STATE HOUSE PRESS RELEASE 

NIGERIANS ARE UNBREAKABLE, DO NOT HATE EACH OTHER - OSINBAJO
 
* VP adds: fair, swift justice essential to address grievances_
 
* Says classification of indigenes, non-indigenes is apartheid
 
* Criminals are not representatives of ethnic, religious groups
 
Despite the activities of those with divisive agenda, Nigeria will prevail over her tribulations due to the resilience, faith, hope and strength of its people, according to Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, SAN.
 
Prof. Osinbajo stated this today at the National Social Cohesion Dialogue organized by the Africa Polling Institute, which held at the Shehu Musa Yar’Adua Centre, Abuja.
 
Describing Nigerians as "an unbreakable people", the VP emphasized the shared interests of Nigerians across different facets of life, noting that Nigeria’s diversity can be used to drive further economic growth.
 
He explained, “And in the face of the challenges confronting us, we must remind ourselves of certain truths. The first is that our present challenges are neither unique nor exceptional. Various nations at various points in their histories underwent similar tribulations. It is within our power to address these issues and emerge from them even stronger as a people.
 
“Despite the divisive rhetoric of demagogues and the utterances of those who profit from disharmony, Nigerians do not hate each other. Every day, millions of Nigerians of different ethnicities and creeds comingle, make common cause and forge friendships across our fabled fault lines. While we have our share of such acrimony, the situation does not support the narrative that we are a nation of fragments condemned to be perpetually at each other’s throats.
 
"What matters is how committed we are to the constructive management of diversity and the peaceful resolution of such conflict. This is where we can and should certainly work much harder.”
 
Advocating for unity despite sundry differences, the VP warned against "polarising identity politics".
 
He said, "the truth is that Nigeria has evolved beyond the sort of easy balkanization that is proposed by some separatists. Politicians who continue to traffic in division and discord are behind the times and have failed to take note of how much more integrated our society has become."
 
Noting that the fair, swift and equitable dispensation of justice to address both everyday grievances and long-suffered wrongs is essential for fostering social cohesion, the Vice President added that, "we must strengthen institutions which at every level can deliver justice, inclusion and mutual security."
 
According to the Vice President, "an abiding feature of being a Nigerian is our optimism... Our capacity for hope is a creative optimism… Every day, millions of our people armed with their faith, skills, determination and wits take their destinies into their hands, working hard to forge a better life for themselves and their families.
 
“Nigerians of this ilk are everywhere repairing, healing, building, trading and doing business. They believe that tomorrow will yield a greater harvest than that of today and that as long as they have breath in them they can change their material conditions. It is this capacity for hope that makes us resilient in the face of incredible odds and even in the teeth of adversity. This is who we are as a people and it is why I believe that we will prevail over today’s tribulations.”
 
Speaking further on the need for unity and cohesion, Prof. Osinbajo said, "In many quarters, there are feelings of alienation and exclusion. To this point, we must recognize the ways in which we perpetuate institutional discrimination and cause people to see their identities as weapons for procuring opportunity, often at the expense of others.
 
"We see this whenever Nigerians are denied opportunity on the basis of their state of origin or because they are “non- indigenes.” We see it when a Nigerian that has been resident in a state all his life is suddenly excluded from admission into an educational institution or an employment opportunity because he is not considered an “indigene.” 
 
According to the VP, "All Nigerians have a constitutional right to live, work and enjoy their lives in peace and safety under the law. The classification of Nigerians as “indigenes” and “non-indigenes” is a form of apartheid and contradicts our declared aspirations towards equality and unity.
 
“Our Constitution enjoins Government to “secure full residence rights for every citizen in all parts of the Federation” and this is an imperative that we must commit to across all tiers of Government. All that should matter in evaluating ourselves is where we live and fulfill our civic obligations.
 
“This is why when we launched our Social Investment Programmes, the eligible beneficiaries were selected based on their states of residence and none was discriminated against on any basis. This was in keeping with the idea that the only true path to national progress lies in broadening access to opportunity for all Nigerians without qualification.
 
“Our destinies have become so interlinked as to be inseparable. This is why this administration is investing heavily in transportation infrastructure – road, rail, sea and river ports – to reduce the distances between our people and link localities to markets and enable trade, travel and tourism.
 
“Our constitution guarantees a full portfolio of civil liberties and it is the responsibility of Government at all levels to give life to these provisions. For example, states should as a matter of deliberate policy ensure that the freedom of worship and provide spaces in which citizens can lawfully erect places of worship.”
 
The VP further noted that even as the Federal Government continues to ramp up efforts in tackling the nation’s security challenges, a united citizenry would further help, especially in local policing strategies.
 
He said, “as we address the challenge of insecurity and the profusion of threats to public safety, we are increasingly turning to multilevel policing strategies that are consonant with our federal architecture. It is important that the localized security mechanisms being established by subnational authorities are constituted in an inclusive manner and reflect the true diversity of those that live in local communities. No truly sustainable security umbrella can be built on the basis of exclusion.”
 
According to the Vice President, criminal elements should not be generalized as representation of ethnic or religious groups. 
 
However, he noted that, "we must ensure that we see it for what it is – a criminal act which must be punished according to the law and not an ethnic conflict. Criminals must not be seen or treated as anything other than criminals and certainly not as representatives of any ethnic or religious group. 
 
"We will not defeat crime by dividing ourselves. We can only overcome it by uniting against our common enemy – the criminals who terrorize our people.”
 
The Vice President further said that nation-building was hard work and an inter-generational endeavour. 
 
He urged that all Nigerians “must renew the social contract and deepen the meaning and durability of our citizenship.”
 
The Vice President further highlighted the significance of unity in diversity in driving economic and social inclusion, stating that "Nigeria has what it takes to operate favourably in this world.”
 
