By Michael Peter, The Sight News
Abuja:As Nigeria celebrates Independence, the All Progressive Congress, APC has urged Nigerians agitating for secession to embrace the idea of a united Nigeria, as the nation’s strength remains in its diversity.
The Party in a Statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi reaffirmed its commitment to the restructuring of the country, stressing that its efforts along that line will address the underlying concerns that have emerged.
It urged Nigerians to use the occasion to reflect on the many challenges that the nation has faced over the years and use those to strengthen our resolve to build a strong, virile and united country.
The statement reads:
“The ongoing implementation of the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP) must be supported by all as a basis for realizing social inclusion objectives, such as employment generation and eradication of poverty and inequality. Such safety net initiatives as the Home Grown School Feeding Programme, conditional cash transfer scheme and N-Power will guarantee that the poor and vulnerable directly benefit from economic development.
“Happily, the economy has started responding to these policy initiatives of the government as evidenced in the improvement and stability of the naira exchange rate; increase in the country’s foreign reserves and the recent announcement by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) that the country has officially come out of recession.
“As we celebrate our 57th independence anniversary, we must sustain the hope that brighter days are ahead of us. Let us join in the effort to build a more vibrant nation that every Nigerian will be proud of. The future holds great dividends”.
In a similar development, the Alliance for Democracy, AD, felicitated with Nigerians on the occasion of its independence celebration, describing 57 years as a milestone in the life of any nation.
In a statement by the National Chairman of the Party. Alhaji Ismail Ayodele, the party urged those in political leadership to bear in mind that national interest must form basis for all government policies and action, insisting that, that remains the only way Nigerians from all ethnic nationalities will have a sense of belonging in the country.
It also called on Nigerians to use the occasion to reflect on the vision of the founding fathers and imbibe the spirit of love, peace, unity, equity, social justice and patriotism.
