NATIONAL INTEREST: A PANACEA FOR DEVELOPMENT IN NIGERIA

NATIONAL INTEREST: A PANACEA FOR DEVELOPMENT IN NIGERIA

I have learnt that National Interest is the aggregate of interest of individuals and groups within a given state. It is all that a nation considers vital for its survival and prosperity. Proximate to this is protecting and preserving the interest of our citizens within the country and abroad. National capability on the other hand is described as the ability of a nation to protect its national integrity which is premised on national interest. The question to ask is what Nigeria’s national interest is and what national integrity are we protecting?

Section 19 of the 1999 Constitution of Nigeria which provides for Nigeria’s foreign policy objectives includes promotion and protection of National Interest, though it failed to define what it is. One of the problems of our national integrity may be lack of defined national interest.

The meaning is therefore left to what any leader who has interest in such definition gives it. Obasanjo in 1976 defined national interest of Nigeria as constituting four components-

1.      The creation of suitable political and economic environment in Africa and the world at large which will facilitate the defense of the territorial integrity of African states;

2.      The promotion of equality and self-reliance in Africa and the world;

3.      Defense of social justice and human dignity of the Black man; and

4.      The defense and promotion of world peace.

This may account for why Nigeria’s foreign policy is being referred to as Afrocentric.

However, from the description given earlier, Nigeria’s national interest should revolve more around the survival and prosperity of Nigerians, home and abroad than on the continent of Africa and the globe. In fact, the deeds of Nigeria in foreign relations should strategically center on Nigerians’ interest. Therefore, Nigeria’s national interest should include Nigeria’s economic prosperity, social welfare, and protection of the nation’s national security.

Having a concept of Nigeria’s national interest in mind, how best can we make it a panacea for national development? It is congenial to have an understanding of what National development may be described as. In context, it may include:

1.      Economic growth with a GDP and GDP Per Capita that is physically real to over 70% Nigerian being able to feed their families, afford education for family members (children and parents increasing skills), basic health care for the family. This will be identified by the following:

a.      Revival of the Agricultural sector,

b.     Functional manufacturing sector with uninterrupted power supply,

c.      Revival of the Mining sector,

d.     Provision of infrastructural facilities and enabling environment for the SMEs to thrive, and

e.      Nigerians being able to provide up to 70% of products and services consumed in Nigeria.

2.      Education sector overhaul: Civilisation, technological advancement and innovation flow towards environments with standard education. The standard of education should be increased with facilities and equipment adequate and functional;

3.      Exalted national ethics which include selflessness, discipline, integrity, dignity of labour, ethnic and religious tolerance, self-reliance and patriotism Section 23 of the Nigerian Constitution (selflessness and ethic tolerance mine);

4.      Security of the national territory for the safety of Nigerians and foreigners;

5.      Adequate and well equipped health care facilities with skilled staff. Reduction of child mortality, maternal mortality, containment of malaria and proximate illnesses, control of the spread of HIV/AIDS, reduction of death from curable diseases and maintenance of hygienic environment;

6.      Regional harmonization and security with interest in matters of global importance;

7.      Safe recreational and tourist attraction around the country;

8.      Practice of constructive politics that is built around national growth and international reputation as opposed to political party’s interest or leaders’ gain.

At this point, we will try to relate national interest to the components of national development described. It is in the interest of all persons that the components identified should be realised. In other words, it is in national interest for Nigeria to pursue and ensure the accomplishment of national development. The benefit of this extends beyond social welfare of every Nigerian to promoting an image of dignity, trust and opportunity for the citizens and the country to the international community.

Disregard to national interest is part of what has kept Nigeria as a developing nation of its current state for over fifty years of independence even in the midst of abundance of natural and human resources. President Obama one said, Nigeria is the major hope for real growth in Africa. But how are we trying to live up to this?

Just as we know of the US that national interest is a fundamental guide to its domestic policy and foreign relations, it is a pre-requisite for national development in Nigeria. Every citizen in whose benefit national interest is must rise to take responsibility for national development.

