Obasanjo Sultan preach peace as Dogara says bad governance caused Boko Haram

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo on Wednesday called for collective responsibility of all Nigerians for the Country to be in peace, saying it (Nigeria) should not be left alone for someone.”

Speaking at the World Interfaith Harmony Week Conference and Award held Ibadan, Obasanjo said all religions preach true love and tolerance, adding that “there can’t be peace without true love.”

The event was organised by Honor 103.5 FM and Pan-af Publishers, in collaboration with the United Nations with the theme: “The Love of the Good and The Love of the Neighbors”.

It had in attendance the Sultan of Sokoto and Co-chairman of Nigerians Interfaith Council, Sa’ad Abubakar, who was represented by President of Muslim Ummah of South West Nigeria (MUSWEN), Rasaki Oladejo, and President of Christian Association of Nigeria, Daniel Okoh, a Reverend; Yakubu Dogara, former Speaker of the Federal House of Representatives, among others.

The Sultan of Sokoto, in his remarks, urged all Nigerians to forget any contradiction in religion and embrace peace and love which all religions preach, saying: “Nigerians must continue to hope for a brighter future and for a Nigeria where peace reigns supreme.

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“If Nigerians can come together as one despite their differences, we can have a better society because most of the problems the nation is having have to do with a lack of understanding particularly when it comes to religion and ethnicity.”

But, Yakubu Dogara, former Speaker of House of Representatives, said “the Boko Haram insurgency and other security challenges the Country is currently experiencing are products of bad governance.”

Dogara, who was represented by Timothy Golu, regretted that Nigeria had not learnt much from the civil war and other crisies with a national look, having witnessed a number of crises since Independence, saying the worst of which, was the civil war from 1967 to 1970.

He said that Boko Haram insurgency that broke out in Borno State in 2009 had metamorphosised into one of the most dangerous international terrorist organisations.

Lamenting that Boko Haram had led to the death of thousands of people and displacement of over five million others, Dogara cautioned that the current challenges might not be tacked if leaders didn’t rise up and save the situation.