President Obasanjo Independence Day Address - October 2000.
Fellow Nigerians, it is a privilege and a great honour to address you, on
the 40th Anniversary of our national Independence from Britain.
We owe gratitude to the almighty for protecting and preserving us
individually and our society as a whole to witness this moment in our
history, which coincides with the millennium milestone in the history of
humankind.
Let us thank God for the fulfillment and achievement of many of our wishes,
and let us pray to him to give us strength to persevere in our efforts to
overcome our weaknesses especially as pertaining to those areas where we
have suffered setbacks and success has so far eluded us.
As tempting as it might be, I will not use this occasion to dwell on our
Administration's plans or extol our achievements as a Government or as a
Party. There is a risk of doing some of that. But, I thought we should all
threat this as an occasion for sober reflection, as the hallowed saying
goes.
The fortieth anniversary, at the turn of the century and the beginning of a
new millennium is a unique and symbolically compelling moment to reflect on
our journey so far and to articulate and affirm an animating, elevating and
enduring vision and ideals for Nigeria and unwavering commitment to the
actualisation of a great Nigeria.
In most cultures and societies, the fortieth birthday is a significant
landmark in any person's life. Any man or woman who reaches 40 years of age
is judged to be truly mature, and worthy of being entrusted with sacred
responsibilities.
At Forty:
1. it is time to part with youthful pursuits and settle to a lie of
reasonableness, decency, good family values, good citizenship and
leadership;
2. it is also a time to henceforth enjoin the good and eschew the evil;
3. and it is the age to be realistic, candid and to abandoned deceiving
oneself and others.
We all remember the old cliché: a fool at forty is a fool forever!
But, we have even more reason to feel and act mature, because Nigeria is, as
a matter of fact, much older than 40, Nigeria - the name - many have been
stamped on our land by colonial design. But Nigeria the people and the
society did not commence existence with political independence from Britain.
Nigeria did not even begin in 1914, or even with the arrival of the White
Man on the shores of Wet Africa. Our people, the Nigerians of today, have
been living together as neighbours and mixing our lives accordingly. We have
been visiting each other, we have traded among ourselves, we have blended
our cultures. And, yes, we have quarreled, fought and reconciled with each
other. We shared the joys of harvest and growth as well as the natural
disasters of flood, drought or pestilence. The long distance trade in cattle
and kolanuts has, for example, been going on for centuries. What about the
great Empires that once exited in Benin, Oyo, Songhai, Sokoto and Borno? The
name and the political boundary may be relatively recent. But, our people
have been together from time immemorial.
We have been around for a very long time and, by the Grace of God, we will
be here in perpetual succession!
I know there will be some of us who will on this anniversary be wondering
whether or no we have any reason to celebrate. The many difficulties,
shortcomings and setbacks on the road to national development provide good
grounds for this cynicism.
I would personally count myself among those who have been most disappointed
or saddened by our many problems, especially as most of them have been
thoroughly avoidable and often self-inflicted.
As at the first of October 1979, when we handed over a robust nation and a
new constitution to an elected Civilian Government to launch the Second
Republic, some of you may recall from m farewell broadcast my vision of
Nigeria being among the top ten greatest nations in the world by the end of
the Twentieth Century. We were then ranked 48th in the league of the
prosperity. Now Nigeria has sunk into the league of poverty, where we are
ranked as the thirteenth poorest nation on earth.
Earlier than that, I also unfolded my vision of a Nigeria aiming to succeed
at building a just, disciplined and humane African Society. Instead, Nigeria
is now perceived as the most corrupt nation in the world, and so listed by
an organisation that I co-founded because of my belief in fundamental moral
values.
How can anyone deny the blight on our society when we all know how much our
society has degenerated into a kleptomaniac culture, where everyone
entrusted with any funds, public or corporate, everyone but a few, steals at
every state of the way, from paper clips, through ghost worker proceeds and
contract stealing, to outright plundering of the nation's resources?
How can anyone deny the unfathomable shame:
. when the whole world regards us as "born scammers", because of the
worldwide white-collar fraudulent activities of some of us;
. and, when there are many among us who look at every new law, not as a tool
for improving society but as a means to be rich through corruptly
circumventing it, in one way or another?
How can anyone deny the pervading depravity, when so many of us do not like
to do any form of productive work, but prefer to get something for nothing,
regardless of the morality of our activities?
With due modesty, I can claim that there are not many who would be more
disappointed than myself. I foresaw Nigeria as a great industrial giant, and
great in agriculture, petroleum, other minerals, with an economy that
exported finished or value added goods, making the most of what we needed,
selling it to the world and importing much less than we would be exporting.
