President Muhammadu Buhari urged Nigerian corps to
remain focused in life, pursue their dreams and forget those doing discord and
disintegration of Nigeria.
This
was contained in a statement issued in Abuja by the president’s Senior Special
Assistant on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu.
The
President, received the Corp members at his residence in Daura, urged them to
make Nigeria great again through pursuit of knowledge, patriotism and
commitment to values that promote national unity.He
pledged his unalloyed commitment to the unity and prosperity of Nigeria.
The president said the scheme has creditably promoted national unity and cohesion by
exposing young people to the uniqueness and cultural diversity of Nigeria.
I asked for those from the other extreme of Nigeria because I very much appreciate the NYSC scheme and whenever I see General Gowon, I always thank him for that,” he said.Speaking specifically to corps members from the South Eastern states, the President said: “tell your colleagues who want Biafra to forget about it.”
As a military commander, I walked from Degem, a border town between the North and the East, to the border between Cameroon and Nigeria.
I
walked on my foot for most of the 30 months that we fought the Nigeria-Biafra
civil war in which at least two million Nigerians were killed.
We
were made by our leaders to go and fight Biafra not because of money or oil,
because oil was not critical factor then, but because of one Nigeria.
So
if leaderships at various levels failed, it was not the fault of the rest of
Nigerians who have no quarrel with one another.
So,
please tell your colleagues that we must be together to build this country. It
is big enough for us and potentially big enough in terms of resources.
Those
who work hard will earn a respectable living. I have seen this country, I
fought for this country and I will continue to work for the unity of this
country,” the President said.
In
his remarks, Egbewumi Adebolu,
the Corps Liaison Officer in Daura, thanked the President for the honour of
receiving them and making their stay in Daura memorable.
He
said the youths strongly believed in the programme of the President to reduce
unemployment and create jobs for more Nigerians.
Adebolu
thanked the President for his personal gifts of cows, bags of rice and cash to
corps members in the community for Sallah celebration.
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