The President-Elect, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, must make it a top priority to urgently tackle the pervading spate of ethnic divisiveness and high degree of hate among the various nationalities that presently constitute Nigeria.
This was the viewpoint expressed by a renowned management consultant and chartered engineer, Apostle Moses Oludele Idowu, while speaking as Guest on Boiling Point Arena , a popular monthly online discourse monitored via Google Meet and transmitted live on an Abeokuta-based radio station, Oodua 99.9FM.
Apostle Idowu spoke on the topic, Post-election Nigeria: Panacea for building tribal cohesion, integration and unity during the sixth edition of Boiling Point Arena, a forum for good governance and national development, convened by a notable media professional and activist, Mr Ayo Arowojolu.
For him, the top priority of the incoming administration must be how to unite Nigerians, ensure security of lives and property and as well create opportunities for youths empowerment/employment.
Idowu, who canvassed
righteousness in governance, faulted the call in some quarters for interim government to scuttle the May 29 inauguration of the new government, saying, “Canvassing for interim government when the process of litigation is still going on was a contradiction.
“If you have submitted a case for litigation, you should allow the process go on. You cannot have an interim government when an election has been conducted and when the Independent National Electoral Commission has made a pronouncement. The constitution is very clear about the process that must be taken.
“People are afraid that what happened in June 12,1993 should not be allowed to happen. There is no reason for such fear because in June 12, 1993 election, there was no complete result. But in this case, we have a result, we have a president-elect which nobody can dispute except the court says otherwise,” he said.
He advised, “What Nigeria needs today is total healing and the incoming administration has a lot of role to play in ensuring total healing. There has been a lot of bitterness in the last seven years, those who lost their families in the cash jam and one insecurity or the other and mismanagement of diversity and economy in the last seven years.
“There are lots of challenges for the incoming government and we need to pray and support them to make sure it succeeds so Nigeria can have total healing. The incoming government must bring Nigeria back together again. There is a lot of division, it must unite the people.
“We can still have competence within the ambits of unity. There is no tribe in Nigeria that does not have competent people”, he said, adding that competence should not be used to promote disunity among the country’s component units.
He said further: “Also, there is still no security. Something urgent has to be done on security. Also, there is a lot of poverty in the land, serious economic disempowerment. Look at the level of indebtedness of the country, that is collective poverty, this is how we have been impoverished.
“A new arrangement will have to come to employ youths, to take the youths out of joblessness and poverty. The reason they are so angry with this government, with APC and why they don’t want anybody associated with the party coming back, why they are asking for interim government is because they don’t see any hope in the party,” Idowu stressed.
Earlier in his key note address at the session, the Olowu of Owu Kingdom, Oba Prof Saka Matemilola who also doubles as the Chairman, Boiling Point Council of Royals and Elders, commended the forum for utilizing its platform for promoting good governance and national development.
