Former Honourable Member, House of Representatives, Dr Usman Bugaje, has described as silly, the debate by Nigerians on the zone from which the next president should emerge.
As Nigeria prepares for the next general election in 2023, Bugaje said the worry of who emerges should be based on competence and not tribe or zone of the candidates.
He spoke on Sunday during the 26th Annual Pre-Ramadan Lecture organised by the University of Lagos Muslim Alumni on ‘Though Tribe and Tongue May Differ: Interrogating Nigeria’s Nationhood’.
The ex-lawmaker warned Nigerians against political opinions, noting that there was a need for policies that can benefit the next generation.
He said, “The problem that we are facing is not unique to Nigeria. It is understandable because colonialism influences the crafting of a lot of African countries.
“We have to manage diversity and resource sharing. We have mixed up so many things. We need to come back and clarify many issues.
“The elite that needs to guide the country is not clear on a number of issues. We tend to confuse unity and uniformity. There is no society that is completely homogenous.
“There is a lack of trust. We have failed to develop an elite consensus. You find conflict where there should be none. Sometimes, we just denigrate each other because we don’t understand ourselves.
“We need to put policies that can help us in place. The National Orientation Agency could have done a lot of work. I cannot understand why NOA can’t be used to talk to citizens.
“The elite must come together and create a consensus on some of the big issues in this country.
“We should not be led by the limited vision of politicians. Most of their visions do not go beyond the next election. We must be thinking of the next generation.
“Debating who is going to be president is silly. This is primitive, it is a shame. How Nigeria can realise its potential and others are issues we should be debating.
“If you take a flight, you are after competence and safety and not the tribe of the pilot.”
