Former President Goodluck Jonathan has urged Nigerians to not decrease their guard, however use the forthcoming 2023 elections to avoid wasting the nation’s democracy.
He made the decision in his message on the event of Bishop Matthew Kukah’s Birthday Celebration in Abuja on Wednesday night.
Dignitaries current on the event embody: Governor of Ekiti, Kayode Fayemi; Governor of Plateau State, Simon Lalong; the Secretary to Authorities of the Federation, Boss Mustapha; the Presidential Candidate of the All Progressives Congress, Bola Tinubu; and his operating mate, Senator Kashim Shettima.
Others are Apostolic Nuncio, Archbishop Antonio Filippazi; Archbishop of Abuja, His Grace Most Rev. Ignatius Kaigama; the Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Sa’advert Abubakar; the President, Christian Affiliation of Nigeria, Archbishop Daniel Okoh; former governor of Sokoto, Attahiru Bafarawa; former governor of Imo, Rt. Hon. Emeka Ihedioha; the Nationwide Chairman of the Labour Celebration (LP), Julius Abure; and the Director-Common of Funds Workplace, Ben Akabueze, amongst others.
Talking on the theme of the occasion, ‘Nigeria’s Unfinished Greatness: Subsequent steps’, Jonathan urged Nigerians to stay vigilant and put all fingers on deck to decide on leaders that can take the nation to the promised land
He mentioned, “Clearly, many individuals, particularly our youth have gotten more and more disillusioned about our politics and our democracy.
“Nonetheless, we should stay on the democratic path as a result of it’s the solely sensible manner of successfully managing our variety, creating sustainably and recording progress as a nation.
“The duty earlier than all of us is to not decrease our guard, lest the democracy we cherish immediately, succumbs to threats and recedes into fascism tomorrow.
“In the direction of this objective, we’re once more confronted with a superb alternative of selecting our leaders because the nation prepares to go to the polls subsequent 12 months. Allow us to select these that can take us to the specified vacation spot and the promised land.
“I’m notably thrilled that Nigerian youths are collaborating actively within the politics of 2023. Based on the newest figures from INEC, youths represent nearly all of the 96.2 million registered voters, within the build-up to the following election. That could be a good signal.”
He charged the youths which have registered forward of the 2023 elections to endeavor to stroll their speak by ensuring they arrive out to vote on election day.
Based on him, “They need to, by all means, resist the machinations of unscrupulous politicians who would want to exploit them by luring them to commit acts of violence or disrupt the method of free and truthful elections.
“Our latest expertise with the heightened youth curiosity in politics reveals how desirous they’re of collaborating straight within the governance course of. They now know higher to not lend their youthful power to unpatriotic acts, throughout elections.”
The previous Nigerian chief described Nigeria as a piece in progress; including that till that work is finished, folks like Bishop Kukah, who function the conscience of the nation, will proceed to be round to consistently maintain the mirror of the nation’s development to its face.
He defined, “In the midst of the previous few years since I left authorities, I’ve been concerned within the work of selling democracy, credible elections and peaceable transitions throughout Africa.
“From what I do know and have seen, I can confidently say that the expertise and battle for improvement are related in lots of elements of Africa.
“Nigeria will not be the place we would like it to and must be, however we should always not hand over or lose hope by specializing in solely the damaging.
“Judging from the place we’re coming from since independence in 1960, we could have been transferring slowly in our journey of nationhood, however it’s a journey of progress, all the identical.
“Our greatness continues to be work in progress as a result of now we have not been capable of adequately deploy the enviable human and pure sources that God gave us, to full benefit. It’s a process we’ll proceed to work on and enhance.
“A nation is an natural being that generally suffers setbacks. Alongside the road, from 1960, the nation little doubt has had its personal doses of setbacks. This cuts throughout civil and navy rule. The worst was the three-year civil conflict.
“In each set again, there are all the time classes to be learnt and optimistic take aways from such painful experiences that ought to information us to a extra productive future.”