Instead, Nigeria, apart from the crude oil, exports little, and land that
has been turned into a paradise for smugglers, commission agents and a dream
market for manufactures of junk and fake goods from overseas.
Fellow Nigerians, Nigeria had the land and the ecosystem, as we all know, to
be a country of flourishing forests and grasslands, with rich wild life to
savour and a healthy air to breathe and clean water to drink, and a land of
variety and beauty of nature. Instead, Nigeria has become an environmental
disaster, and ecology discriminated of its animals and trees, and with the
Sahara and erosion aggressively eating up the usable land. And no one is
doing much about it. Ours is now a land of rural deprivation and urban
subhuman congestion and suffering. It is clear that unless we do something,
we shall soon have nothing to show but decadence and what was and what could
have been.
Many of us had good reasons to dream of Nigeria as a Mecca for investors,
scholars, artists and tourists from all parts of the world, where efficiency
and enterprise would create wealth in the service area. Instead, Nigeria has
become a country most difficult to do business with, to visit or to return
to, all because of indolence, discourtesy, indiscipline, insecurity, ad, of
course, corruption. Nigeria became the country where things, anything, just
did not work.
Fellow Nigerians, this country was set to be a proud homeland where young
people had their career expectations of rising into the middle class
fulfilled, and all our people enjoying full opportunities of employment
particularly
in the burgeoning private sector, in a country with free enterprise, a
country of economic growth and development. Instead, Nigeria became a
country of stagnation, retarding economic growth and unemployment. The
middle class was all but destroyed. Professionals and academics found ready
successors in brain drain, resulting in a large pool of Nigerian talent in
the Diaspora and solving other people's problems. Those left behind at home
became idle and frustrated, steeped in poverty with disruption of social
relations. A young graduate could not look forward to a job, a house, a car,
not to talk of the self-respect and joy of marrying and raising a family.
We had all the opportunity, after successfully winning a civil war of unity
and achieving reconciliation, of becoming a truly united and powerful
country where everyone of its citizens was proud, nationalistic and
patriotic, feeling free and welcome in any part of this country, Nigeria was
allowed to become a country where politicians wantonly practice the politics
of ethnic and religious divisiveness, and where the responsible elite
leadership thoughtlessly talk of disintegration and dismemberment of the
country wherever it suited their personal political whim and caprices.
Not so long, many of us indulged in the intellectual luxury of seeing
Nigeria as a free and democratic nation with full freedom and human rights
guaranteed to every citizen. Instead, Nigeria was steadily pushed into a
most brutal dictatorship which corrupted everything and almost everybody,
not excluding our cherished traditional and religious institutions.
Nigerians became so impotent to the extent that a brutal dictatorship could
ride rough shod over the collective will, freedom and voice of the people,
openly plundering every public treasury or account, arresting, detaining,
torturing and even killing its perceived enemies, and to still have among
our men and our women disgusting but rich sycophants loudly cheering it. No
one would have thought that Nigeria would suffer such prolonged and brutal
tyranny of a few people over the rest, and to be saved only by divine
Providence.
Fellow Nigerians, I could go on with the list. Each one of us has been
disappointed to a greater or lesser degree by the developments that shaped
our nation in the last two decades. Some of the disappointments we can
share, others we cannot, but all of them have been by our own acts of
omission or commission over the period.
Maybe these are some of the reasons which make some of us feel that w have
no cause for celebration. I disagree. Even if things were much worse,
Nigeria is worth celebrating. Because all these wrongs are within our power
and ability to correct. All we need to do is resolve to put things right! We
will of course need God's guidance and support, but, as is known and
believed in all faiths, the Almighty will only help us to change if we
ourselves demonstrate the will to do so. We can right the wrongs because we
still have the country and the freedom to take our decisions. Many other
peoples in this world have to start by, first of all, finding a country, and
then fighting for freedom to self-determination.
We can right the wrongs because we have lived together all this while and
know ourselves. We know our strengths and weaknesses. We have shared
experiences. We shared the sweat of the struggle for freedom from colonial
rule; together we savoured the sweetness of attaining self-government,
followed by independence, and then full nationhood of republicanism. We
endured the crisis leading to the Civil War, and suffered together the pain
of fighting our brothers, friends, colleagues, teachers or classmates. And
we rejoiced as one at the end of that war, and we celebrated the
re-establishment of kingship ties in the context of a country that we all
believed was heading for greatness. We went through all these experiences
together, and more. Those who were present taught those who were absent or
unborn. In between, we witnessed together real life cycles of flood and
drought, boom and burst, ease and anxiety, pleasure and pain, happiness and
grief, excitement and frustration. But we never shared despondency. And we
never had reason to lose hope. All those who in the dark days of their lives
lost hope for Nigeria only lived to eat their words and rue it!
