Insecurity can’t be defeated in disunity – Osinbajo

Vice President Yemi Osinbajo says Nigeria has evolved beyond balkanization being championed by separatists in the country.

Osinbajo said this Thursday at the National Social Cohesion Dialogue organised by the Africa Polling Institute, which was held at the Shehu Musa Yar’Adua Centre, Abuja.

• Flood: States/LGAs should allocate 1% of budget for prevention — NiMet
• PODCAST: How To Stop The Ugly Trend Of Communal Clashes

He called for unity despite sundry differences and warned against polarizing identity politics, saying: “The truth is that Nigeria has evolved beyond the sort of easy balkanization that is proposed by some separatists.”

While maintaining that politicians who continue to traffic in division and discord are behind the times and have failed to take note of how much more integrated our society has become, the vice president said despite the activities of those with divisive agenda, Nigeria would prevail over her tribulations due to the resilience, faith, hope and strength of its people.

Osinbajo, who stressed the shared interests of Nigerians across different facets of life noted that Nigeria’s diversity could be used to drive further economic growth.

“In the face of the challenges confronting us, we must remind ourselves of certain truths. The first is that our present challenges are neither unique nor exceptional. Various nations at various points in their histories underwent similar tribulations. It is within our power to address these issues and emerge from them even stronger as a people,” he said.