Tribune at 70: Emphasising needless lip service of new age leaders

It was the 70th anniversary of African Newspapers of Nigeria (ANN Plc), Publishers of Tribune newspapers, last week; and as such one of the strongest and the longest standing newspaper in the country, dating back to pre-independence era. Nigerian Tribune, just as the aim of the founding father, has proven beyond measures to be the voice of the voiceless and the hope of the common man through accurate reportage, most especially in present day Nigeria.

Many of our leaders in the past few days have sent in their congratulatory messages, extolling the newspaper for its role in nation building and also being the defence of the defenceless and the voiceless. They went on to praise the operational principles and legacies laid down by Chief Obafemi Awolowo, a man who carved a niche for himself in the annals of Nigeria’s history as an enigmatic leader, among various political actors of his time, his impact on Nigeria cannot be overemphasized.

Some of them, even in their dirty state, call themselves the descendants of Awolowo, all in a bid to use the sacred name to market their selfish selves; what a dishonour to the sacred memory of the sage! It is very sad that many of them do not even understand the legacies and ideals of Awolowo, because if they do, Nigeria would not be where she is today.

This is a call to them to eschew politics of bitterness and violence; politics that reduces human lives to nothing. It is terrible how they deny these barbaric acts and make vain promises of bringing perpetrators to justice, especially during electoral process. If we still believe in achieving electoral victory through bloodletting, then peace may be far from us as a nation because the innocent blood will keep crying for justice. Pope John Paul II said “If you want peace, work for justice. If you want justice, defend life. If you want life, embrace truth.” Rather than paying lip service of extolling Awolowo’s legacies, our leaders should harmonize all the centripetal and centrifugal forces to start building on the good and strong foundation for a better Nigeria as it was laid by Chief Awolowo and other heroes past.

Akintunde Ishola,

 isholaakintundey@gmail.com