President Muhammadu Buhari has said the vision of the founding fathers of Nigeria has not yet been realised.
The President said this at the public presentation of ‘Unfinished Greatness: Envisioning a New Nigeria’, a book written by Ekiti State Governor, Dr. Kayode Fayemi, in Abuja, on Thursday.
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The President, represented by his Chief of Staff, Prof. Ibrahim Gambari, said more intellectuals were needed in government.
“The vision of our founding fathers has not been realized. It was the reason the book should be read by all. The book will help in the governance of the country. Fayemi was part of the team that helped bring me to power and he was part of the transition committee.
“Sometimes, academics are not fit in governance. And as the Governor of Kano State, Abdullahi Umar Ganduje has said, too much analysis can lead to paralysis. So, governance should be a combination of people of intellectuals and people that are experienced in governance. That makes the country to move forward.
“We need a combination of experienced people and the academia who identify the needs of the society. Mr President is of the view that the more we have people of experience, the more people can get it better,” Gambari said.
Speaking earlier, Kano State Governor, Dr. Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, said people often see politics as a dirty game, but that it is not.
“Politics is not a dirty game. We are witnessing intellectualism in governance and intellectualism in politics. There is no doubt, this is a welcome development. It is good for intellectuals to take a role in politics because they analyse and lead the people because there are always conflicting variables.
“In Nigeria, intellectuals are afraid of governance because they say that too much analysis can lead to paralysis and also see politics as a dirty game. But politics is not a dirty game. There is a connection between intellectualism and governance,” Ganduje said.
The keynote speaker, who is a Senior Programme Staff, South Asia Institute, Prof Adebayo Olukoshi, said that Africa has not found the right leadership but added that the people must be determined and become big players in the international system.
He said, “Digging a bit deeper, if we must transform a nation, we must look at dignity. While character can change a nation, it is dignity that transform a nation. China is a good example,” Olukoshi said.
