Shun Leaders Who Build Ethnic Walls, Religious Barriers, Jonathan Advises Youths

* Buhari, Atiku, Okowa rejoice with Iwuanyanwu at 80

Ejiofor Alike in Lagos, Deji Elumoye in Abuja and Amby Uneze in Owerri

Former President Goodluck Jonathan yesterday urged young people to reject those trying to divide the country with ethnic and religious politics ahead of the 2023 elections.

This is coming as President Muhammadu Buhari and presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar and Delta State Governor and vice-presidential candidate of the PDP, Dr. Ifeanyi Okowa, have felicitated with businessman, publisher and sports enthusiast, Chief Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu, as he celebrates his 80th birthday today.

In his speech yesterday at Owerri, the Imo State capital, at the 80th birthday symposium of Iwuanyanwu, former President Jonathan noted that Nigeria’s politics is steeped in ethnicity and religion “to the detriment of our country and our collective roots. I think we need to reduce this.”

The event was organised by the members of the Correspondents’ Chapel of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Imo State chapter.
“Luckily, we are in an election cycle; so, my challenge to the youth is to take charge of their future; by electing those who believe in our unity and will promote peace and progress, not those who will erect ethnic walls and religious barriers among our people.  We have over-ethnicised our politics to the detriment of our country and our collective growth. We need to stop this.

“Collectively, if we work together and accommodate our differences, we can build a nation where everybody will have a sense of belonging, and everyone’s rights will be guaranteed. That is the way we must go; a Nigeria where equality and justice reign,” Jonathan explained.

Jonathan, who also quoted the statements made by the late Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe, Sir Abubakar Tafawa Balewa and Chief Obafemi Awolowo, argued that if Azikiwe was used as a representation of the Igbo intellectual vision for Nigeria at that time, it would show clearly that the Igbo stand on the unity of Nigeria.
“Today, if people see things differently, it only indicates that there are fundamental issues that, as a nation, we need to address. As a nation, we have challenges, but we should not be slaves to our challenges. Let us get over the obstacles and move forward.

“We have to adapt. We must not conform to perceived aberrant behaviour considered to be politically correct.  Let us look at the case of Rwanda, which had a gory experience of genocide; they reconfigured their nation so that in today’s Rwanda, the tribe is no longer an issue. They all see themselves as one people.

The incoming Nigerian leaders must take deliberate steps to whittle down the ethnic cleavages pulling us apart and pulling the nation backwards. So, my appeal to all Nigerians is to de-emphasize our differences and focus on the issues that bind us,” Jonathan added.
The former president noted that the Igbo people have remained at the forefront of Nigeria’s unity and development since independence, adding that they deserve recognition.