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By Gabriel Dike
Former Chairman, Nigerian Economic Summit Group, Prof. Anya. O. Anya, yesterday, declared that the country is experiencing an undeclared war, which has affected the social and economic lives of citizens.
This is as former Chief of Staff (Vice President of Nigeria under General Ibrahim Babangida), Commodore Ebitu Ukiwe (retd), said Nigeria was bedevilled by intolerant, religious crisis, insecurity, and extreme poverty under the present administration.
They spoke at the 21st Mike Okonkwo Annual Lecture in Lagos, yesterday.
Anya described the problems of Nigeria as multi-dimensional and beset by a multitude of challenges such as mismanagement of diversity, security, inability to define national values, and inability to understand the competitive advantage.
“We are in the midst of an undeclared war where the enemy is ill-defined and where the consciousness for a wartime environment is lacking.”
He said the country was enveloped in an atmosphere of social alienation, rule of fear and total helplessness among citizens while the government continues to wring its hands as if bereft of any capacity to guarantee the safety and security of citizens.
“You cannot tackle the economic crisis without a handle to the economic crisis, you cannot deal with the social crisis. Your capacity to deal with these crises depends on the leadership question. Since the emergence of the Boko Haram insurrection our security has progressively lost control of vast swathes of Nigerian territory,’’ he said.
Ukiwe said he cannot think of a time Nigeria faced these kinds of challenges that have divided the country.
Bishop Okonkwo said Nigerians were eager and looking forward to a new country, adding, “we suffered in the country. God has blessed Nigeria but we are wasting what we have.”
