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•Acting president at Rivers, says nation needs new vision, visits Imo today
Acting President Yemi Osinbajo has urged Nigerians to shun ethnic or religious biases. Speaking yesterday at the 2017 Murtala Muhammed Memorial lecture in Abuja, Osinbajo expressed regrets that the spirit of the Nigerian project had degenerated to the extent that, “The first question we ask is not what is the worth of a man or a woman, or what he or she can do but where he or she is from or what religious label he is wearing.
According to the acting president, Nigerians should emulate the legacy of the late General Muhammed, who even in his short reign, left indelible marks in the country.
Meanwhile, the Acting President yesterday paid an official visit to Rivers State in continuation of Federal Government’s dialogue with peoples of the Niger Delta.
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In Port Harcourt, he declared that the zone required a new vision devoid of the prevailing unhappy circle of discontent that sometimes resulted in violence, vandalism and security response.
He said that it was extremely discomforting that the Niger Delta region where he did his National Youths Service Corps 38 years ago was still grappling with the same challenges of underdevelopment and poverty.
He disclosed that the groundbreaking ceremony for the Integrated Contaminated Soil Management Centre provided for by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) report will be performed on Thursday in Ogoni.
The acting president reassured the stakeholders that the Federal Government would continue the amnesty programme for ex-militants. In response, Rivers State Governor Nyesom Wike said he was in support of the 16-point agenda submitted by the Pan Niger Delta Forum (PANDEF) to the Federal Government.
Osinbajo will also pay an official visit to Imo State today. A statement by the Chief Press Secretary to the governor, Sam Onwuemeodo in Owerri yesterday stated that the Acting President would inaugurate “one or two projects, out of more than two thousand verifiable projects” executed by the Governor Rochas Okorocha’s administration.