From a book titled Presidential Leadershiphttp://books.google.com.ng/books?id=myl2AAAAMAAJ&source=gbs_navlinks_s, a survey of the leadership of White House Presidents for George Washington to Bill Clinton, I observed that the US has attained the height of economic vibrancy and global political influence through continuous contribution of every generation of the country till date holding firmly to the watchword: national interest.

Upholding national interest by the leaders, policy influencers and makers, institutions, organisations, politicians and citizens in general is the ultimate guarantee to promote and realise national development in Nigeria. National interest will demand for contribution, discipline and sacrifice for us to experience all the components earlier described. Most assuredly, there will be better life for everyone both citizens and foreigner to trade, deal or visit us.

In conclusion, national interest should not be an abstraction but real to be held as a watchword for every citizen and leaders for the purpose of realizing national development. This is because national development is in the interest of every Nigerian.

Olusola Akinyemi Esq.

President

Joseph Initiative Ltd/Gte

olusola.akins@gmail.com

08077726199

TIPS ON MAXIMISING CAPITAL FOR NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

TIPS ON MAXIMISING CAPITAL FOR NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Capital to every entity has always been an essential factor for establishment and growth. Without it entities struggle for sustenance. This may include not being able to meet the demands of the market and not thriving in a competitive world.

Insight of the subject of capital as a factor for growth particularly limited. Basic economics teaches capital as a factor of production among land and labour. Capital has over the years been often described as money but knowledge and practice of this age has moved far from that. It now has types which include – human, social, infrastructural, institutional, security, information and financial capital. In considering these forms of capital, in the context of a nation, we will nexus them to their influence on national development.

Human capital

This relates to the extent to which every individual in a nation is realising their potential. It includes the advancement of individual skill, knowledge, talent and ability that influences personal, social and economic wellbeing. The underlying factor here is capacity development with consistency. Thus the growth of a nation can be measured by its human capital development.

Social capital

The quality of relationships amongst a diverse citizenry in a country with link to standards of mutuality and trust also plays a huge role in national development. Social capital is simply trust, which ultimately enhances other types of capital. This has the capacity to enhance speedy growth with less suspicion as it reduces corruption and crime. The main values of social capital have been described as trust, value system, sense of community and solidarity.

Infrastructural capital

It is a no brainer to contend with the possibilities proper infrastructure brings to a economy. Infrastructures such as power, transportation, friendly environment, government policies and laws influences development of enterprises and facilitation of growth. Commerce may survive without adequate infrastructure but will certainly boom with the provision of such. Also the cost of running business and individual sustenance is minimized. The absence of infrastructure can and has hindered growth across Africa, and in the 21st century the onus is on African government and the private sector to ensure the provision of necessary infrastructure that will spur the economy.

Institutional capital

This may be described as the guide of the nation which regulates the socially and culturally permissible behaviour that should be followed. Institutions dictate and enforce compliance on activities within the nation – consciously and unconsciously. The absence of this will create chaos in all areas of national existence. as the efficacy of institutional capital ensures that the objectives of projects, programmes and policies are met.

Security capital

This may be viewed in two perspectives – regime of government with sustainable policies on the one hand and physical security of the state on the other. Both local and foreign players in the economy are either skeptical or encouraged by policies of the government. It may also take the form of a government sustaining the progressive policies of previous administration(s). This should be based on objective test rather than subjective.

Physical security of the environment is a capital that cannot be overlooked. People and ventures thrive more in a secure environment. It cannot be overemphasised what a nation like Nigeria has lost to insecurity problems.

Information capital

This asserts information as an intrinsic value which can be shared and leveraged on to enhance growth. It means sharing information is sharing power. It enables the exchange of knowledge for advancement. Information capital emphasises decision making based on best available option. No individual, organisation or nation will function better than the level of information it is exposed to.

Financial capital

We have saved the big dog for the last. Financial capital, which is mostly been perceived as the only capital, is the money available for ventures to invest in products or services in sectors of the economy. The availability of financial capital makes ideas handy and thrive. This may extend to available credit facilities from financial institutions with special emphasis on fair interest rate. Other forms of capital mentioned will function at their optimum when financial capital meets them working effectively and efficiently in an economy.

