AS Nigeria continues to grapple with sectarian conflicts, including the Boko Haram uprising in the north, nominee for the Nobel Peace Prize, and Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Mohammed Sa'ad Abubakar, has called on all citizens to join in the search for solutions to the recurring violence plaguing the land.
The Sultan, who spoke after he was conferred alongside former President John Kuffour of Ghana and four other eminent Nigerians, warned that the insecurity in the land could derail the nation's march into the future.
He called on Nigerians to feel the pains of their compatriots in other parts of the country, as their own, irrespective of the ethnic origins or creed of those affected.
He said:"No nation can develop, educationally and otherwise with a state of insecurity, and Nigeria cannot be otherwise. The current state of ethno-religious crisis, armed banditry and the various insurgencies can never advance the cause of development in this country. We must put a stop to this." The supreme leader of the Muslim community in Nigeria urged compatriots not to allow their country to be derailed by extremists, just as he admonished fellow country men and women to come together and work towards overcoming the daunting challenges facing the society.
"The pain of anyone of us, must be the same pain that will concern all of us, regardless of creed or ethnic affiliation. The happiness of any one of us, should be the same happiness celebrated by all. Nigeria and Nigerians deserve no less."
On the crisis in the nation's educational sector, the Sultan agonised that Nigeria was lagging behind in terms of making the right investment in the sector, such as would produce the manpower needed to put the country on its path to greatness. He stressed that the quality of leadership and governance, as well as our national development, is a direct reflection of the quality of the university system, noting that the nation can neglect them, only to its own peril.
Similarly, former Ghananian President John Kuffour commended the authorities and the founder of the Igbinedion University, Okada for the vision that lead to the establishment of Nigeria's first private university, noting that it had gone a long way in contributing to manpower development, not just in Nigeria, but also on the African continent.
