Unless Nigerian policy makers, researchers, and political leaders come up quickly with bold and new initiatives, Nigeria will remain in a developmental quagmire perpetually on the path of aspiration. This, according to former governor of Lagos State and national leader of the Action Congress of Nigeria, is the challenge before our Nigeria. “To free ourselves of the old mental shackles, we must discard old thinking. The problem is that we have not produced an alternative world view. People must think and act on something.  Before they leave the old, you must offer them the new, which is superior or more preferable…”

In an address at the 2011 Distinguished Annual Lecture of the National Institute for Strategic Studies, Kuru last Friday, titled, “Managing Nigeria’s Pluralism for Peace and National Development” Asiwaju Tinubu warned against the tyranny of dead and unworkable ideas and how they slow the country down on the path of peaceful co-existence and national development.

“In several areas, Nigeria is stuck in the past, applying decadent policies to new, and more virulent problems. At moments like this, the nation turns to the National Institute for new ideas that should make us break from the moribund past’. Tinubu then went on to throw a challenge at the National Institute, the participants and the Alumni to serve as incubators of new thinking and bold initiatives as Nigeria’s foremost policy think-tank. “I ask that you develop new ideas on the three issues I will set before you today; agricultural revolution, indigene/settler question and power generation-after developing them, forward them to the Federal Government to test the sincerity of the national leadership in accelerating national development and promoting peace”. On agriculture, Tinubu said, “The Agricultural sector presents Nigeria her surest escape from the ball-and-chain of unemployment and low economic activity. The shop-worn idea that the federal government must import fertilizer belongs to the junkyard. Fertilizer importation remains a vehicle of corruption bleeding the country of billions of naira yearly.  The over 400 billion naira fertilizer subsidy can be channeled into new agricultural initiatives, commodity boards and support for farmers”.

On Indigene/Settler question, Tinubu said, “The anachronistic and false distinction between indigenes and settlers has cost so many lives, destroyed so many communities and marred our national identity.  We must apply the constitutional guarantees in this kind of situation. If we must deploy tanks and armed soldiers for peace, we have already lost something.  Government must give meaning to these words of our first anthem,”O God of all creation, Grant this our one request, Help us to build a nation, Where no man is oppressed… I call upon NIPSS to further interrogate the ‘settler” issue within our constitutional and legal framework and be bold enough to come up with a policy paper on this matter to be presented to Abuja. No Nigerian should be discriminated against on the basis of religion, sex, ethnicity, place of birth or the place he or she chooses to reside.  Unless we do this, Nigeria’s pluralism is mere talk”.

Tinubu examined how Nigeria’s pluralistic nature has served it well and how it can further advance Nigeria’s search for peace and accelerated development if well managed. According to Tinubu, Pluralism connotes diversity and should be used for the promotion of harmonious relationship, prosperity of the commonwealth and the development of knowledge irrespective of political or religious inclinations.


http://sundaytrust.com.ng/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=8514:tinubu-calls-for-new-thinking-to-resolve-indigenesettler-question&catid=54:lead-stories&Itemid=127

ndu_chucks:

I am with Tinubu on this one, particularly the bolded text.

My friend, I am also with Tinubu on this BUT

Onlytruth:

Posted by: alj_harem
My friend why do you always have BUTs with bold attempts at unity?
You either want it or you don't. There are no buts about it.

Nwanne kedu!!
I have to put "but" there because in an ideal society, what Tinubu stated should be the case

NIGERIA IS NOT YET AN IDEA SOCIETY.

well I gave a senario for ndu-chuks and I hope you read it as well

Onlytruth:

Posted by: alj_harem
That is how you people always put confusion in Nigeria and blame us for wanting out.
It is like saying you are marrying your wife on a "BUT" basis. If she is smart, she would leave you with your BUT before you mess her up.

Like I said, it is either you want unity -WARTS AND ALL- or you don't.
Here I stand.

when a country is not mature to do something, why should u force it ?

Onlytruth:

Posted by: alj_harem
Two questions arise from your comment

(1) When would that country mature?

(2) Will it ever mature?

That we are still asking these questions after 51 years justifies those of us who think that we are wasting each others' time. Why not everyone go his way NOW.
Which sane human being would wait for infinity?

djustice:

This is the same Tinubu whose houseboy, Fashola, deported fellow Nigerians from Lagos State, on his express orders

Of course, he's only doing this because of the wahala he has found himself in with indigenous Lagosians, especially those in ACN, lately. Then there's the question of his wife.

