The Task Of Consolidating Gains Of National Unity

The Task Of Consolidating Gains Of National Unity

The Nigerian nation came into existence in 1914, through the amalgamation of the Northern and Southern protectorates under British colonial rule.

This rule continued until 1960 when the sovereign State of Nigeria was granted independence.

The country became a Republic in 1963 and since the attainment of nationhood, the central issue in public policies and politics has been that of national unity.

This quest for national unity led to the Nigerian civil war which took a great toll on lives and property.

The Nigerian coat of arm proclaims unity and faith, peace and progress as its motto.

The quota system and federal character principles were introduced and made as a cardinal formular in federal resource and position sharing, allocations and appointments to engender unity, equal spread and opportunity, justice and fair play.

Furthermore, the National Youths Service Corps (NYSC) scheme was established in 1973, in pursuit of national unity: to enable young Nigerians serve the country in another part of the country other than their state of origin except in strictly unavoidable circumstances.

This was aimed at deepening the spirit of national unity and enhancing nationalistic and patriotic consciousness among the youths, who are conceived to be the future leaders.

In the present dispensation, governments across the country have not relented in promulgating policies, programmes and actions geared towards advancing the course of national unity.

Regrettably however, there have been several cases where actions, pronouncements and public policies of the federal government, some states, regions, local governments and individuals, have tended to make a preference for one section of the country, at the detriment of others.

It is equally incontrovertible that the current festering insecurity, agitations for resource control, devolution of power, secession, restructuring and the repeated calls for either the implementation of the report of the 2014 National Confab, or the convocation of a fresh national dialogue, are all fallouts from feelings of rejection and neglect.

These instances have undoubtedly tended to contradict as well as draw back the hands of the unity clock.

Surely, they apparently negate the principle of national unity which the Nigerian nation has sacrificed so much over the years to preserve.

As the nation advances, leaders at the various levels and arms of government, must manifestly drive the course of national unity through the force of practical examples, as enshrined in the nation’s constitution rather than by rhetorics or lip service.

One visible way of doing this is through the rotation of the number one political position of this country, equitable distribution of the nation’s abundant resources, political, civil and public service appointments across the various states, regions and zones of the country, as well as the abolition of the indigene and non-indigene syndrome.

In fact, all advanced societies to which all our leaders travel very often, have since gone beyond using parochial and primordial parameters to determine admittance into membership.

This is why, for example, Nigerians and citizens of other nations of the world can today aspire for American citizenship through visa lottery.

This is equally why a former American president, Mr. Barak Obama is from an African country, Kenya. In the same American society, the nuclear family of former president George Bush produced governors in two states.

Premised on the foregoing, the present and future generations of Nigerian leaders must advance national unity beyond semantics or merely supporting the national football team during international matches.

Nigerian leaders must also in all their words, thoughts and actions begin to develop the penchant for conspicuously upholding the principle of equal opportunities to all Nigerians and all parts of the country without bias, sentiments or sectional prejudice.

By Benjamin Nwokedi, Edited By Grace Namiji