The founder of Tony Elumelu Foundation, Tony Elumelu has renewed the call for a nation-building that is characterised by unwavering determination, empathy, and the commitment to create a legacy of progress, unity, and hope for generations to come as a panacea for economic growth and social development.
Mr Elumelu said Nigeria, a nation currently overwhelmed by hunger, unemployment and widespread insecurity is in dire need of the collective dedication of everyone, building across political affiliations, ethnic differences, and socioeconomic differences.
To achieve that, Nigeria’s private sector, philanthropies, civil society, all citizens must be brought together and be empowered – as real, valued and executing partners for the national renewal and nation building, Mr Elumelu remarked at the ongoing Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) annual general conference in Nigeria.
He pointed to the impact of climate change experiences and heightened insecurity – manifested in kidnap and killing of vulnerable citizens with its resultant effect on the supply chain as some factors that breed disorder, feed intolerance and destroy opportunity.
While congratulating President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for taking tough and long avoided economic decisions, Elumelu urged the government to “Let us build on this boldness.”
In his call for nation building, by laying important foundations for Nigeria, he said “let us renew our infrastructure. Investment in our youth – we need to renew our commitment to our youth, provide them with the means to succeed in Nigeria – not beyond Nigeria.
“This means not just investment in our education system, but in our entrepreneurial culture. Let us create a joined-up government task force to champion at the highest level, our young and our entrepreneurs. When entrepreneurs succeed, we succeed as a nation. If they don’t, we all fail.”
He also called for an improved investment in the power sector, while urging the authorities to “create regulatory structures that reward success, that deliver to our people, our schools, our hospitals and our industries, the sustainable, robust power supply that our country so urgently needs,” adding that “Is it not ironic that a country with abundant gas resources cannot optimally operate its power plants due to lack of gas!”
The chairman of United Bank for Africa (UBA) said Nigeria should approach the task of nation-building with unwavering determination, guided by the principles of unity, inclusivity, and progress.
“I am a Nigerian, I owe everything to Nigeria. I am proud of Nigeria. I am proud to be a Nigerian – let us honour our country, let’s respect our leadership, let us honour our people, let us truly build our nation, and in doing so deliver to our young ones the future and destiny they so rightly deserve – in Nigeria and in our time.
“Let history remember us not for our individual achievements, not for the balances in our bank accounts but for our collective efforts in building a nation that stands as a beacon of hope and inspiration for the entire black race,” he remarked at the weeklong event of Nigerian lawyers.
