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From Juliana Taiwo-Obalonye, Abuja
Ahead of the 2023 elections, Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, has tasked Nigerian professionals to jettison politics of ethnicity, religion and others he called ‘parochial considerations’ in making crucial decisions for the development of the country.
He made the call at the maiden edition of the All Progressives Congress (APC) Professional Forum Conference, yesterday, at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
The conference with the theme: “The role of professionals in politics and nation building” is premised upon attaining quality service delivery in governance by harnessing, mobilizing and deploying all available professional skills and expertise in promoting and driving the party’s manifesto for the benefit of the people.
Osinbajo said there was need for Nigerian professionals to embrace politics that is driven by merit rather than throw up base considerations, especially as the silhouette for the 2023 election draws nearer.
He said: “The usefulness of professionals in politics is that you have people who are used to being assessed on the basis of their own achievements, who are unafraid to make competence the first advertorial of their acumen. In other words, professionals emphasise the role of merit in public life.
“So one of the major advantages to our communities of having professionals in politics is lost if we do not recognise our role as merit driven persons must be to fight the temptation of ethnic, religious and other parochial considerations in making crucial decisions for the development of our nation.
“There is no point having professionals in politics if these professionals are driven by ethnic, religious and other parochial considerations because the whole point of professionalism is that you are defined by merit, you are defined by your professional acumen.
“Nobody would place their lives in the hands of an incompetent doctor because they share the same faith or continue to patronize a dangerously inept mechanic because they belong to the same tribe. If someone told me, for example, that the pilot who is to fly the plane that I’m to go in is not a very good pilot, but he’s from Ikenne, my hometown, I certainly won’t go in that plane.
“So, in the same way, we must especially refuse to be swayed by those whose sole argument for power is an appeal to sectional sentiments. We must resist it. And we must say no to it, because otherwise, we fail in our professional calling.”
Minister of State Mines and Steel Development, Uche Ogah, also reiterated the need for the professionals to begin to brainstorm on how to leverage on the solid foundation already laid by the President Muhammadu Buhari-led administration.
The former governorship candidate of the APC in the September 19, 2020 election in Edo State, Osagie Ize-Iyamu his goodwill message, said the party should not create dichotomy between professional and non-professionals, adding that a situation where party loyalty is not rewarded on the bases that one does not have a professional background was unfair.
He said there was need for all to work together and everybody carried along.
A chieftain of the party and presidential hopeful, Chief Moses Ayom, said Nigeria under the APC was gradually moving from the previous state of professionals scavenging the streets for paid white collar jobs to a more desirable situation of breeding entrepreneurial professionals who are creating wealth, adding value and growing the economy.