We can right the wrongs because we have been blessed in so many ways that,
compared to our assets, our problems become mere opportunity to show what we
can really do. Our physical endowments; the land, the flora and fauna, and
the mineral wealth, can support much larger populations, living happily and
enjoying a much better standard of living than we have been able to attain.
We are also blessed that these sources of wealth are utilisable by us in our
time. The oil has, for example, been there for a million years and could
remain for as long if only we were to leave it there.
Fellow Nigerians, I believe that we can right the wrongs of Nigeria because
we have our people. The men, the women and the children, these are our
greatest treasure. The people are not only an unsurpassed asset, it is also
our people who give us our intangible blessings-our history, as well as our
rich cultures and traditions, and our value systems.
It is worth dwelling for a while on what our people represent for us, what
they have done for us and what we can together make of the future. It does
not seem as if many of us reflect deeply enough on what a great blessing our
people are. They are not just dead weight statistical burdens.
All those who struggled for our independence remain our greatest heroes, in
whatever way they may have contributed to the common goal. They recovered
our dignity from clutches of foreign imperialism. They inspired us with a
sense of common dignity. They claimed for us a nation with much promise.
Tragically, less than six years after independence, the most prominent fell
victim to badly conceived political judgements and actions, when they were
overthrown, some killed and others rendered redundant. If only the dead
could return, they would surely wonder with much agony at what we have made
of the vision and system they had bequeathed to us. In many ways they would
feel badly let down. It was quite appropriate for the Founders of the ruling
Peoples Democratic Party, on the occasion of the Party's inauguration, to
have expressed words of apology to those leaders of years gone for our
collective failures of the country.
Fellow Nigerians, we have had leaders. People like Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe, Sir
Abubakar Tafawa Balewa, Sir Ahmadu Bello, Chief Obafemi Awolowo and Malam
Aminu Kano, would all rank very high as quality leaders in any period and at
any time and anywhere in the world. We should not forget the sad and tragic
circumstances of the demise of Chief Samuel Akintola and Chief Festus
Okotie-Ebor. There were also younger heroic leaders like General Murtala
Muhammed and Chief M.K.O. Abiola and General Shehu Yar'Adua. All of them
have gone to the great beyond. But, their memories remain fresh in our minds
and their heroism evergreen in our hearts. Their memories remain an abiding
source of inspiration and pride. They and their contemporaries, freed and
built Nigeria. Their work, their vision and their sacrifice serve to
illuminate our road map into the future as one country.
We are not only blessed with early political leadership in every other field
of human endeavour, Nigeria has heroes and heroines that are not only to be
proud of and to be admired, but to be regarded as everlasting treasures in
the history of a great nation. Our military can boast of officers of sheer
courage like the first Nigerian GOC of our Army, General Johnson
Aguiyi-Ironsi; Colonel Unegbe, who sacrificed his life in opposition to
military take-over; Colonel Adekunle Fajuiyi who chose death rather abandon
honour. We also have Ademulegun, Maimalari, Sodeinde, Mohammed, Largema,
James Pam and W.U. Bassey, who were men of great courage in a wide variety
of situations.
We also had-and still do have-outstanding professionals and academics and
policy managers in all fields of human endeavour. They rose to lofty
eminence in their respective specialties where they achieved both national
and world recognition and honours especially and including literary men like
Abubakar Imam, Chinua Achebe and Nobel Laureate, Wole Soyinka. This nation
still has people whose very names are synonymous with the struggle for
freedom, liberty, human rights and good governance. Let us pay homage to
those entrepreneurs who started from noting, yet honestly built empires of
wealth and opportunity, providing jobs and succour for many. Great men of
enterprise like Alhassan Dantata, Sir Odumegwu Ojukwu and Ogbeni Oja, Adeola
Odutola.
And we have our great athletes and other sportsmen and women, fetching
trophies and gold medals in world games and sports. Not to mention our fine
artists and performing artistes admired, collected of, listened to, or
watched the world over. You know that is true.
These heroes did not just turn up from nowhere. They arose from amongst us.