The VP added, "Nigeria will be a great loser if we were to break up; when we see the greatest economic advantage to our size about to come to life. In short, staying together as a collective affords each of our communities far more opportunities for prosperity than they would have if they went their separate ways. We have all that it takes to be truly more than the sum of our parts.
 
“It is our responsibility to harness and consolidate these assets for the common good of all Nigerians. We will continue to work hard to create an umbrella of inclusive prosperity over our people. This is the defining task of our generation.”
 
He also highlighted examples that showed the power of unity over division, including that of 83-year-old Islamic cleric, Mallam Abdullahi Abubakar, who saved the lives of hundreds of Christians from terrorists in Barkin Ladi, Plateau State in 2018; as well as the reported ethnic conflict between Hausas and Yorubas in Shasha market, Ibadan, in 2021, where the VP stated that “members of both groups protected and shielded each other from harm.”
 
“Our resilience as a nation owes a great deal to this truth – that Nigerians are a deeply warm, peace-loving, humane people and they are capable of great courage and compassion. Our task is to strengthen and transform our institutions so that they better reflect these values,” Prof. Osinbajo stated.
 
The Vice President commended the Africa Polling Institute for organizing the event, which he noted was a significant work or social research that will help drive a more informed and constructive debate about Nigeria’s present and future.
 
*Laolu Akande*
*Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media & Publicity*
*Office of the Vice President*
*26th August 2021*

Just mere talks without action

Thunder fire all buhari supporters including osibanjo..

The more we keep shying away from the truth, the more doomed we'll continue to be as a people.

Speak all the grammar you want, preach all the scriptures you know, the truth will always stare you in the face.

And what is that truth?
The truth is that NIGERIA CANNOT WORK.
In 100 years to come, we'll still be talking about the same thing.

The disunity wasn't this bad forty, fifty years ago. But look where we are now? It will keep getting worse!

That we are even having this discussion means we are not United.

Your girlfriend cannot be telling you about pregnancy/abortion when no sex was involved

The only feasible solution to Nigeria is a total disintegration.

Nah eh! No qualms
This is so unsophisticated

True
Tribalism is also racism
Just that we are all hypocrites in this shit hole

Shameless man,What about NEPOTISM which your boss Buhari is a master at?

Stupid vp... Stupid president!!!


Failed government!!!

Foolish AP-shiiit supporters oya start posting rubbish,start defending your failed president.

Na only to blow grammar this one sabi

Says a failure whose hands has been tied since 2015.
You can give your omoluabi lands for them to take over and rape your women and children but it will be war if they enter my Niger Delta region. We don't have room for nonsense.
Even in America the native indigenes are recognize and valued separately.

Nigeria unity is not only negotiable it is impossible, I won't join your delusion because you are currently eating from the table. Let's see what you will say 5 years from now. You can ask Theophilus danjuma who once ate from their table.

This policeman below was moved to tears when he saw the Christians slaughtered by Fulani herdsmen yesterday and this bastard is here telling me to accommodate killers.

Oga VP what have you done about it? People in power constantly telling us stories of what they have power to change. Are you and Buhari not in a position to change it?

Illogical reasoning. People will continue to be identified with their places of origin, ancestry and locality.

He should also talk about the root of why people talk about indigenous background most often in this period; Fulani herdsmen. A situation whereby a tribe under the sponsorship of the FG of which he is the 2nd in command, are given free rein to constitute terror on Nigerians.

All these out politicians with their half-baked wit.

The Star boy of Nigeria's politics have spoken. My incoming president

dey there dey speak grammar....when people dey die anyhow

Ok


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https://www.nairaland.com/6717743/please-advise-invest-nigerian-stock

I didn't bother to read that,but I know his calling for unity when its obvious there will never be unity in this shithole

T.A Orji. Sacked my parents from civil service (level 14 respectively) without a single benefits.
His reason for the sack was that "they are not from Abia (non indigenous).


Crying....

Be speaking grammar there while the plan to islamize and Fulanize Nigeria is unfolding, you're part and parcel of Nigeria's problem because you refused to speak the truth in the face of ethnic cleansing and genocide going on in Nigeria. The cabal will not spare you no matter how you slave for them, they are coming for you.

Okay

This ni***""ger should shut the f up. He is a failed man. He is keeping a blind eye on the issues on ground. Weakling

Says a Yoruba man .. that his government is the most divisive in Nigeria history.

Shouldn't he be telling this to his boss?

I don't think this man knows what apartheid actually means.

I know the fact that Osinbajo benefits from the Nigerian contraption makes him economical to the truth but we should tell ourselves the truth; Nigeria is not and has never been a united entity.

Nigeria is not a country it is just a place with different ethnic groups fighting for dominance.

This apparent with every election cycle, even Northern elites know Nigeria is like two different countries when you compare North and South.

The fact remains that when one ethnic group brings foreigners to commit atrocities, the Nigerians of the same ethnic group will shield and even help them.

Saying we are all the same and should ignore the ethnic undertones which permeate all Nigerian issues, big and small, will eventually cause the death of Nigeria.

Prof osinbajo, I disagree with you on this one, let everyone answer his father's name abeg

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jl8PMJBRlYo

In this era of unquestionable depression. I can allow keep assuring myself of Gods blessing over my life.

I never chop since morning but hope day say my salary day come this month

This song is shaking me like red wine

Nigeria can never be united in this system of government. The more southern leaders fight to keep Nigeria united the more buhari and his cabals rubbishes the effort. How can we be united when buhari keep showing nepotism in assigning political appointments.

How can we be united when buhari keep rubbishing our efforts by his silence towards killing by herdsmen. Instead of acting, he keep on powering on how to steal lands to satisfy his tribe men.

Restructure Nigeria into region to save lives