Dickson, Amosun Seek Nigeria’s Unity Beyond Party Lines

Emmanuel Addeh in Yenagoa

The Governor of Ogun State, Senator Ibikunle Amosun and his Bayelsa counterpart, Mr Seriake Dickson, thursday urged Nigerians to work for the country’s unity beyond political divides.

Amosun, who spoke when he led a delegation to the Toru Orua country home of Dickson to condole with him on the death of his mother, Madam Goldcoast, specifically said that politicians in the country should stop every divisive tendency and focus on how to make the country more united.

He was accompanied on the visit by the gubernatorial candidate of the All Progressives Congress in Ogun, Abdulkabir Akinlade; Senator Lekan Mustapha, ( Ogun East); Senator Tolu Adebiyi, (Ogun West); members of the House of Representatives and other top government officials.

He said Dickson’s ties to the Fidipote family, an Ijebu Ode, Ogun Royal family, through his grandmother, signified how such effective relationships could strengthen the country’s unity.

He said: “It is easy to say Bayelsa is far away because of distance. But our visit here is a lesson for all of us, that it is we politicians that usually divide ourselves.

“Look at Governor Dickson, look at me and look at mama, all the way from Ogun State. Nobody will know that his mother has roots in Ijebu land until you tell them.

“So it is a lesson for us that we are better off when we talk more of things that unite us and bind us together and speak less of those things that divide us.

“This visit is a very good example of that handshake across the Niger.”

A statement by Dickson’s Special Adviser on Media Relations, Fidelis Soriwei, quoted Amosun as saying that he and indeed the entire Ogun State were proud of the performance of his Bayelsa counterpart.

Amosun also conveyed the condolences of the Awujale of Ijebuland and other top traditional rulers and indeed Ogun State to the Dicksons.

He added: “We will one day go as governors but what do we leave behind after us? So I commend you for what you are doing in Bayelsa State.

“You will leave in a blaze of glory; People will remember you for your good work because Governor Dickson, came, saw and conquered.”

In his remarks, Dickson expressed delight for the visit and the show of concern by the people of Ogun State, calling on Nigerians to fraternise beyond party affiliations.

He restated the position of the family to establish a cancer awareness centre to prevent avoidable deaths from the ailment.