We Must Support Jonathan, Anenih Tells Southerners

Chairman of the Board of Trustees (BoT) of the Peoples Democratic Party

(PDP), Chief Tony Anenih, has called on states of southern Nigeria to

unite behind President Goodluck Jonathan and support him in the governance

of the nation.
Anenih made the call in an address he delivered yesterday at the Southern

Leaders Summit held at the Tinapa Business and Leisure Resort in Calabar.

He said the President needed their support to face the challenges created

by Boko Haram, the global economic recession and unrest, and to keep the

country united.
Declaring that “the unity of this country is not negotiable,” Anenih said,

“We must acknowledge the uncommon leadership the President has exhibited

in the face of these challenges.”
The PDP BoT Chairman also said, “Unfortunately, some Nigerians do not see

any good in the present administration,” adding “this perception should be

killed.”
Anenih expressed happiness at the summit, which was convened to articulate

Southern Nigeria's positions at the forthcoming National Conference, that

the idea of a national conference had been widely accepted.

He also said that, “The response to the National Conference Committee was

quite remarkable; so also is the widespread pre-National Conference

Dialogue that is going on among various groups across the country.

“I commend President Goodluck Jonathan for his sagacity in giving

Nigerians this golden platform to examine areas of concern about the

Nigerian federation and find common solutions to those problems that have

constituted a hindrance to our evolutionary journey to nationhood.

“I am convinced that the National Conference will strengthen the bonds of

unity, the fabric of our federalism and the pillars of our nationhood.

The unity of this great nation is not negotiable.”
He added, “It is gratifying that different groups—nationalities, civil

society organisations, faith-based organisations and academic

institutions—are crystallising their positions and preparing

well-thought-out proposals for the National Conference.

“This Southern Leaders Summit is, surely, one of the pre-Conference Fora

which, hopefully, will identify areas of common interest to the States of

the South.”
Anenih, who used the occasion to lament the inability of the States of the

South to operate on a common platform or to speak consistently with one

voice, said the summit would provide a platform to identify common

concerns.
According to him, “there is no doubt that there are many concerns which

they share and need to identify at a platform such as this. Our Northern

counterparts have been known to work together as a united front. We in the

South must also forge unity and cooperation among ourselves.”

He noted that the participants at the Summit are men and women who have

distinguished themselves in their various callings and in the services of

this country. Moreover, he expressed confidence that the ideas and

proposals which would emanate from the deliberations would not only be

profound but also capable of lifting the country and helping it towards

attaining its manifest destiny.
His admonition: “We must see this National Conference, not as a platform

to shout at one another but rather as another opportunity to make our

country a better place to live in.
“We must concern ourselves with proffering ideas that will bring

improvements to every aspect and sector of our national life. Our aim must

be to facilitate the emergence of a new Nigeria which, in the days, months

and years after the National Conference, will be far better and more

united than ever before.”