The National Chairman of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), Dr. Olu Agunloye, has congratulated all Nigerians on this year’s Easter.
He noted that Easter is the joyful end to the season of fasting and penitence by Christians and a symbol of new life represented the emergence of Jesus Christ from resurrection.
Agunloye urged Nigerians to reflect soberly on the essence of Easter, which he said, “is about Love, Sacrifice, Ransom and Hope”.
He also said, “It is about relationships and engagements with fellowmen, redemptive work done for mankind, sacrifices made, ransom paid and the associated hope for rebirth.”
He noted that some two thousand and twenty-one years ago, Christ Jesus sacrificed his life for redemption of others and in modern days across the world, many people are still making sacrifices of time, energy, resources and even lives for the collective progress.
In Nigeria in recent times, a noteworthy sacrifice was made by Alhaji Moshood Kasimawo Olawale Abiola, fondly called MKO Abiola who sacrificed his life for the enshrinement of social justice in Nigeria. He paid the ultimate ransom to bequeath a legacy for democracy, the climax of which was that the election won by MKO as presidential candidate of the Social Democratic Party, SDP was fully supported by all ethnic groups, all religions and all categories of people across Nigeria. It has been the freest and fairest election of all times.
However, at this moment, ethnic groups and religious groups could not find a common ground as they did on the election of M. K. O. Abiola in 1993. Unfortunately, the spirit of coherence, unity and progress which existed about 28 years ago seems to have disappeared in Nigeria. The country is currently wobbling through a tempestuous time wherein bandits, herdsmen, Boko Haram and other criminals brazenly confront the President of the Federal Republic and Commander-in-Chief at will. They lay deadly blockades across the nation, turn the country’s landscape to killing fields, kidnap pupils from schools and lay claims to having shot down Nigerian Air Force jet fighter plane. We are at a period when rates of unemployment, inflation and poverty are dangerously high while food security and social security are at the lowest. The situation is so bad that President Muhammadu Buhari had to fly to the UK for medical check-up as a testimony to the appalling state of the health sector in the country. The grave impending danger is the possible ultimate convergence of widespread internal insecurity crisis, global and local impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic and further degeneration of the economy which may cause irreparable or irreversible damages to the Nigerian Nation.
The National Chairman has therefore stressed that: “At this point, it is critical for Nigerians to revisit the ideals and ideology of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) for which M.K.O Abiola was associated and imbibe the essence of sacrifice for a rebirth to promote integration, unity, justice, and equity to heal our national fractures and pull Nigeria back from the brink.
Agunloye also reiterated the determination of his party to provide creditable alternative political vehicle to guarantee value for the votes and sweats of the common people in Nigeria.
He opined that the time has come to restructure the governance and constitutional systems, the fiscal system and the federal system, to reassure the people of Nigeria and to restore hope so that separationist or secessionist agitations can die down and the nation can commence the urgent process of rebuilding to evolve a new, safer, freer and prosperous Nigeria.
Finally, Agunloye called on President Muhammadu Buhari to lead Nigeria, to be a leader of all Nigerians, irrespective of ethnicity, religion or class, and to address his main constitutional duty which is to provide security for Nigeria and ensure the well-being of all citizens.
Agunloye vowed that the Social Democratic Party, SDP, as a national party with pro-people ideology, will continue to be in the vanguard of the promotion of a strong, democratic and egalitarian Nigerian society at all times.
