Segun Atanda/
The quest for inter-faith collaboration in nation building received royal blessings and the endorsement of prominent Nigerians on Thursday, as the Legacy Initiative International (LII) held its inaugural stakeholders’ dinner and interactive session.
Dignitaries at the Dinner and Interactive Session held at Oriental Hotel, Victoria Island, Lagos, included the Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi; the Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Lamidi Adeyemi; the Sultan of Sokoto, Sultan Muhammed Sa’ad Abubakar II and Senator Ike Nwachukwu, a former External Affairs Minister.
The royal fathers who were all represented at the event commended the efforts of the Grand Patron of LII, Chief Kenny Martins and other members of the group who have been working to unite Nigeria and restore peace through inter-faith collaboration.
“I appreciate the job being undertaken by this group. If we have been having this kind of group in the past 20 years, the country wouldn’t have been as it is,” the Elerefe of Erefe, Oba Fayemi Johnson, who represented the Ooni along with Oba Adekunle Adebowale, told the congregation.
The Sarkin Kudu of Sokoto, Alhaji Muazu S. Abubakar I, who represented the Sultan of Sokoto, prayed for LII leaders and called on Nigerians to support the group, as well as ensure they use their PVC’s wisely to elect good leaders.
Aare Ayandotun Ayanlakin, the royal ambassador to the Alaafin of Oyo also lauded the initiative as he delivered the royal fathers well-wishes and prayers.
Speaking at the event, Senator Nwachukwu observed that “we have for such a long time been burdened by the difficulties we placed on ourselves”.
He urged Nigerians to be united and build a country “where leadership does not mean feather your nest”.
Nwachukwu also sought the support of Nigerians for Martins and the group, as he made a clarion call to his fellow citizens to love one another and vote for the right people.
“Go and register; use your PVC. Vote people you understand,” he said.
Earlier in the programme, a Patron of LII, Bishop Boyo Babalola told the congregation what the group stands for.
He said, “Legacy Initiative International is a Coalition of several groups with the same ideology, aiming at effecting the much-desired quest by Nigerians for credible and Sustainable Leadership. After a long time of research and consultations from various concerned stakeholders in the Nation’s Leadership elite, traditional leaders, spiritual leaders and the general populace, we discovered that the best way to address this Leadership question is to bring God into the solution process. This is because Nigeria, even though in theory, is a secular state, in practice, it is, in fact, a multi-religious Country. Our desire to achieve this is what today necessitated this August gathering.”
Martins, while delivering his address, said the congregation had gathered to chart a new cause for Nigeria that is devoid of acrimony and divisiveness.
Speaking on unity and religious tolerance, Martins made reference to what he called the exemplary life of the late Sardauna of Sokoto, Sir Ahmadu Bello, who, according to him, would usually stop by to spend time in the house of a friend who was a Bishop living next to his mosque before proceeding to observe his prayer.
He said, “Democracy is considered the best system of Government, but no two democracies are the same. The advantage of democracy over other systems of Government is that it has a term and tenure for elected officials. However, democracy in itself neither guarantees good governance, peace, nor rapid development in the countries that practice it. It is organizations such as ours that seek to moderate the interplay of political forces and interests that make democracy the ideal system of government.
“In our own case what we seek to do is to enlist the support of our leaders of the two dominant faith groups in Nigeria, the Christian Leaders and the Muslim Leaders to work together and lend their experience, integrity and organizational prowess to the development of our nascent democracy. Our faith should be our uniting factor rather than a dividing line.
“There are some foreign experts that had predicted in 2007 that Nigeria would cease to exist as a country in 2015 as a result of the projected outcome of perceived sectarian differences. However, the Nigerian people have proved the experts wrong, and in 2018, we are still a united and growing democracy. However, we should continue to be vigilant and never for once take those dire predictions for granted. We must continue to work together to make sure that the doom prediction does not become a reality at any time in the foreseeable future as a result of our own actions or inactions.”
The occasion witnessed some pledges of cash support and the gift of two buses to ease the movements of members of the group who have been traversing the length and breadth of the country to share the LII idealism with notable Nigerians.
Those who also spoke at the event and stressed the need to make LII an enduring legacy, included the Yeye Oge of Lagos, Chief (Mrs) Opral Benson; the former Speaker of Ogun State House of Assembly, Hon Titi Oseni-Gomez; Pastor Ituah Ighodalo; Elder Nat Okoro; Chief Nkereuwem Akpan, a human rights activist who pledged a princely N20million to support the group, Dr Niyi Ojutiku, who pledged $10,000, and Alhaji Awwal Tukur.
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