We, the collective rest, past and present. They selectively inherited the
high qualities of the society and excelled. In other words, the real hero is
the ordinary Nigerian, alive or dead.
Fellow Nigerians, I sincerely believe in the intrinsically good nature of
the Nigerian character. Of course, like all societies we have our share of
deviants and criminals. And ordinarily our exuberance and boisterousness may
often give the impression of aggression and abrasiveness. But behind all
that there is a great Nigeria, a kind and warm Nigerian. Our people are
diverse, beautiful, warm, friendly and hospitable. They are respectful
without possessing a complex. They are highly assertive at whatever level of
authority, but generous and helpful if correctly approached. Our people love
beautiful things and we must rank among the most well dressed people in the
world. Not only do our people like beautiful things, they admire success.
They celebrate it heartily in themselves and rejoice for others in
boisterous participation.
Our people are in love with education. That is why our great investment in
education succeeded in creating such a vibrant society where social gaps
have been greatly closed. Their love for education goes hand in hand with
the love for upward mobility even though some of the desperate means are not
laudable.
The Nigerian is indeed of generous spirit. We care for our people, and we
share what we have with friends and relatives. A lot of the time,
foreigners, particularly from the so-called developed countries, admire the
classical African way - we care for our kinsfolk; parents, children and all
relatives, to whatever extend we can. Buy tradition we care to share.
It is this generosity of spirit that enabled us, over the ages to build a
very fluid society whereby any one can rise to the top in wealth or power
regardless of pedigree or even early status in life. The truth of this
statement is borne out by numerous examples that surround us in the society.
Not least of all, Nigerians are great believers in freedom. That is why
dictators may come, oppress, maim and kill, but never totally subdue the
spirit of the people.
We may have our defects as individuals and as a society, but I have not here
said any good things that we are not. We may be too involved with ourselves
to appreciate our laudable qualities. But, others do. None of us can fail to
be impressed by how worried the rest of the world became during the throes
of our recent plight and how welcome to many nations far and near, was the
restoration of democracy and freedom in Nigeria.
The rest of the world was justified to welcome and appreciate Nigeria, and
we should be thankful for that. This nation has carried, and continue
honourably, to carry the burden of other nations, especially Africa. When we
recount what we have done for others, it is not the wish to belittle them.
No, in moments like this, we need to remind ourselves of the good we do as
part of our celebration. Whether in the United Nations, G77 and Non-Aligned
Movement, Black Diaspora, the commonwealth, anywhere, Nigeria has discharged
its responsibilities many times over. We have done so regardless of our own
difficulties internally, and our imposed burden of foreign debt.
But, nowhere have we had more satisfaction than with what we have been able
to do in Africa on bilateral basis, in the Economic Community of West
African States (ECOWAS), or in the Organisation of African Unity (OAU). This
country has, for the past forty years, and eve more, worked and owned for
Africa. We imported and distributed for Africa. We sacrificed, fought and
died for Africa. We have done so and we will not stop doing any of these.
When the great nations of the world are avowing not to send their nationals
to fight for any cause abroad, we have fresh in our mind our over one
thousand troops who, in the last decade, have died trying to restore peace
in our West Africa sub-region alone. And this is not counting material
costs. All over Africa, there are tombs on Nigerian soldiers who went to
sacrifice their lives for peace. Our troops are still out there.
History will surely record for ever Nigeria's inimitable African Nationalism
of being located in West Africa and yet declaring itself a frontline State
in the struggle to rid our African Brothers and ourselves, and the world of
the heinous evils of colonialism and apartheid in Southern Africa, and
successfully contributing to the eventual victory.
And there is no stopping for us. Wherever there is a real need for us, we
will be there.
We have every cause to celebrate and to give thanks to God Almighty for
Nigeria. Some of us can be very hard or cynical and say that all these
foregoing blessings and achievements might be very well, but that we have
squandered all the good will, opportunities, and mutual fellow feeling and
that there is little left to save. They cannot be more wrong, especially
when they consider the alternative, or when they consider that there is
really no alternative to a unite, strong and confident Nigeria forging
ahead.
Besides, and fortunately, such people do not represent many, let alone the
majority of our people.
The experience of evil governance in the years preceding transition has
raised serious questions about the strength of foundation of corporate
Nigeria. Who wants Nigeria? How do the parts see themselves fitting into
Nigeria? These questions were further highlighted by many of the incidents
and disturbances in many communities since we came into office. In order to
deal with the question, particularly with the fortieth anniversary
approaching, I invited a wide cross section of the political, traditional
and religious leadership of each of the six Zones of the Federation to a
separate dialogue in the State House in Abuja. We talked with each group at
length. They were very candid with us. Their demands and complaints were
varied, but of the usual vintage of equity, justice, development, power
sharing, marginalisation, security, empowerment, resource control and the
like.
