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| Prof. Pat Utomi |
Prof. Pat Utomi, founder Centre For Value In Leadership (CVL), has
said that Nigerian politicians are obsessed with power and positions as
against purpose and service.
Utomi, former presidential candidate, made the remark on Saturday at
the 80th birthday anniversary of Senator Ebenezer Ikeyina in Lagos,
where he described the celebrant as a seasoned politician, who was part
of a struggle to rejuvenate the nation’s democracy, but did not make
noise about it.
He advised politicians to focus more on purpose, rather than personal glory that comes with it.
Reflecting on the ongoing tussle for the leadership of the two
chambers of the National Assembly (NASS), he stated that lawmakers
should not occupy themselves with positions and power, rather they
should consider purpose and service to the nation.
He said that many of the senators who served during Ikeyina’s regime
did not come out as wealthy as the present senators, but they served the
people with great heart.
Utomi, who maintained that the insecurity situation should be a
source of worry to every Nigerian, said that the primary assignment of
the state was protection of lives and property.
He said it was sad that in the past one year,
Nigeria had been in a state of full blown civil war, pointing out that
what was being seen was exactly what played out in a state of war where
many people died on a daily basis.
He suggested that Nigeria should have a war cabinet and not a regular
cabinet, because people could not pretend that it was not happening.
Elaborating on the sorry state of insecurity in Nigeria, he said: “It
reminds me of what happened during the civil war in Nigeria, which I
experienced it on two sides.
“I was in Biafra for a season and then I was in Nigeria for another
season. When I left Biafra and came back to Lagos, then I was in a
school in Ibadan. The war was one distant story, we did not know that
anything was happening, but when I was in Biafra, I knew there was war.
“The same mindset is still in Nigeria. The people in the North East,
North West and Middle Belt are in massive civil war. Someone in Lagos
would be wondering what is happening to these people over there? That
definitely is not the kind of country that we want to build.”
He noted that the country was not operating on merit, stressing that
the people running the nation were not the right people to do so, adding
that there was need to get something done urgently.
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