The Presidency has responded to the Coalition of Northern
Groups, CNG, which recently said that there is no Democracy in the country.
The CNG had in its statement on June 12 said that Nigeria,
particularly the north, in the last five years has had the worst set of
incompetent, ineffective, unfocused and generally unwilling leaders manning all
the arms and levels of governance.
The Presidency, however, said it amounts to a grave mistake,
for the Coalition to dissociate themselves from Democracy Day and, in effect
de-cognizing democracy as a chosen system of government in the country.
In an article forwarded by the Senior Special
Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, the Presidency
insisted that President Muhammadu Buhari has always maintained that the future
belongs to the youth.
He said that President Buhari has always said that the
current administration was fixing the ailing country to hand it over to the
youths.
“Nigeria recognises Democracy Day because, for many decades
since independence, the fight for the right of Nigerians to choose a government
of their own was not complete. A prominent citizen of the country, Chief MKO
Abiola died trying to do just this,” Shehu maintained.
“When independence was won, and then swiftly replaced by an
unelected government, it was not much of a change.”
The Presidential aide further explained that for the
challenges Nigeria faces today, lack of universal suffrage or lack of elected
politicians is not one of them.
He said that the people are facing severe hardships because
of the coronavirus pandemic and the challenges posed by the terrorists Boko
Haram.
“Yet when groups such as the Coalition of Northern Groups
(CNG) put out statements claiming that Democracy Day holds no purpose and the
government somehow wishes for the northern states to be struggling it is
embarrassing not for the government but for the group, its members and their
sponsors.
For a start, if the group dared to issue such a comment
under a non-democratic method they would have met a swift and harsh retribution
from a dictatorial government.
”They should thank their stars that we are operating a truly
democratic government where the rights of free speech are guaranteed and
protected”.
“This government has done more than any other – elected or
not elected – to curtail and beat back the terrorists,” Shehu explained.
He added that “no government has done more to foster
democracy and freedom of speech in Nigeria than the current administration.
“The fact that CNG is freely able to transmit garbage to the
media in the hope they will be widely reported is a testament to the freedom of
expression and media liberty that exists in our country today.
“Equally, the fact that the government is issuing this
statement, in response to the puerile message is a testament that today Nigeria
is a country where disagreements can be aired publicly through the press, not
through less gentlemanly methods used in the past.
“We hope that CNG will consider the facts and reconsider the
unhelpful and inaccurate message their statements contain when issuing them in
the future.”
Click to signup for FREE news updates, latest information and hottest gists everyday
Advertise on NigerianEye.com to reach thousands of our daily users
No comments
Post a Comment
Kindly drop a comment below.
(Comments are moderated. Clean comments will be approved immediately)
Advert Enquires - Reach out to us at NigerianEye@gmail.com