JONATHAN SAYS DEMOCRACY, GOOD GOVERNANCE'LL SOLVE PROBLEMS OF BLACK RACE
In the face of poverty, disease, hunger and under-development Africa and black countries in the diaspora must embrace democracy and promote good governance in order to overcome many of its problems and free.
President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan made this assertion Thursday at the Jamaican Parliament observing that ills enumerated above are among the dangers afflicting the entire black race including Nigeria. The President who is accompanied by his wife on a state visit to Jamaica said although concerted efforts, resembling those made by the founding fathers of many black nations, are being replicated, more needs to be done to ensure the progress, prosperity and stability of black men everywhere in the world.
The formula for attaining this feat the president stated is the upholding of democracy and good governance with a view to bringing about drastic changes in the economies and technological advancement of black nations.
According to him, such achievement can only be marshalled if there is enduring partnership between the nations no matter how far-flung and apart they are so that trade and investments will flourish beyond borders. He noted that despite the fact that Africa is free from colonial yoke it is entrapped by the economic realities of today as dictated by imperialism, thus the need for the continent to unite to fight poverty, hunger, diseases and illiteracy.
Other problems that he urge the continent to team up against include: bad governance and electoral malpractices, ethnic conflicts, dictatorial regimes and terrorism, while stressing the need for blacks to be confident in themselves in the modern and technology-driven world.
Jonathan who observed that: “the predicament of the black race is inherently shared by Nigeria with its population of 167 million people,” offered that “we have a duty and a responsibility to create, nurture and sustain an environment under which future generations have no other option but to prosper and excel. We can only do this through the consolidation of democracy and good governance.”
“It is my humble belief that democracy, good governance and the rule of law will be the tonic that will revolutionize our economies and technological development,” he said as he congratulated the Carribean country for having a female Prime Minister elected for a second term. “In a highly globalized and competitive world, states are forming strong regional economic blocs. To promote trade and investments, boundaries are beginning to get narrower and narrower every day. It is for the same reason that we must support one another in tackling the scourge of imbalances in the prevailing global order. As black people, with a common ancestry, we must unite,” he added.
He emphasized that: “Africa is free of colonialism but not totally free because of its economic dependence on others. We therefore still have our work well-defined for us: we must be committed not only to liberating ourselves from economic woes but also to work with other counterparts, the developing nations of the world, to achieve economically what we have achieved politically.”
Written By Muhammad Bello