Nigeria now divided more than ever before, Atiku raises alarm
Lateef Ibrahim, Abuja
Former Vice President and chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, said at the weekend that Nigeria presently appears more divided than it has ever been before.
Atiku, while admitting that the country is not at war in the sense of guns and bombs, stressed that the level of inter-ethnic discontent, hatred and hate speech is at an all time high.
The former Vice President said these in his goodwill message at the 40th anniversary of Federal Government College, Okigwe, Imo State at the College Pavilion in Okigwe, Imo State.
The former Vice President, who is the Grand Patron of Federal Government College Okigwe Old Students’ Association, told members of the Association, “All of you must be aware of the recent agitations from different parts of the country, with some groups threatening violence and, in some cases, secession.
“These agitations are the result of a number of factors which I will not bother going into at this time, although since you are all enlightened men and women, I have no doubt that you are well and fully aware of what they are.
“As a result of these various forces, the Nigeria of today appears more divided than it has ever been before.
“Our country is not at war in the sense of guns and bombs, but the level of inter-ethnic discontent, hatred, and hate speech is at an all time high.
“I would like to use this opportunity to call upon you all to play your part in the healing of our country. Remember that to whom much is given, much is expected.
“You, the current and former students of the federal government college system, have been schooled in the merits of unity as few other Nigerians ever have.
“You know from personal experience that the Hausa man’s problem is not the Igbo man, that the Igbo man’s problem is not the Yoruba man, that the Yoruba man’s problem is not the Hausa man, etc.
“You know the beauty of unity, of living together as brother and sister, in the same dormitory, in the same classroom, of belonging to the same house and working towards the same goal, whether it be winning a medal during inter-house sports competitions or a prize during a quiz competition.
“You know that, at those critical times when everyone’s eye is on the goal, the Hausa and Igbo and Yoruba need one another, must depend on one another to achieve.
” I call upon you, therefore, to go into all the nation in your various spheres of influence, and teach this crucial lesson
“I would like to use this opportunity to call upon you all to play your part in the healing of our country. Remember that to whom much is given, much is expected”, he said.
The former Vice President congratulated members of the Association on the 40th anniversary of their school-the Federal Government College, Okigwe.
According to him, “Looking back at Nigeria over the same period of the four decades since your school was established, the mistakes and the bad decisions are difficult to miss on the landscape of our country’s history. But amidst all that are some exceptional developments.
“The 40th anniversary of your school is an opportunity for all Nigerians to celebrate one of those outstanding moments in our history: the establishment of the Federal Government College, Okigwe among several other federal government schools,” he said.
