The Initiative for Peace, Forgiveness and Love for One Another (IPFLOA), has urged Nigerians to embrace peaceful coexistence and mutual respect in a bid to ensure enhanced national development.

The Founder of IPFLOA, Kingsley Atoe, who made the call in Lagos yesterday, while speaking with journalists, said the country’s current challenges, including insecurity, economic hardship and increasing social divisions, required renewed commitment to the values of love, forgiveness and unity.

He expressed that peace and love should not be viewed merely as emotional appeals, but as strategic tools needed to build a stable society where businesses, institutions and communities could thrive.

According to him, the absence of trust and peaceful relationships among citizens often negatively impact development efforts, regardless of the availability of resources.
He said: “In a time when headlines are dominated by insecurity, inflation and division, the conversation we need to have most is also the simplest: love and peace.

“Without peace and trust, roads crumble, schools underperform and businesses close, not always because of a lack of funds, but because of a lack of trust.”

The peace advocate, who is also a member of the United Nations Peace Ambassadors Foundation, disclosed that IPFLOA had commenced a nationwide campaign aimed at promoting peaceful coexistence and encouraging Nigerians to look beyond ethnic, religious and cultural differences.

He noted that Nigeria’s diversity, with more than 250 ethnic groups and different religious backgrounds, should be leveraged as an advantage rather than allowed to become a source of conflict.

Atoe stressed the need to expose young Nigerians to the values of tolerance, compassion and forgiveness, warning that the attitudes promoted today would shape the character of future leaders.

He said IPFLOA had begun engagements with schools, markets, religious institutions and workplaces to promote tolerance and identify Nigerians who exemplify honesty, compassion and positive social values for recognition and reward.

He further emphasised that the organisation was planning a Peace March and a beauty pageant designed to advance the message of unity and peaceful coexistence across the country.

While agreeing that the country was facing enormous economic challenges, Atoe maintained that sustainable development could only take place in an atmosphere of peace and cooperation.