The Etsu Karu in Nasarawa State, Dr Luka Panya has called on Nigerians to imbibe the spirit of togetherness and love for one another irrespective of tribe and religious inclinations.
Speaking after top officials of his palace turbaned Chief Isa Dafor as the Wakili Ptil Marghi Karu yesterday, he stressed the need for Nigerians to feel at home in their places of abode across the country.
The monarch maintained that Karu local council which borders the FCT has enjoyed significant progress and development due to its accommodative nature of Nigerians from all walks of life.
He explained that the decision to turban Isa Dafor as the Wakili Ptil Marghi Karu was in line with the practice to work closely with other leaders of ethnic nationalities like Yoruba, Igala, Tiv, Idoma, Hausa, Igbo in his domain to foster unity and integration in the polity.
He said: “We don’t see any person who is resident here as a stranger.
We rather see them as partners, and I will call on all persons in leadership positions to see how they can accept every person within their communities irrespective of differences in tribe, religion and ethnicity. This is because wherever you are destined to live and wherever you are resident, it is there that you can make impact and make contributions even to your own personal growth and, of course, the growth of the community.
“I am looking forward to seeing that all persons that are residing in places that are even not in their original places of indigenship should be accepted and be treated as partners in whatever communities they find themselves in. So tolerance, giving leverage to people irrespective of tribe or religion is very key. And we are already doing that in this chiefdom.
“I am delighted that the Marghi people have now found a leader, they have now found a focus, they can now articulate their visions and we can properly relate with them and carry them along in all our developmental plans in the community. So it’s a very, very welcome development and I want to congratulate Chief Isa Dafor
who the people felt he should lead them and we are also comfortable with him because he that too he has been contributing significantly to the development of our community here.”
Dafor who expressed gratitude to the Etsu Karu for founding him worthy of the leadership role pledged to forge a common front with Marghi people spread across Karu council of Nasarawa state.
He added: ” Today, God has made it for us to have a leader, which is me. We now have a focus, vision and together we will forge ahead for the development of our people. There is no leadership without followers. And by the time most of the followers sit together, we will talk, we will agree and from there, we know the next step to follow.”