In this era, capital transcends money. Nigeria, and indeed other African countries need to maximize all forms of capital towards national development. All of these forms of capital are important but I like to emphasise attention to Human, Social and Institutional capital. These are the major drivers of development in any nation. They have multiplier effect on the nation with the presence of all others.

Leading the maximum utility of capital as a veritable tool for national development should be led by the government. Some corporate organisations practice the use of capital beyond money and it has translated into development and growth. But for capital of all forms to have far reaching effect on the nation, all hands must be on deck and ultimately, national development will become a national experience.

This work was published in http://www.ventures-africa.com/2013/04/maximising-capital-for-national-development/ 

Olusola Akinyemi Esq.

President

Joseph Initiative Ltd/Gte

olusola.akins@gmail.com

08077726199

Adopting The China Strategy: Aggressive Enterprise for National Development

http://www.ventures-africa.com/2013/03/towards-aggressive-enterprise-in-nigeria/

Posted on March 17, 2013 02:11 pm under Economic development, Economics, Fact & Comment, Opinions

VENTURES AFRICA –  Undoubtedly, China’s economical success is phenomenal. Some are challenged by it; some intimidated. And some feel threatened. I fall in the category of those challenged by it, and it fueled my curiosity to know how China achieved its present economic status. Several sources have analysed the transformation of the Chinese economy, but I laid my hands on a book titled: THE CHINA STRATEGY by Edwards Tse which attempts to narrate the enterprise side of the coin.