For example:
. One of the Zones expressed firm belief in ONE Nigeria, but with true
Federalism based on equality, power-sharing and justice, where each tier of
government - i.e. Federal, State, and Local governments - has its functions
and performs its function adequately and efficiently.
. Another zone does not want only the unity and oneness of Nigeria, but
wants it with equity, and is ready to fight for it.
A Zone recognises its peoples as essentially itinerant all over Nigeria,
they need the unity and progress of Nigeria as much as any other group, but
it must be unity and progress with security.
. Yet another Zone talked of indivisibility of unity and oneness but with
greater involvement in the resources of their region.
. One of the Zone simply abhors marginalisation.
. Another simply cries for development.
We were rather pleased with the outcome, because the issues speak of an
underlying oneness in the pursuit of a fair and progressive society. But, it
was significant that it did not believe in a strong and united Nigeria. Let
me say that I most strongly share the sentiment of the Zone whose people
were prepared to fight for the unity of Nigeria. I have once fought for the
unity of Nigeria. And I am prepared to do so again, if need be. Let us all
be prepared to fight for Nigeria, that unity with progress is worth any
sacrifice!
The outcome from the interactive consultation with leaders from six zones
point us to the formulation of a binding National ideology which could read
thus:
. To build a truly great African democratic country, politically united and
stable, economically prosperous, socially organised, with equal opportunity
for all and making adequate all-embracing contributions sub-regionally,
regionally and globally.
This should substitute for political religion, tribalism and sectionalism.
This national binding ideology has a place for each Nigerian, no matter his
place of residence, his birthplace, state or region, religion, political
affiliation, occupation, social status, gender or present place of
residence. It is both fulfilling and challenging. It elevates rather than
diminishes.
If we all embrace this national ethos and live by it and for it, the name of
Nigeria will cease to conjure up in the minds of some outsiders the image of
chaos and confusion, military coups and instability, corruption, non-working
utilities, repression and brutality, violation of human rights, drug
trafficking and business fraud.
I have always believed in democracy. And I will always do. I have a track
record for that. I shall therefore never knowingly subvert the spirit, let
alone the letter of the Constitution that I have, not for the first time
sworn to defend. People will naturally always try to find ways by which they
can do their jobs more easily. But, I shall never forget that we all came
through democratic elections and have a Constitution to operate and defend
in our respective assignments.
I have always believed in fundamental human rights and freedom, because I
know that these values represent the best expression of democracy. I also
know what it is to be deprived of human rights because I was once deprived
of my own.
I have always believed in working as part of a team. Military training and
my military experience demand no less. Even where I have been given the
everage to determine the composition of a team, I have endeavoured to
maintain the team spirit. Similarly, belonging to a political party means
being part of a team.
And I concede full loyalty to our Party. Our victorious party, the Peoples
Democratic Party, is a phenomenon in Nigeria, being the first to win a very
large absolute majority at all levels of Government in a country where a
coalition governments had been the traditional means of making the centre
hold. We have to purge and strengthen the Party by manifesting a democratic
instinct at every turn, by successfully managing our impressive majority
and, above all, by making a difference for the better, for all Nigerians,
everyone, everywhere, and irrespective of party affiliation or other group
identity.
I have always believed in the great potential of our people. Every man,
woman or child has, or will have, much to offer, given a fighting chance. In
particular, I entertain great hope in, and have much respect for our youth.
I do not disdain the youth or youthfulness. Like everyone else, I also grew
up and do have my own children. Furthermore, I know that the young must have
a voice and that the young shall grow, which is what keeps the world going.
We are currently in the process of formulating a Youth Policy which I
believe will provide a suitable formula for looking after our youth.
I have always believed that the education we receive and the positions we
hold are mere tools and opportunities for greater service to our fellow
beings, especially our fellow country men and women. We are not
colonialists, and have not been put there to replace the British
Colonialists. We are supposed to be better than they were. That is the whole
point of independence. We certainly have no right to act even worse than the
colonialists did. The nation owes us citizenship, liberty, justice and
opportunity. It does not owe us a living, let alone callous aristocracy over
our own people. Furthermore, the fact that others misbehave, even if they
get away with it, is no reason or excuse for any of us to also knowingly do
so.
