Politics
AKIN Ogunbiyi, Group Chairman, Mutual Benefit Assurance Plc, has called on Nigerians to be more patriotic on restructuring and improving the governance system in Nigeria.
Ogunbiyi made the remarks on Tuesday at the 2019 Distinguished Lecture of the Nigerian Institute of Management (NIM) in Lagos.
The theme of the lecture was: “Nigeria’s Progress, Principles and the New Metrics.”
He said that the country was endowed with both human and natural resources, but lacked the good leadership to explore, develop and utilise the endowments.
According to him, there are deficiencies in the governance system, with less than two per cent of the population involved in politics.
He also said that inappropriate leadership and gaps were big obstacles to any meaningful growth in the country.
Ogunbiyi said there was need to go back to the regional arrangement where each region would be allowed to develop and produce on its competencies and capabilities as were the practice in the past.
“In Nigeria, sinking one’s individuality into the nation is a desire that we must all strive at.
“Prestige and more of it can only be achieved through this. We must defeat that enduring relic of colonialism that has made Nigerians floating citizens.
“If there is going to be any change in the governance system, everybody have to be involved. What we are still doing in Nigeria is election by inducement,” he said.
Ogunbiyi said Nigeria would be better, if we could develop that patriotism for the country and actively participate in government and political activities.
Earlier, Prof. Olukunle Iyanda, Chairman of Council, NIM, said the lecture was one of the Institute’s contributions to nation- building.
Iyanda said that the lecture provided a platform to brainstorm on a burning and contemporary governance and leadership issue of national importance and suggest ways forward to the government.
Represented by Mrs Pat Anabor, Deputy President of institute, he said: “Report shows that efforts by successive governments to get the nation’s economy up and running has not yielded the desired result.
“Though, the nation is blessed with abundance of human and material resources, it has not been making the needed progress.
“So, it is pertinent to point out that formulation of the right or appropriate economic policies has never been the issue as the nation is not in scant supply of robust economic policies,” Iyanda said.
-NAN
BE
– July 16, 2019 @ 18:25 GMT |
Tags: Be more patriotic on restructuring improving governance system- Forum