It is important to quickly mention that different people have their perception of the Chinese experience. While some condemn some of the approaches to building their national wealth with international prominence,  there is one that even though condemned, should never be ignored by any country aspiring to develop its economy: it is Aggressive Enterprise.
Edwards Tse started the first chapter of his book by stating Li Ning as one of China’s most recognizable faces. He shot to fame in 1984, winning six medals in gymnastics competitions at the Los Angeles Olympics, three of them gold. Since then, he has remained in the spotlight by becoming one of the country’s most successful businessmen as the owner of China’s largest sportswear company. The eponymous Li Ning brand has more than 7,550 retail outlets across the country and annual sales of more than $980 million.
 The Li Ning Company Limited is still tiny compared with Nike and Adidas, whose global revenues in 2008 were $18.6 billion and $15.9 billion respectively. But Li Ning’s growth is faster; its global marketing, still in the beginning stages, includes sponsorships of major leagues in the United States, Argentina and Spain.
 Then the 2008 Olympics went to Beijing. Li Ning was chosen to light the torch at the opening ceremonies in Beijing’s Bird Nest stadium, in front of a television audience of more than a billion viewers. The moment must have been particularly difficult for Adidas, which has spent a quarter billion dollars on Olympic sponsorship and marketing during the run-up of the games. Suddenly, here was not just one of China’s most famous Olympic gold medalist, but one of their leading business rivals- and a living symbol of the intent, ambition and competitive spirit of Chinese enterprise. In a handful of seconds, he stole the show from his western competitors.
More captivating to me is the next paragraph- “China has hundreds of thousands of Li Nings: entrepreneurs who have driven one of the fastest sustained national economic growth rates of any country in the world history. They may not all be as successful as Li. But after decades of being held back by their country’s adoption of socialism, they and the rest of the Chinese population are moving forward with the force of water gushing from a broken dam. The intensity of their aspirations, joined with the plans of the government and the presence of the country’s hundreds of millions of ordinary people, suggests that future developments in China will over-shadow even the momentous change in recent past- and in a way that affects the strategy, and even the identity of companies around the world (Italics mine).
From the foregoing, I like to stress …but one of their leading business rivals- and a living symbol of intent, ambition and competitive spirit of Chinese enterprise. An average Chinese has the spirit of enterprise and competition in the global economy. Another word that best describe the Chinese spirit of entrepreneurship is Aggression. This remains a truism.
While I join many others, particularly Development Economists who have pontificated the harm of globalisation and free trade economic policy by the world economic rules dictators, I must say that China has rather turned globalisation and free trade to its advantage. China has actually proved right the preaching of the proponents of free trade that openness is a veritable tool to economic prosperity.
As mentioned in a previous article, “A cursory look at the China’s approach with that of Nigeria reveals the Nigeria is also adopting Foreign Investment (through direct and portfolio investment) and the Local Content recipe.” Factually, one of the harm of free trade policy is such that a well industrialised country can freely export her goods (subject to duties) into a developing country which local market is struggling for survival. One should also bear in mind that a product processed with machine will produce more quantity and make consumer cost more affordable. This is one of the reasons why it is challenging for an average shirt maker in a country like Nigeria to compete with a global brand like TM Lewin. But China understands the fact that it takes aggression to be a player in the global economy and will settle for nothing in achieving this. Thus, the statement “tough times don’t last but tough people do”  points to China and the result is quite obvious.
An average Nigerian shares this spirit of enterprise. Irrespective of the environmental frustrations, few still grow successful enterprises while major part of the population struggle to sustain their ventures. For millions of those who are unemployed, the spirit is also there but the challenge is where to engage the spirit. It is rather unfortunate that in the midst of so much economic potentials in the country, the youth who make up about 70 percent of the population (the core of the country) are substantially inactive.
Furthermore, Tse mentioned in his book that there are hundreds of thousands of Li Nings, entrepreneurs who have driven one of the fastest economic growth rate  in the world. What readily came to mind is the imagination of hundreds of thousands of the likes of Aliko Dangote, Oba Otudeko, Mike Adenuga permeating every area of economic potential in Nigeria and their likes across the continent of Africa with huge turn-overs in their companies. Not only will the people never struggle with poverty, but the standard of living will greatly appreciate.
Nigeria should be able to focus on major field(s) for economic dominance, say I.T, Healthcare or tourism — a la the Indians. While I do not totally displace this kind of reasoning, I will say Nigeria is far blessed than that. Nigeria prior to the discovery of oil had earned so much from Agriculture and Mining. The advent of oil ran other sectors aground. If Nigeria has been so serious about becoming economically vibrant, adding the oil boom to the already thriving Agricultural, Mining and real sector would have quadrupled the nation’s GDP and Per Capita Income today with proof of good standard of living of the population. The use of technological advancement to facilitate production would have made a phenomenal impact in being a dominant player in the global economy.
According to Tse, after thirty years of opening and liberalizing its economy, nowhere else, not even among the mature markets of Japan, Europe, and the United States, offers the same extraordinary range of brands and products as China. For every drink, Chinese companies make their own versions of every international flavor- and many flavours that are not produced elsewhere. For magazines, there are Chinese editions of such familiar global titles as Cosmopolitan, Vogue, and Elle. Driving on the streets are locally manufactured vehicles from almost every global brand car maker  General Motors (GM) and Ford, Toyota and Honda, Volkswagen (VW) and its subsidiary Audi, BMW and Mercedes, Citroen and Hyundai- plus a host of local auto brands, including Chery, Geely, Brilliance, and Great Wall.
Tse stated further that over the next decade to two, the presence of Chinese companies and expected to make restructuring more likely in a wide range of other industries- among them automotive, shipbuilding, chemicals, energy, information technology and, possibly aerospace. This is the aggressive spirit of enterprise: this is the China spirit! A country like Nigeria is and will continue to seriously shortchange itself by ignoring every other area of economic potential and remaining unimaginative, so to speak.
At this juncture, it is pertinent to consider the role of the government in the cause of economic prosperity of the nation. While some people have severally stressed the fact that the people can prosper in their ventures without waiting for the government, I have consistently maintained the fact that the people will prosper more in their ventures when the government vigorously play a pivotal role in the cause. The role of the government starts with a dynamic vision. Nations around the world that we so much admire and love to identify with had the emergence of economic prosperity with visionary leadership and planning. This is the story of Singapore, South Korea, China, Japan, UAE and even Indonesia.
It is never enough to have a vision without an action plan and drive to realise it. Having visionary leadership and the drive of accomplishment is most vital. The vision in context is not a generic one but to initiate and enforce all factors necessary to propel aggressive entrepreneurship to achieve national wealth. That is the kind of vision that transformed the nations listed earlier. This action plan may be contained in a National Development Plan. I refer to this article where I dealt with the subject of National Development Plan extensively.
Budget, laws, policies and decisions are made on strict compliance to the vision and action plan. This should include provision of infrastructural facilities, access to cheap credit, regulation of product standard, enforcement of local content law, review of impeding laws and policies that tend to frustrate development process among others. By these, the government would have successfully created an enabling environment that will help ventures to succeed. Beyond that, more people will be open to new ideas in untapped areas and resources.
Furthermore, the Government will be living up to the spirit of its constitutional responsibility as contained in Section 16 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) viz: Section 16 (1) provides that the State shall, within the context of the ideals and objectives for which provisions are made in this Constitution:
(a)   harness the resources of the nation and promote national prosperity and an efficient, a dynamic and self-reliant economy every citizen on the basis of social justice and equality of status and opportunity;
(b)   control the national economy in such manner as to secure the maximum welfare, freedom and happiness of every citizen on the basis of social justice and equality of status and opportunity;
(c)    without prejudice to its right to operate or participate in areas of the economy, other than the major sectors of the economy, manage and operate the major sectors of the economy;
(d)   Without prejudice to the rights of any person to participate in areas of the economy within the major sector of the economy, protect the right of every citizen to engage in any economic activities outside the major sectors of the economy.
Subsection (2) of Section 16 states that the State shall direct its policy towards ensuring:
(a)   the promotion of a planned and balanced economic development;
(b)   that the material resources of the nation are harnessed and distributed as best as possible to serve the common good;
(c)    that the economic system is not operated in such a manner as to permit the concentration of wealth or the means of production and exchange in the hands of few individuals or of a group; and
(d)   that suitable and adequate shelter, suitable and adequate food, reasonable national minimum wage, old age care and pensions, and unemployment, sick benefits and welfare of the disabled are provided for all citizens.
To balance the responsibility in the cause of national economic prosperity, I should mention that we have a generation of people (young and old) who are not ready to go through the process, do the right thing the right way to get wealth. If we ask the government to re-organise its priority to building the nation’s economy, we should also be fair enough to re-organise our priorities and get ready to pay the required price to achieve sustained national development.
Conclusively, popular sayings;  Nigeria is blessed by God,  Nigeria is rich in resources, Nigeria has the brains and muscle to be a  major player in the international community will remain lip service if we fail to notice that the time has come to take full responsibility and dedicate our all to realise our God-given potentials, and that the economic prosperity we crave will only follow suit after strategic implementation of developmental policies and full participation from citizens and government alike.