For the immediate future the task in hand must include: fight against
corruption, enthronement of equity and justice, need for moral re-armament
and spiritual regeneration, move away from recourse to ethnicity and
religious sentiments to sustain evil, greed, corruption, and oppression of
others. It is a sin against humanity and God to condone, actively or
passively, man's evil against other people because the perpetrator is
related to you in any way or you hope to benefit from the misdeed.
We are determined to move away from the past practices where corruption,
crime, injustice, indolence and perversion were seen by many as legitimate
avenues for wealth and advancement. Initiatives, industry decency and good
performance will be commended and rewarded, while corruption, crime and poor
performance will be punished. We must enhance moral tone and bring about
spiritual regeneration in our national life.
We are full committed to make every Nigerian feel secure, where security
implies freedom from fear, not just in terms of defending territory but more
in protecting people and providing for their basic and essential needs,
First, this must involve preventing deadly conflicts by promoting political
and social arrangements in which all groups are fairly represented, combined
with human rights, minority rights and broad-based economic development. The
socio-economic programme must be predicated on equity, accountability, and
alleviation of poverty.
Despite all the difficult that we have had to confront, and are still
confronting, it is always important that we all continue to have as our
motivation, and as the justification of all our actions, the duty to work,
with vigour and purposefulness, towards achieving our manifest destiny. And
that destiny is this: that by virtue of our size, our population, the
ingenuity of our citizens, their ability to endure, and the natural
resources with which God in His mercy has endowed us, it is our fate to be
great. But in order to achieve this, two things are essential; we must
convince ourselves that this destiny is a
realistic one; and we must ourselves work at it persistently and
deliberately.
We must all rededicate ourselves, at the beginning of the new millennium, to
the search for unity of purpose and faithfulness to the vision of the
founders of our great country.
I particularly wish to appeal to our leader in Ohaneze, Afenifere and Arewa
Forum to genuinely dialogue with each other, rather than talk at - and
against - one another from entrenched positions and postures. There is
absolutely no virtue in confrontation. Each of these groups, in spite of its
apparent large following in the context of Nigeria, will be diminished as an
independent nation by itself.
We all have a stake in Enterprise -Nigeria!
National survival in the coming years cannot be achieved trough weakness, or
through lack of self-esteem. We owe it as a duty to ourselves, to our
children, and to our children's children, to do everything possible to
guarantee for Nigeria the nest that our human and material resources entitle
us to. We have only just begun the struggle. The coming years are fraught
with challenges. But on behalf of this Administration, I solemnly commit
myself to do everything necessary, even at the risk of offending a few
interest groups, to make Nigeria a country, which in the future we can all
be proud of. I know how painful and difficult change always is, but I also
know that with patience, with determination and by the grace of God, we
shall all overcome. And we will all be beneficiaries of the fruit of the
positive change.
We all have our respective tasks clearly defined in front of us. This
Government and this President will faithfully pursue our Party manifesto and
our other programmes in the spirit of patriotism and discipline, justice and
fair play, due diligence and efficiency, transparency and accountability. In
particular, we are inseparably engaged in poverty alleviation, in the basic
education scheme, revitalising health care services and economic
reconstruction. Above all, we shall ensure with all the sweat and blood we
can muster, that our present democracy survives and grows and that Nigeria
remains a strong and united nation that every Nigerian shall feel proud to
belong to.
As part of our efforts to cast our net wide in seeking advice from relevant
quarters, I have decided to establish honorary Presidential Advisory
Councils - of not more than seven members per Council - on a number of
subjects, such as foreign relations, investment, youth development, and so
on. Such advice can only enhance the quality of decisions, policy
formulation and execution on these issues.
We shall also demonstrate compassion and appreciation in all we do. This is
an appropriate point to thank all who have been working for this country. I
thank the leaders in both public and the private sector, our teachers and
students, our doctors and nurses, all of our workers, all of our good
people, men and women. The going may be hard, but we are determined and, by
the Grace of God, success lies ahead.
Those who achieve shall be recognised and honoured just as miscreants are
fished out and punished. Those who need compassion will find it. It is in
accordance with this and in celebrating our 40th Anniversary of Independence
that I have granted amnesty to some of our convicts whose release will pose
no danger to society. Those who can be defensively pardoned will receive
sympathetic consideration.
Even as I thank you very much for your attention and wish us all a very
Happy 40th Anniversary of Independence, let me earnestly commend to you the
words of our National Anthem. Those works say it all.
God bless the good people of Nigeria.
God bless our country, Nigeria.
Long live the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
