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…Walks for new Nigeria
By Bimbola Oyesola
Against the backdrop of recent divisions along ethnic and religious lines across the country, a new group, LoveNaija, is initiating steps to bring together Nigerians across the country.
Speaking at the inaugural programme in Lagos, tagged LoveNaija Unity Walk and Concert, the founder, Ikechukwu Daniel Okonweze, said the Unity Walk was designed to bring together the multiple tribes and languages living in Nigeria into one community in Lagos City.
The street walk, which commenced at the residence of the late M.K.O. Abiola, took the participants, comprising young men and women from all ethnic groups, across the length of Toyin Street in Ikeja.
Okonweze said the day was set aside to walk as “one people that recognize our differences.”
“If we come to walk and work together in unity, with the level of our manpower and population, we have the advantage of being an economic power in the global world, which invariably appears as matter of national urgency.”
He said, in the last 62 years of independence as a nation, Nigeria had grappled with several challenges with mutual suspicion and ethnic patriotism that have deprived the country of reason, sense of justice and fairness.
According to him, “We laugh and hug in public and plot against each other when we retire to our ethno-religious enclaves.”
He reasoned that once in a while, this mistrust finds grotesque expression among the people as the nation witnesses bloodbaths premeditated by ethno -religious contempt for each other.
“Basically in all, amenities are lacking”, he said, adding that issues that other nations have long taken care of are still hard for Nigeria to crack.
He said, “The essence of our walk stems from a verse in the first stanza of our National Anthem, which reads and I quote; ‘To serve our fatherland with love, strength and faith;’ the verse referred to has to do with culturing and building up ourselves in the spirit of patriotism to foster love and unity and maintain one indissoluble country.
“We are believers in the unity of Nigeria, and like the saying goes; ‘United We Stand, Divided We Fall.’ It is in unity that we can find strength and ability to conquer evil.
“Clearly, we are standing up for the issues of love, patriotism, unity and peaceful coexistence of Nigeria, at a time agitations to reconsider the basis of our existence as a country continue to dominate national discourse.
“We, therefore, salute our countrymen and women presently, who have refused to give up on the promise of our unity, the strength of our prosperity and the faith it promises in association with our progress.”
He further said for opportunity and progress to emerge, both citizens and its leaders must partner to reunite towards nation building in the true spirit of patriotism.
