has urged state governors under the aegis of the Nigerian Governors Forum(NGF), to convene a National Unity Summit of all Nigerian governors to iron out the thorny issues affecting the country.

The former vice president is making the call days after the southern governors met at Asaba, Delta state capital, and demanded for national conference to discuss restructuring.

In a statement Sunday,  the Wazirin Adamawa said:  “The major challenge facing Nigeria today is that we are drifting. We are not just drifting politically and economically, we are also drifting apart from each other. I have often said that the difference between us is not North and South, but between good and bad. Therefore, those who are good should come together to show those who are bad that we are in the overwhelming majority.” 

The former vice president added that “It is unNigerian to terrorise your fellow citizens. Up until about a decade ago, we did not have this. It is unNigerian to abduct people. And this is undoubtedly a new menace that has low historical precedence in Nigeria.”

The statement partly reads “The truth is that if at a National level, we address these unNigerian tendencies immediately and dispassionately, we would not have Nigerians congregating at a regional or sub-regional level to address these issues. 

“What our present challenges therefore call for is not fragmentation but concentration. We must concentrate and focus our national willpower and resolve towards fighting these unNigerian tendencies. 

“Governors representing some states have met. And I completely understand the necessity of their meeting and the wisdom of their decisions. But no matter how much you try to clap with one hand, the vibrations will not be the same as when you clap with two hands. 

“These problems were created by those with a regional mindset, and will not be solved by those with a similar mindset. 

“For too long, we have erroneously thought that the power to make effective changes lies at Aso Rock. But without the states, nobody can get to Aso Rock. That is why for anyone to emerge as President of Nigeria, he or she must secure enough votes in two-thirds of the states that make up the Nigerian federation. 

“Let us apply this wisdom to our present challenges. I call on Nigerian Governors to stop waiting on Abuja to make changes, and instead convene a National Unity Summit of all Nigerian Governors to iron out the thorny issues affecting the destiny of our nation until they figure out a way to resolve them. 

“Forget about your party. Forget about your tribe. Respect your religion and allow it to bring out the better part of you. Meet together. Talk together. Come up with the solutions to all our collective challenges. 

“And then go back to your states, and consult with your federal and state legislators, with a view to getting them to work with their colleagues to implement the solutions you came up with. That is how to save Nigeria. 

“To keep waiting for this Federal Government to take the lead, and effect the changes that Nigeria needs to stop drifting, is to keep waiting for Godot. And that is a luxury we cannot afford. 

“We must be mindful of the fact that one in four Africans is a Nigerian. And one in seven Black people on Earth is Nigerian. Therefore, being so centrally placed by God, it ought to be clear to us that it is our duty to be a beacon of light to the Black World. 

“If we succeed as a nation, our successes will resonate beyond our borders. It will give hope to the Black Diaspora and increase the standing of Black people all over the world”. 

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