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By Christopher Oji
Nigerians have been urged to shelve tribalism and ethnicity, and remain united as one people, if the country must move forward.
During a press conference at the weekend in Lagos, a group of concerned professionals, who came together under the aegis of Drop The Gun (DTG) programme, said what Nigeria needs to really be the giant of Africa is unity, and the world would reckon with Nigeria as a superpower.
The group stands on the opinion that “unity is the real oil Nigeria needs to be prosperous and crime-free.”
Chief strategist of DTG initiative, Modestus Bernard, said, “Unity is the oil we need to become like other advanced countries of the world. We know that Nigeria has oil and other mineral resources, but that oil can dry up; but the oil of unity can never ever dry up. When there is unity, the youths wasting away, roaming endlessly on the streets, can be empowered and, when the youths who are the future leaders are empowered, the country will be crime-free.
“Believe it or not, the fact remains that there is no youth without talent, but they need empowerment. They need people to help them achieve their purpose in life. When there is no employment, they look for other alternatives in crime, and you can’t blame them, because the world becomes a jungle to them and they see life as survival of the fittest.
“We have empowered a couple who we unveil today as DTG Ambassadors. We met them during an occasion where they sang very well. They were so talented but, after the music show, they were begging for money. It should not be so. We picked them up and started encouraging them.
“Today, they are our ambassadors. The wife is Igbo and the husband is Yoruba. Their lives have changed. We don’t care about tribe. We have encouraged them and they won’t beg again. This is what we want other Nigerians, government, corporate and private individuals, to do. Find people with talents and encourage them to avoid them seeking help through crime.
“As we are planning our celebration of 65 years of Independence, we use this opportunity to appeal to our President to look into the issue of unity. We have made attempts to see him, we wrote letters to him, but there has been no response. We are appealing to him to grant us audience and hear what we have to tell him about the unity of Nigeria. DTG is a programme designed to promote unity among Nigerians, create employment and empower opportunities for millions of youths while rendering crime unattractive.
“Our President loves unity; there is no President that will not like peace and unity. Let him grant us audience and hear what we want to tell him. We need a N2 billion loan from the Presidency to enable us carry out our empowerment vision. If we are granted the loan, the President should assign the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to monitor how the money is expended and how it will be paid back. We are transparent in our vision. The money will be used in empowering the youths to become useful and productive.
“For instance, we are producing T-shirts with our logo and inscription: which will be sold to millions of Nigerians across the country and in the diaspora. The printing of the shirts and distribution can create massive employment for the youths. Our stadiums are underutilized. So, we intend to keep our youths busy with sports that will give them international recognition and bring pride to Nigeria. We really need audience with President Bola Tinubu.
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“Sixty-five years after Independence, Nigeria remains divided along ethnic, religious and political lines. This disunity led to civil war in the past, and, decades later, it continues to cripple our progress. Disunity is not just one of Nigeria’s problems, it is a basket holding all the solutions. Nigeria was formed to be a giant, a diverse, but united leader of the black race. Instead, tribalism and division have weakened our foundation.
“No nation divided against itself can stand. Nigerians kill and harm themselves because of absence of unity. Millions of youths are idle and desperate. Most Nigerians are more certain of the days they will go hungry than the days they will eat. Abandoned youths, stripped of opportunities, drift into fraud, banditry and terorism, not by choice but by circumstances.”
On his advice to the Presidency, Bernard said, “President Tinubu’s administration can be remembered as the one that turned unity into strength, crime into creativity, despair into dignity, poverty into prosperity. Our President should take this advice seriously.
“His current official dress style of always reflecting one section of the country is unconsciously portraying him more of a tribal leader than as the father of the nation. Fashion is not trivial, it is instant language. His recent event in Paris with President Macron, was applauded by Nigerians because he looked not just fashionable, but truly presidential. That single image sent a message stronger than a thousand speeches.
“If you deliberately adopt unity-inspired attire, sometimes wearing the cultural clothes of different tribes, sometimes appearing in modern presidential suits, you will rewrite your political story. You will be seen not just as the President of Nigeria, but also as a leader of unity in Africa.”
On her part, DTG Woman of Peace, Omolara Faboyede, who corroborated all Bernard said, maintained the that unity is far better and valuable than the crude oil that Nigeria regards as wealth, adding that, with unity, the country can create jobs, inspire creativity and make crime unattractive.
She called on celebrities to join hands in promoting unity, saying, “We are all influencers, but there are super-influencers in our country: musicians, actors, comedians, athletes, media practitioners and other men and women, including religious leaders whose voices reach millions of people at once, to preach unity in their area of profession and vocation.
“In a few days, DTG project will unveil the Unity Challenge Fashion Exercise. It is more than clothes; it is a movement. A million Nigerians wearing one message: Unity is the real oil. We call on celebrities and other influencers to wear it, as their participation will not only inspire millions but also creat jobs for our young ones, open doors of creativity, and silence those for disunity and crime.”
Another top brass of DTG, Emasa Onome Beauty, added her voice to the appeal to government to grant audience to the organization, saying that, “Our chief strategist has been trying to meet with the President and the chairman of the EFCC.
He wrote letters which were rejected on delivery. Every day, Nigerian youths are being arrested, prosecuted and imprisoned for fraud, but how long will this continue and how many prisons will they continue to build?
“We want to proffer suggestions to the government on what to do to stop crime. Prevention is better than cure, as prosecution can’t stop this crisis alone. Unity is the solution. When we are united, we can create jobs that can empower millions of youths. We can make crime unattractive by giving dignity and income through credibility.”