Olusola Akinyemi Olusola Akinyemi is a Lawyer who is passionate about developmental issues. He is the author of a book on national development - The Rebirth: A Vision For Nigeria. Olusola is also the President of Joseph Initiative Ltd/Gte (a developmental NGO) in Abeokuta, Nigeria.

olusola.akins@gmail.com
+234 8077726199.

LEARNING CREATIVITY

LEARNING CREATIVITY 

About four years ago, I heard a senior folk advising a youngster who claimed to have passion for shoe making to get an Italian shoe, dismember it and learn the cutting of the leather, sowing and assembling the shoe. I also came across a book titled BAD SAMARITANS, THE GUILTY SECRET OF RICH NATIONS AND THREAT TO GLOBAL PROSPERITY by Ha-Joon Chang. In this book, Chang (a development Economist from South Korea elaborated this concept more.

He stated in page 11 of the book as follows:

“Today, Korea is one of the most ‘inventive’ nations in the world- it ranks among the top five nations in terms of the number of patents granted annually by the US Patent Office. But until the mid-1980s it lived on ‘reverse engineering’. My friends would buy ‘copy’ computers that were made by small workshops, which would take apart IBM machines, copy the parts, and put them together. It was the same with trademarks. At the time, the country was one of the ‘pirate capitals’ of the world, churning out fake Nike shoes and Louis Vuitton bags in huge quantities. Those who had more delicate consciences would settle for near-counterfeits. There were shoes that looked like Nike but were called Nice, or shoes that had the Nike swoosh but with an extra prong. Counterfeit goods were rarely sold as the genuine article. Those who bought them were perfectly aware that they were buying fakes; the point was to make a fashion statement, rather than to mislead. Copyrighted items were treated in the same way. Today, Korea exports large and increasing quantity of copyrighted materials (movies, TV soaps, popular songs), but at the time imported music (LP records) or films (videos) were so expensive that few people could afford the real thing. We grew up listening to pirate rock’ n’ roll records, which we called ‘tempura shop records’, because their sound quality was so bad it sounded as if someone was deep-frying in the background. As for foreign books, they were still beyond the means of most students. Coming from a well-off family that was willing to invest in education, I did have some imported books. But most of my books in English were pirated. I could never have entered and survived Cambridge without those illegal books.

