Vice President Yemi Osinbajo has asked Nigerians to strive towards defining Nigeria by its best, stating that the country is gifted with some of the best people in the world.
Prof. Osinbajo stated this on Thursday evening at the inauguration of the HIYA Nigeria, a programme aimed at inculcating positive values and patriotism in Nigeria which was organized by the National Orientation Agency, NOA, in collaboration with the NTA, and a non-governmental organisation, Zeitgeist Aesthetics, held at the Nigerian Television Authority, NTA, Headquarters Arena, Abuja.
“We must define our nation by the best that we have not by the worse,” Prof. Osinbajo said.
He said Nigeria should be projected in the positive light as well as spurring the great minds and great people which are the majority in the country.
“This nation is the country of the Soyinkas, the Achebes, the Chimamandas, the Abubakar Imams, the Mamman Shattas and so many others,” the Vice President stated.
He said the nefarious activities of some corrupt politicians who have looted the public treasury, unscrupulous parents who encourage their children to cheat in examinations, peddlers of hate speech, fraudsters and other criminal elements must not be allowed to becloud the good deeds of hard working, resourceful and decent people.
The Vice President said Nigeria has everything it would take to “be truly great and to be greater than any other nation anywhere in the world.”
He said the conception, planning and execution of HIYA Nigeria showed that there is so much hope in Nigeria and also called for all hands to be on deck to work towards making Nigeria truly great.
He also projected that with the energy, creativity and hard work of the younger generation of Nigerians in the entertainment industry, technology and the sciences the country would rise to greater heights in the next ten years.
He said “Despite everything I see—and I see a lot—despite some of the discouragements that we get, I’m so certain that this country is set to be, in another 10 years, certainly the preeminent black nation in the world. And we are surely on the way to become one of the preeminent nations of the world.”
In his remarks, the Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, said the initiative of using indigenous languages in the dissemination of educative programmes was a right step in the right direction.
Others who spoke at the event were the Director-General of the NTN, Mr. Yakubu Ibn Mohammed and his counterpart in the NOA, Mr. Garba Abari.
The occasion was laced with cultural displays and renditions of the Nigerian national anthem and pledge in indigenous languages.