The Imo State Governor, Hope Uzodimma, and the Catholic Archbishop of Owerri Ecclesiastical Province, Most Rev. Dr Lucius Ugorji, have said Nigeria still has hope despite challenges facing the nation at 62.
Both spoke, yesterday, at the Maria Assumpta Catholic Cathedral, Owerri, during a Church service to mark the 62nd Independence Anniversary of Nigeria.
They agreed that God endowed Nigeria with huge human and material resources, and that, with the right leadership and attitude, the country can attain greatness.
In his remarks at the end of the service, Uzodimma challenged Nigerians to stand up to tackle the challenges retarding the progress of the nation.
He advised Nigerians to learn to differentiate between collective interest and individual or personal interest, noting that “what defines a nation is its collective interest.”
Uzodimma explained that all nations have their peculiar challenges.
He said: “We must take time to study how countries overcame such challenges and deplore proactive approaches in confronting them in our time.
“Every generation has a responsibility to confront every challenge that befell it; be it leadership or followership, but the common denominator to solving such challenges is by identifying the root cause of the problem.”
The governor regretted that the attitude of Nigerians has always been to “complain and lament about problems, identifying where things are not going well, but not doing much in planning how things can go well.”
In his homily, Archbishop Ugorji thanked God for the many blessings He endowed Nigeria with as a nation, “as well as so many talents and human endowments given to its leaders,” indicating there is still hope for the country.
Ugorji recalled the expectations of Nigerians, 62 years ago, and said they desired a nation devoid of rancour, ritual killings, insecurity, poverty, and all forms of immoralities. He also said that Nigerians deserve a nation where everybody will be respected, given equal opportunity, justice and fair play and experience a life of freedom.
