Don’t Wait For FG Intervention, Hold National Unity Summit, Atiku Tells Govs

• “These problems were created by those with a regional mindset”

Atiku Abubakar, former vice-president, has admonished Nigerian governors to put their differences aside and come together to find lasting solutions to the challenges bedevilling the nation.

Ekohotblog reports that he implored the governors to stop expecting help from the federal government and grab the situation by the scruff of the neck, noting that their destinies were in there hands.

Atiku’s counsel is against the backdrop of the meeting of southern governors in Asaba, Delta state capital, to discuss the state of the nation.

After the meeting, the governors had called on President Muhammadu Buhari to be impatial in political appointments, convene a national dialogue, embrace the calls for restructuring and ban open grazing.

In a statement on Sunday, the former vice-president urged the governors to convene a national unity summit to address contentious matters affecting the country.

Atiku averred that national issues could not be solved if everyone holds chauvinistic perception, noting that the problem was created by those with “regional mindset”

“The truth is that if at a national level, we address these unNigerian tendencies immediately and dispassionately, we would not have Nigerians congregating at a regional or sub-regional level to address these issues,” he said

“Governors representing some states have met. And I completely understand the necessity of their meeting and the wisdom of their decisions. But no matter how much you try to clap with one hand, the vibrations will not be the same as when you clap with two hands.

“These problems were created by those with a regional mindset, and will not be solved by those with a similar mindset.

“For too long, we have erroneously thought that the power to make effective changes lies at Aso Rock. But without the states, nobody can get to Aso Rock. That is why for anyone to emerge as president of Nigeria, he or she must secure enough votes in two-thirds of the states that make up the Nigerian federation.

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He charged the governors to work together irrespective of tribe, religion, or political affiliations.

“Let us apply this wisdom to our present challenges. I call on Nigerian governors to stop waiting on Abuja to make changes, and instead convene a national unity summit of all Nigerian governors to iron out the thorny issues affecting the destiny of our nation until they figure out a way to resolve them.

“Forget about your party. Forget about your tribe. Respect your religion and allow it to bring out the better part of you. Meet together. Talk together. Come up with the solutions to all our collective challenges.