Govt says low-key party not threat-inducedSenate restates support for state police, more statesANPP urges Nigerians to have faith in countryEVEN though the Federal Government has declared that its decision to make the 51st Independence anniversary celebration low-key is unconnected with Boko Haram threats of fresh attacks, Nigerians are observing the event with great fear of the terror group.In a reaction to insinuations in some quarters, the government said the action had nothing to do with security challenges posed by the sect, which has been responsible for bombings across the nation.But Nigerians live in palpable fear, with many avoiding certain states and cities prone to attacks from their business and other engagements.No doubt when Nigeria gained independence in 1960, this turn of event was least expected. And at 51, the menace has become a source of sober reflection for all citizens.The government said since it had organised two elaborate ceremonies last year to mark the country's golden jubilee celebration and the May 29th presidential inauguration, it would not be in the nation's economic interest to hold another jamboree under the guise of 51 years of nationhood.Minister of Information, Mr. Labaran Maku, said that to execute the two 'elaborate events', a lot of resources in terms of money, time and energy were expended with world leaders attending.To the Senate, despite the economic, political, and ethno-religious contradictions, Nigeria has fared well at 51.The Upper Chambers, which puts the country's development strides and woes on the balance ahead of its 51st Independence anniversary tomorrow, said a review of the resource sharing formula and creation of more states should be done now for Nigeria to be on the superhighway of development.The senators at the session also declared that the practice of true federalism and state police were critical to the stability and growth of Nigeria.The debate was prompted by a motion moved by Ita Enang. The Upper House suspended the day's business to reflect on the state of the nation and appraise the role of the Legislature since the nation returned to full-blown democracy in 1999.Meanwhile, the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) has called on Nigerians to renew their implicit confidence in the country's potential for growth and development. It however implored the Federal Government to wake up to its responsibility and rekindle the peoples' faith in the country's leadership to guide them to greatness.The ANPP National Chairman, Dr. Ogbonnaya Onu, in his Independence anniversary statement issued in Abuja, hoped that the current social and economic challenges facing the country would give way to a brighter Nigeria where all citizens enjoy better life.Also, the Minister of Youth Development, Bolaji Abdullahi, has said the youths would soon regain their place in the country as the problems confronting them were being tackled by the government.Abdullai said key interventions at solving the problems would include skills acquisition, enterprise development and access to credit.Maku, who reacted to media reports linking the Boko Haram with the low-key ceremony, said the government is looking forward to 2014 when Nigeria would mark its 100 years of amalgamation for an elaborate event.The minister appealed to the media to exercise maximum caution on national issues even as he admitted that Nigeria is experiencing security challenges. Maku pleaded with the media 'to avoid scaring citizens by your reports.'He stated that it is not compulsory that every independence celebration must feature military and school children parade, adding 'even during military era, it was not all independence celebrations that featured such parades.'Citing the administration of former President Olusegun Obasanjo's approach, Maku said military parades were not held at every Independence celebration. 'This is not the first time this kind of low-keyed celebration is being held.'While regretting that the mass media had been giving undeserved coverage to those he described as 'anti-state actors,' the minister said that attributing the decision to have a low-key celebration to the nation's security challenge sparked off a high sense of lack of responsibility on the side of the authors of the story.Addressing journalists at the Presidential Villa after meeting with President Goodluck Jonathan, Maku expressed 'disappointment with a story in a national daily (not The Guardian) that the government stepped down celebrations because of 'Boko Haram scare.''I think this story was the highest level of lack of responsibility on the part of the management and editors of the newspapers. Nigeria belongs to all of us. We must put the interest of this country first. The President has just signed the Freedom of Information Act into Law as the sign of this administration's commitment to the promotion of the freedom of the Press. It is increasingly a matter of concern the way a few newspapers have been reporting the security challenges this nation has. In the first instance, every Nigerian is aware that even under the military regime, it is not every anniversary that this nation has to celebrate with military parade.'This year, the Federal Government decided there would be no ceremonies. In the past one year, Nigeria was 50 years last year and there was a huge celebration, as we never did before after 1960. This country particularly at the federal level, we celebrated massively with full military parade, we never saw since our childhood days because last year was a special one for us. So, the government decided to pay attention to celebrate the achievements of Nigeria, in the last 50 years.'Immediately after, we also had a huge inauguration celebration. We had the same in virtually all the 36 states. On May 29th several world leaders were here to witness the event. They were also here when we turned 50. These were huge celebrations that cost huge resources to organise. And so it was in the wisdom of the government that this year's celebration would be low-keyed. This is so that when Nigeria clocks 100 years in 2014, we will now have a full-scale centenary celebration of our country,' he said.Adopting the motion, senators passionately pondered on the nation's past and unanimously accepted that though Nigeria is far from attaining its rightful position in terms of social and economic development, there was still reason for the people to celebrate.In their individual reminiscence of the country's good old days, the legislators blamed its economic woes on the long period of military intervention in politics and the failure of past leaders to perform well.However, having enjoyed the first stretch of long years of democracy, they called for patience and support for Jonathan to realise his transformation agenda.The Senate also allayed fears of the country breaking up, saying that having survived the challenging period of nationhood, Nigeria would remain an indivisible nation.'For those who believe that Nigeria will break up, I have bad news for them: Nigeria will not break up. There is no developed nation in the world that has not passed through the type of challenges that Nigeria is passing through now,' Senate President David Mark said.On the way forward, the senators called for state police to tackle internal security challenges, creation of additional states to allow for even development, restoring the culture of oneness as well as implementing fiscal federalism as stipulated in the constitution.'We should look at fiscal federalism. If we choose to be a federal nation, it must be done in totality and not choosing it when it is convenient. We should also look at revenue sharing formula, it is lopsided. If there is a way we can be fairer in the distribution of resources, have access to equal opportunities and use merit more than where we come from, Nigeria would be a better country and at 60, we would have Nigeria that we would be proud of.'At the request of Jonathan, the Senate confirmed the appointment of chairmen and members of National Population Commission (NPC) and Federal Roads Maintenance Agency (FERMA).While Chief Festus Odimegwu heads NPC, Ezekiel Olajide Adeniyi was confirmed chairman of FERMA. The two agencies were referred to Committees on Works and ID Card and National Population for screening and to submit their reports in two weeks.In the statement, which he personally signed, Onu (ANPP chairman) said: 'We share with our fellow citizens both the joy and the equally sober significance of this occasion, especially with the worry of many on how the present challenges can give way to a brighter future of personal safety, individual fulfilment and national prosperity.'Our great Party is confident that if Nigerians can have greater confidence in our personal abilities and reawaken our implicit faith in the power of Almighty God as the ultimate decider of human destinies, then surely, we can restore hope to the hopeless, return happiness to the sad, remove despair from the dejected and strengthen the weak to become strong and resolute.'Abdullahi promised to re-engage the youth by boosting their self-confidence through information technology, which he said, would put them in the driver's seat of the future.'We should not do this just because we love our youths, but because it makes economic, social and security sense,'' he said.Abdullahi said he would embark on 'Drive the Future Nigeria (DFN) values' that would communicate to the youth the values of a new Nigerian mind-set.
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