By Vincent Ujumadu
SPEAKERS at the 12th Annual Zik Lecture Series have suggested ways that could move the continent of Africa forward and be in a position to compete with Western countries.The speakers were the former Prime Minister of Malawi, Joyce Banda, Governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo State, Governor Chukwuma Soludo of Anambra and the Presidential candidate of the Labour Party in the last general elections, Mr Peter Obi.Banda specifically tasked Africans to rise against the challenge of poverty, and insensitive and corrupt leaders who, she said, have continued to impoverish the continent. She said they must explore peaceful and united opportunities towards achieving meaningful and peaceful growth and development.She said: “African leaders are corrupt, that is the situation we all must take responsibility for and find solutions to. “African leaders are involved in organized crimes and looting. Unfortunately, we are all onlookers. Why are Africans not raising their eyes on this malpractice? The colonialists also looted and domiciled Africa’s wealth in Europe and the United States, while we were suffering. That is why Africa is today in economic stagnation and fighting natural disasters.“African women should be involved in communities to participate in discussing the upliftment of women folk and ladies. Women are exploited in Africa and must be protected. Women are still being extolled rising in Africa and we have more women in politics in African countries. Africa has produced six women presidents.“Climate change must be a topic for African leaders to sustain our development, yet we are the poorest. Africa’s founding fathers like the late Nnamdi Azikiwe, laid the foundation of Nigeria’s birth. We should take inspiration from his legacies.”Governor Seyi Makinde, on his part, advised the Federal Government not to ignore calls to restructure Nigeria to strengthen political and socio-economic unity among Nigerians.He said: “A complete restructuring of Nigeria is needed at the moment if the country must move forward. What we should be talking about right now is what structure will work best for us.“What is before us is not just uniting Nigeria, but uniting Africa. I don’t think Zik will tell us to divide Nigeria. There would not have been the issue of ethnicity if we listened to what Zik told us in the past.“The reason for the high ethnicity is because governance is too concentrated in the centre. We should sit down and think of what would have happened if XYZ had become the president or we look at the healthy competition between us and use it to move the country forward.“Zik of Africa, as he was fondly called, was born in Zungeru, Northern Nigeria. He came from Eastern Nigeria. We can understand why he had a national outlook and why he believed in one indivisibility Nigeria.“This year 2023, we have just risen from another election where ethnicity was used as a tool for campaign and religion was on the front burner.“I was part of the G-5 governors then, who believed that presidency should come to the southern part of Nigeria, but some people said “emi lo kan”.“This event, Zik Annual Lecture, is another opportunity for us to talk about nation-building. Zik spoke Yoruba, Igbo and Hausa. He believed that the political union of Nigeria was indestructible.“Today, over 60 years after independence, Nigeria has managed to remain indestructible. We went through the civil war and several elections, yet we have remained one”.The governor used the occasion to call on President Bola Tinubu to always listen to the yearnings of Nigerians.On his part, Peter Obi, who was the guest of honour, said unless Nigerians and Africans dismantle criminality amongst their leaders, the continent would continue to remain in dire stretch and irreconcilable woes.“The problem of Africa is leadership; it is African leaders that have turned the continent into a criminal enterprise. We must dismantle criminality in the continent,” he said.
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