This is really puzzling to me and I will rather conclude this here. I prefer to make a comment myself and allow readers to make their own comment or express their perception on the subject. This is because Nigerian has a very similar situation with the past of South Korea but won’t advance from the practice of piracy to being inventive of original products.

Olusola Akinyemi Esq.

President

Joseph Initiative Ltd/Gte

olusola.akins@gmail.com

08077726199

NATIONAL INTEGRATION: THE GANDHI STORY

NATIONAL INTEGRATION: THE GANDHI STORY

Once in India, there was a set of people living in some villages; sleeping on the ground as they had no bed to sleep on. They had no running water. Their cows slept in the same little huts and little rooms with them. If they had chickens, the chickens slept in the same room too. They relatively had no comfort of life. Those people were the untouchables. The caste system had existed for years. These were the people who worked the hardest, and they were trampled over by the Indian people themselves.

Mahatma Gandhi looked at this system and couldn’t stand it. He looked at his own people and said, “Now you have selected me, and you’ve asked me to free you from the political domination and economic exploitation inflicted upon you by Britain, and here you are, trampling over and exploiting seventy million of your brothers.” So, he decided that he would never adjust to that system and that he would speak and stand up against it for the rest of his life.

The first thing he did was to adopt an untouchable girl as his daughter. His wife, a member of one of the high castes, thought he was crazy. She said, “What in the world are you doing adopting an untouchable? We are not supposed to touch these people.” He said, “I am going to have this young lady as my daughter.” He brought her into his ashram, and she lived there. He demonstrated in his own life that untouchability had to go.

One day, Mahatma Gandhi stood before his people and said, “You are exploiting these untouchables. Even though we are fighting with all that we have of our bodies and our souls to break loose from the bondage of the British Empire, we are exploiting these people and we are taking their selfhood and their self-respect.” He said, “I will refuse to eat until the leaders of the caste system will come to me with the leaders of the untouchables and say that there will be an end to untouchability and the Hindu temples of India will open their doors to the untouchables.” And so he refused to eat as days passed.

Finally, when Gandhi was about to breathe his last breath, and his body was all but gone, a group from the untouchables and a group from the Brahmin caste came to him and signed a statement saying that they would no longer adhere to the caste system. The Priest of the temple came to him and said, “Now the temples will be opened to the untouchables.” That afternoon, untouchables from all over India went into the temples and all these thousands and millions of people put their arms around the Brahmin and people of other castes. Hundreds of millions of people who had never touched each other for two thousand years were now singing and praising together. This was a great contribution Mahatma Gandhi brought about.

This story points out the indispensable role of leadership in national integration. It took the moral leadership of Mahatma Gandhi to influence the leadership of the Brahmin caste and the leadership of the untouchables to re-align.

How can Nigeria learn from this to achieve our national unity?

History has thrust upon our generation an indescribably important destiny - to complete a process of integration which our nation has so long developed too slowly, but which is our most powerful opportunity for development. The clamour for convening a Sovereign National Conference by the Federal Government is over a decade and half old. The purpose is for all parts of our national existence to come together, deliberate on the subject of unity and how we hope to move our nation forward. But the Federal Government as severally constituted has given several excuses to decline this call. The question to ask is, is there no other way out for our integration other than through a Sovereign National Conference?

From the Gandhi story, national unity substantially needs leadership to become a reality. Leadership as we all will agree has influenced or compounded the situation in the nation at one point or the other. Now, what we have are leaders of various ethnic groups making public pronouncements that they are first members of their ethnic groups before being Nigerians. I wonder what more could threaten national unity than such statements.

