The leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has commended
\nPresident Goodluck Jonathan for the successful Centenary Celebrations
\nsaying the events have ushered in a new and beautiful era of oneness,
\nbrotherliness, unity and peace in the nation.<\/p>\n
PDP National Publicity Secretary, Chief Olisa Metuh, in a statement on
\nSaturday said the party is very proud of President Jonathan for organizing
\nthe events which \u201cnot only succeeded in putting the nation on the
\ninternational arena to showcase our best but also fostered unity and
\ngenuine reconciliation among our leaders and the people.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Centenary celebrations have ushered in a new era. They have rekindled
\nthe Nigerian spirit in all of us. They have revived our sense of
\npatriotism; our inner love for one another as one people under God.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Centenary Concert not only reminded us of our common root but also
\npointed us to our rich heritage which comes alive only when we combine our
\nenergies as a people. It showed we are indeed one people determined to
\nsucceed and that our divisions are as ephemeral as they are artificial.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe PDP and indeed all well meaning Nigerians appreciate President
\nGoodluck Jonathan for organizing the centenary prayers and the Award Nite
\nwhich for the first time in contemporary history brought together all our
\nliving past leaders under one roof despite their differences, perceived or
\nreal.<\/p>\n
\u201cNigerians were moved and their hopes of a peaceful great nation was
\nrekindled when they saw former President Shehu Shagari, General Muhammadu
\nBuhari, General Ibrahim Babangida and General Abdusalami Abubakar come
\ntogether. Nigerians were moved when they saw General Olusegun Obasanjo and
\nPresident Goodluck Jonathan together irrespective of their perceived
\nmisunderstandings. This shows that our differences and disagreements as a
\nnation do not get to the bones and can always be resolved.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe remain eternally grateful to President Goodluck Jonathan for using the
\nevent not only to awaken the spirit of patriotism by honouring outstanding
\nNigerians but also to engender genuine reconciliation among our leaders; a
\nfeat which has opened the portals for a new era of peace
\nand unity among the people irrespective of political, religious, ethnic
\nand sectional affiliations.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe also salute our leaders for this show of statesmanship and urge that
\nsuch understanding, maturity and patriotism should trickle down to all
\nother leaders at all levels. We cannot agree less with Nigerians in their
\ninsistence that this would not have been possible but for the humility,
\ncandour and the forthrightness of President Goodluck Jonathan in handling
\nnational issues in spite of the challenges we face as a nation.<\/p>\n
\u201cThose who believed that the Centenary is not worth celebrating can now
\nsee their mistake. Through the Centenary celebrations, Nigeria is now in a
\nnew era where brotherly love, peace and unity have been revived. We have
\nmoved into a new era where we must eschew all forms of bitterness, crucify
\nall that divide us and focus only on those things that bind us together as
\none people.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe entire world is watching us. We are now in a period where the unity,
\nprosperity and happiness of our people must be our collective priority;
\nwhere the shedding of the blood of the innocent must stop and where our
\ndear nation and our people are no longer defined by political, tribal,
\nreligious and sectional considerations but as a united people with a
\ncommon destiny.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur nation has for long been under attack by sectional interest and this
\nis the time to silence such interests and build a strong and united
\ncountry. The challenges we face are transitory and cannot defeat our
\ncollective spirit. We must learn to support our leaders and in this
\nregard, our criticisms must be constructive and all forms of bigotry must
\nend.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe therefore call on all Nigerians, irrespective of political
\naffiliations to stand up and defend our common destiny as a nation. If
\nyou have ever benefitted from the soil of this country; if you have ever
\ndrank from the waters of Nigeria; if you have ever been refreshed by the
\ncool and fresh air God has blessed us with; if you have ever eaten of the
\nfruit of this land, then the time has come for you to give back to the
\nland. Let us stand up and collectively establish and defend the unity and
\ngreatness of our dear nation so that labours of our heros past shall not
\nand shall not be in vain.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has commended President Goodluck Jonathan for the successful Centenary Celebrations saying the events have ushered in a new and beautiful era of…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":23493,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[17],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-23645","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-exclusive"],"yoast_head":"\n