ON Wednesday September 16, shortly before the virtual Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting, President Muhammadu Buhari unveiled the logo and theme for Nigeria’s 60th independence anniversary celebration. According to the president, the theme of this year’s anniversary celebration, “Together Shall We Be”, had been chosen to forge a more united and cohesive Nigeria. While commending the inter-ministerial committee on the anniversary for a work well done, the president declared: “As we celebrate this anniversary, this government will work towards greater inclusiveness and look forward to the participation of all Nigerians.” At that event, he announced that Nigeria’s 60th independence anniversary celebration would be observed for a whole year, ending on September 30, 2021. At the same time, he insisted that the anniversary celebration would be low-key. “Celebrating 60 years of independence really calls for pomp and pageantry, but the global Covid-19 Pandemic, which has forced all nations in the world to think and act differently, has also forced on us the imperative of a low-keyed celebration,” he said.
It is contradictory for the government to maintain that a celebration that would last for a whole year is low key. If the celebration was not low key, would it have lasted for five years? It is also bewildering that the government is proposing a yearlong celebration in the midst of widespread violence and the Covid-19 pandemic. The country has become notorious for violence and is not effectively governed to provide an environment for the citizenry to thrive. Boko Haram continues to wreak havoc in the north-eastern part of the country, with millions of people displaced. Only a week ago, a certain Colonel Dahiru Bako and a number of his men were killed by the terrorists. The traditional and social media space continues to be filled with gory details of killings in the North-Central zone and Southern Kaduna arising from herdsmen’s onslaught on farmers and inter-communal conflicts. In the North-West zone, banditry has defied solutions while kidnapping and other violent crimes remain a common occurrence in the South.
The president noted that “Everywhere you go, Nigerians are sparkling like diamonds in the pack, whether in academia, business, innovation, music, movie, entertainment and culture.” What he did not underscore is the fact that this “everywhere” does not include the territorial space of Nigeria, where the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has been on strike since March. The association of medical doctors are perpetually threatening strikes, and the labour movement decided on a nationwide strike as result of the sudden increase in the prices of fuel and electricity. With rising inflation, the devaluation of the naira, stagnant public sector wages and the establishment of Nigeria as the poverty capital of the world, there is scarcely any plausible cause for celebrating with “pomp and pageantry”.
It is therefore not surprising that major socio-cultural organisations such as the Pan Niger Delta Forum, the Middle Belt Forum, Arewa, Aka Ikenga and Afenifere have condemned the yearlong celebration plan as “a joke.” These organisations and a number of prominent Nigerians have consistently drawn the attention of the president to the parochial character of his appointments, the blatant disregard of the federal character provisions and the exclusion of sections of the country from appointments into key positions in the Federal Government. It is laughable that the government now promises to “work towards greater inclusiveness and look forward to the participation of all Nigerians” in the celebrations.
The plan to celebrate Nigeria’s 60th anniversary over a 12-month period shows that the government has become detached from the pains, misery and toils of Nigerians. We call on the government to retrace its steps. The 60th anniversary calls for sober reflection on the challenges facing Nigeria as a nation. The government must be concerned about the deepening divisions within the country, the near paralysis of service delivery, the persisting labour crisis that manifests in high levels of unemployment and recurring strikes in the education and health sectors, and the dangerous activities of terrorists, kidnappers and bandits that now characterise the nasty and brutish life of Nigerians. A nation that has moved from the status of being the flagship of the black race at independence to become the poverty capital of the world at 60 should reflect on how to put its house in order, rather than going on a spending spree in the name of a diamond anniversary. This government should ‘think and act differently’ like the rest of the world is doing under the Covid-19 environment.
MORE HEADLINES FROM NIGERIAN TRIBUNE
Lagos Govt To Close Ojota Interchange To Second Bridge For Three Months
The Lagos State government on Friday announced that it will close the popular Ojota interchange up to the second bridge in the area for three months beginning from Monday, September 21, for some repairs…
Hundreds of followers of the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila have continued to react to the twitter message on his official twitter handle: @femigbaja, on his engagement with his counterparts from Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Senegal and South Africa on the planned collaboration in the joint task of loosening the stranglehold of foreign debt on our economies, ahead of the 2021 conference of African Speakers, scheduled to hold in Abuja…
Nigeria To Sell Petrol Less Than N100 Per Litre ― Buhari’s Aide
The Senior Special Assistant to President Muhammadu Buhari on Niger Delta Affairs, Senator Ita Enang has said that plans were on the way for Nigeria to sell petrol less than N100 per litre. Senator Enang said as soon as local refineries begin operation…
Ondo 2020: PDP not divided over Jegede ― Campaign organisation
The All Progressives Congress (APC) has won 14 out of the 18 chairmanship seats in the just-concluded Ondo State local government elections conducted in the state last Saturday…
Stop harassing Mailafia, Secondus tells DSS
The National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Prince Uche Secondus, has admonished the Directorate of State Security Service (DSS), to refrain from further harassment of former Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Dr Obadiah Mailafia…
Baba Suwe debunks death rumour, says those wishing him dead ‘ll go before him
Veteran actor, Babatunde Omidina, famously known as Babasuwe has debunked the rumour of his death, describing the development as sad and uncalled for…
After Two Years, Daddy Freeze Apologises To Bishop Oyedepo
Daddy Freeze whose real name is Ifedayo Olarinde has apologised to Bishop Oyedepo who is the presiding bishop and founder of Living Faith Church aka Winners Chapel…
The controversial singer boasted about how he came about the huge sum from the match,…
The Managing Director of the Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF), Barrister Oluwaseun Faleye, has…
“The case challenges the President’s unilateral appointment of an Administrator for Rivers State and the…
The London Fire Brigade described it as...
A member of the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP) and a member of the Kano…
The Federal Ministry of Aviation and Aerospace Development has entered into partnership with the National…
This website uses cookies.