Worthy of note however is the fact that we have followers in this country who have a default mode of loyalty. Where their leaders go, they go. This is a clear proof that leadership is influence. So ethnic groups are in conflict because leaders are in conflict; whether they incite it or overlook it. People of different religions can peacefully co-exist with the influence of religious leaders and Nigeria can operate in peaceful co-existence if leaders allow it.

However, it is essential to note that several factors, positive or negative, influence the thoughts and deeds of leaders. They include pride or humility, greed or selflessness, experience or in-experience, personality type, wisdom, counsel, loyalty to a few at the expense of the populace, power wooziness, bribery and corruption, to mention a few. But in all, the essence of leadership is to work for the good of the people, promote a safe and better environment for all and give hope to all. Success in leadership demands priority to leadership than the leaders themselves.

As we have noted earlier, leadership is influence. It may be necessary to attempt to identify leaders that can be instrumental in achieving national integration in Nigeria. In no particular order, they include:

1.      The Nigerian President

2.      Senate President

3.      Speaker of the House of Representatives

4.      Governors’ Forum

5.      Elder Statesmen

6.      The Judiciary

7.      Christian Association of Nigeria

8.      Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria

9.      Islamic Society of Nigeria

10. Yoruba Council of Elders

11.  Arewa Consultative Forum

12.  Northern Nigeria Leaders

13.  Ohaneze Ndigbo

14.  Ijaw National Congress and other ethnic group leaders

15.  Royal heads and Chiefs

16.  Civil Society Leaders

17.  Community Leaders

18.  Youth Leaders

This list is not exhaustive, but those mentioned will go a long way in helping to achieve national integration. It is important to state that before we talk about integration at the national level, there is need for re-alignment at the regional levels because when neighbouring ethnic groups are not in alignment, national integration will be cosmetic.

On the way forward, it would have been remarkable if we had someone with the Gandhi influence in Nigeria. But in the absence of such, it will be laudable for the Nigerian President to take responsibility for this integration project. Reconciliation is an indispensable pre-requisite for growth and massive development, hence the need for a National Reconciliation Agenda. The President may set up a National Integration Committee to facilitate this.

Bearing in mind the list of leaders above, it will be auspicious to phase the integration project. The first phase should be at the geo-political zone level. The facilitating committee should work with leaders in each geo-political zone for reconciliation, harmonisation and peaceful co-existence.

After this has proved to be substantially productive, the integration at the national level may be organized with leaders representing parts of each geo-political zone. When the spirit of reconciliation and integration at the geo-political levels has penetrated and permeated the leaders and is yielding results, integration at the national level will be a lot easier.

Ultimately, Nigeria will become a united nation where though there are over 250 ethnic groups; there will be a sense of common nationalism. The Federal character principle will no longer be pronounced. We will have a Nigeria where I will be a Nigerian first before asserting the fact that I am a Yoruba man. We will be able to live to the true meaning of the creed contained in the introduction of our Constitution which states that-

WE THE PEOPLE of the Federal Republic of Nigeria:

HAVING firmly and solemnly resolved:

TO LIVE in unity and harmony as one indivisible and indissoluble sovereign Nation under God dedicated to the promotion of inter-African solidarity, world peace, international co-operation and understanding:

AND TO PROVIDE for a Constitution for the purpose of promoting good government and welfare of all persons in our country on the principles of freedom, equality and justice and for the purpose of consolidating the unity of our people:

Indeed, there is amazing power in unity. When we have true unity, every effort to disunite us will only strengthen our unity. We will be wrapped in a single garment of destiny. Whatever happens to one will be viewed as happening to all. The proverb that says, ‘The first camel on the line moves as quickly as the last’ - whatever affects anyone of us has effect on every one of us - will be our spirit.

Having an understanding of our individual ethnic uniqueness and an agreement to achieve a common purpose as a people will aid love, tolerance and hospitality in the nation. From this, we will be able to have a consensus on how best to move our nation forward with dedication and hard work.

This is an excerpt of the book titled, THE REBIRTH, A VISION FOR NIGERIA written by my humble self. 

Olusola Akinyemi Esq.

President

Joseph Initiative Ltd/Gte

olusola.akins@gmail.com

08077726199