Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has said that Nigeria is a country that is yet to be weaved into a nation.
The former Head of State made the remark while speaking at the 2021/2022 School Debate Price Presentation Organised by the Vision Africa Radio Umuahia, Abia State.. He declared that Nigeria would not make any headway as a country until she grew into nationhood.
His words: ” One of the things we need to achieve is nation-building. We have not built a nation yet.
We have a country but we need to build it into a nation”.
Obasanjo further declared that Nigeria would not progress until there is equality, justice and equal stake for everybody”.
We can’t make it unless we have equity and equality, and everybody has a stake in the project called Nigeria.
Any family, state or country without equity and equality won’t have stability and can never have success”, Obasanjo thundered.
The former President commended the successful students and schools in the debate competition.
He charged students to give serious attention to the development of their communication skills, submitting that people who lack the skill to communicate their ideas hardly go far in life.
” You won’t go far in life if you can’t communicate very well. If you are a poor communicator, you will be a poor achiever”.
In his address, the President of Vision Africa Radio, Bishop Sunday Onuoha, said that the essence of the school debate was “to broaden and sharpen the spoken English language proficiency of our secondary school students and to empower the schools with awards and as well educate and enlighten our
teeming audience”.
He added that ” beyond its entertainment value and the use of cogent argument, poise and timeliness as a measure of grading the competitors, it is our hope that the students who participated have acquired or honed their public speaking skills, improved their note-taking skills, increased their self-confidence, enhanced their teamwork/collaboration skills, and have developed better ways to graciously state their point of view with gentleness, even when standing up for the truth.”
The former Special Assistant to the President on Privatisation said that 235 schools had so far participated in the competition since 11 years it started.
The former Special Assistant to the President on Privatisation said that 235 schools had so far participated in the competition since 11 years it started.
Meanwhile, Immaculate International Schools came first while Standard International Secondary School; and Ndume Otuka Secondary School, finished 2nd and 3rd respectively.
Gov. Okezie Ikpeazu in a remark thanked Bishop Onuoha for his passion in promoting education in the state, as well as his numerous contributions towards the development of the state, urging him not to relent.
Ikpeazu who was represented by the Secretary to the State Government, SSG, Mr. Chris Ezem, restated the readiness of his administration to promote education in the state.
Some dignitaries at the colourful event included former Governor of Imo State, Dr Ikedi Ohakim; former Nigeria Ambassador to South Africa, and the incumbent Secretary-General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Dr Eme Uche; former boss of the Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC, Chief Onyema Ugochukwu; the Chancellor of Gregory University Uturu Professor Greg Ibe, among a host of others.
The highlight of the event was the cutting of a birthday cake in honour of Obasanjo’s 85th birthday.
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