A former Head of State, Gen. Yakubu Gowon (retd.) and a former Minister of Defence, Gen. Theophilus Danjuma, have cautioned Nigerians, especially those who have held leadership positions, against making utterances which could throw the country into chaos.
The two spoke in separate goodwill messages at the 6th edition of the Abuja Festival of Praise held at the International Conference Centre, Abuja, on Friday.
In a veiled reference to a letter written by ex-President Olusegun Obasanjo, Gowon advised Nigerians, especially past and present leaders, against saying things that could further destabilise the nation.
He said Nigerians would be the ones to suffer, if there was no peace in the country.
Gowon said, “Let all Nigerians — the leadership and the followership — make sure that we do not make utterances or say things that can really create problems for the leadership and for the country because if that happens, if we listen to such utterances, there shall be no peace and we will be the sufferers for it.
“I want all of us as faithfuls to bear in mind that this country needs peace and this peace can only come from all of us, the leadership — past and present — and from all of us. We must play our part to ensure that there is peace in the country.”
He explained that this became necessary in view of recent happenings in the country.
Speaking in a similar vein, Danjuma noted that even though he was mentioned in Obasanjo’s letter, he had refrained from commenting on it.
He said there was no need to go public on the issue because he had unfettered access to the president and would speak with him “face to face.”
Danjuma said, “The press have been after me; they want me to react to what Obasanjo said about Mr. President (Goodluck Jonathan) and I told them that I have complete access to the President. And if I have anything to say to him, I will do so face to face.
“These are very difficult times and we must be careful, especially as leaders, of what we say in public.”
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