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From former military President, Ibrahim Babangida came a shocker yesterday when he revealed that Lord Lugard created Nigeria to last for only a 100 years.
The self acclaimed evil genius said this in Lagos yesterday at the presentation of 2 books in honor of his foreign affairs minister, Bolaji Akinyemi.
Speaking yesterday Babangida had said “As Nigerians, we are aware of the great doubts that have been cast about what 2014 portends for the continuing existence of our nation. I am aware that Nigerians have taken great umbrage at these predictions. Even Lord Lugard who founded what has been called Nigeria gave it a life-span of 100 years. I regard it as a challenge to our intelligence to ensure that these portends and prophesies do not become self-fulfilling.
“We should engage these predictions on an intellectual level, testing whether the facts justify the conclusions.
“But on a practical and public policy level, we must import honesty into our public policy assessment. First, we must identify the problems that need to be addressed. Secondly, we must address these problems honestly. Thirdly, we must identify the most current and the most appropriate mechanism for addressing these issues.
“Let me make this clear. My position is not dictated by the fact that foreigners are making these predictions. We don’t even need foreigner sources as a reference point. The Nigerian media is awash with alarming news about our problems.
“My position is dictated by my conviction that Nigeria is precious enough to be saved. It deserves an investment of our time and resources to make Project Nigeria a success. But the starting point has to be an admission that we need to fix things.”
Babangida also stated that mistakes of past administrations are putting pressure on the country today though he refused to identify the mistakes or the past administrations that made them.
Said he “Some of the mistakes of the past have now come to haunt us. But let me make one thing clear. Not all these mistakes were made out of callousness or bad faith or malice.
“Most people in office do their best. They act to the best of their ability. Unless we think that our leaders have divine ability, we have to admit that even with all the best of their abilities and even with the best faith and with the best of all intentions, human beings will still make mistakes,”
In his own comments, ProfessorAkinyemi called for a national dialogue saying “Zoning, federal character, rotation, marginalisation of the brightest and the best will only make the much prophesied collapse of Nigeria in 2014 a self- fulfilling prophecy. We cannot build a nation on a system that takes care of the few while condemning the many to penury. A system that cannot take care of the many that are poor cannot save the few who are rich."
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