He conveniently forgot this issue of unity when he sent his wife and his dog in the senate, Ashafa, to question the eligibility of Roli George to hold a federal appointment on the Lagos slot.

He also forgot the question of competence when he ordered the same people to roll over for the clearly incompetent Aganga at his confirmation hearing in the same senate a couple of months ago. This is the Aganga that couldn't balance the budget, gave us a budget with 74% recurrent expenditure.

Yekini Amoda Ogunlere, aka Bola Tinubu is just trying to be clever by half, seeing as he wants to use Aganaga, who is clearly another of his moles in PDP, as one of his options for Lagos State governor in 2015. The other options are his wife and Hakeem Muri-Okunola. All are non Lagosians. In Aganga's case, he NEVER actually schooled or lived in Lagos. Was not even born here. Tinubu's statement is just self-serving hypocrisy.

4llerbuntu:

but all u hypocrites pointing the finger should note where the other four is pointing.

if only my yoruba brethren wise up. only in the west will chidi become local govt chairman, commissioner etc.   only in the west will their be trips to solicit ndigbo and aboki pple. only in the west will foriegn  pple have kings and queens
only in the west will nnamdi, and abubakar become student union president.


yet it is anathema for kolawole to dare take to.politics in onitsha, i dont know of any baale or oba of Yoruba community in aba.  bola will never even dream of being secretary of ABU student union

how many big businesses owned by femi exist in ariaria?  but pple like tinubu will keep selling us for a mess of pottage in the name of integrating the failed project called nigeria.


yoruba ronu.   the very least we owe others is to let them the leeway they afford us, not more, not less

4llerbuntu:

but all u hypocrites pointing the finger should note where the other four is pointing.

if only my yoruba brethren wise up. only in the west will chidi become local govt chairman, commissioner etc. only in the west will their be trips to solicit ndigbo and aboki pple. only in the west will foriegn pple have kings and queens
only in the west will nnamdi, and abubakar become student union president.


yet it is anathema for kolawole to dare take to.politics in onitsha, i dont know of any baale or oba of Yoruba community in aba. bola will never even dream of being secretary of ABU student union

how many big businesses owned by femi exist in ariaria? but pple like tinubu will keep selling us for a mess of pottage in the name of integrating the failed project called nigeria.


yoruba ronu. the very least we owe others is to let them the leeway they afford us, not more, not less

Festus Adedayo,
Special Adviser (Media) to Governor Chimaroke Nnamani of Enugu State.

Dr. Festus Adedayo has worked with former Governor Chimaroke Nnamani of Enugu state

PeeDaVinci:

pple need to go back and read buhari/bakare manifesto on this.

What impresses me mostly about Shekarau's leadership prowess is his peaceful nature of governance as well as his belief in one Nigeria project. Imagine an Ibo Christian appointed by Shekarau administration as Special Adviser, including Yoruba and a minority person from the middle belt. I know what was obtained between 1999 and 2003 when most of the so called non indigenes were sacked from the state government establishment, which resulted in loss of Medical personnel

egift:

Thank you my brother. It was part of his primary agenda, but we have the "I had no shoes". I really think things like this need to be clearly stated out in our constitution.

Francis-1:

So it is Mr President-I- had- no-shoes who is now to blame for the indigene/settler problem that has been with Nigeria since before independence? Na waoh!!!

egift:

So Mr Francis, what has the President done about it? Since the solution is long overdue. What has he done (or is) about it that should exonerate him?

Francis-1:

Whose role is it to pass laws? The president or the parliament? I did not know that in Nigeria a democratic president can wake up and abrogate part of the constitution.

And BTW, as a citizen, why do you not send a private bill to abrogate the settler/indigene problem?

Yeah! Let's blame everything on GEJ, the shoeless president. SMH

BCuZiMBlaCk:

parliament do pass the law. The President is only a reprsentative of the nation(people)

Francis-1:

Whose role is it to pass laws? The president or the parliament? [b]Yeah! Let's blame everything on GEJ, the shoeless president. SMH

samstradam:

  Yes you must be right, he has no business with law making in this country- thats why when he won his reelection and Jos was burning and BH massacring innocent non-indigenes, his first course of action was to publically send a bill for term elongation straight to the house of assembly. Just keep on trying to warp reality.