As Nigeria turns 60, a former governor of old Kaduna State, Alhaji Balarabe Musa, has stated that the country has not done well in actualising most of the dreams of its founding fathers.
Musa in a chat with newsmen stated that the current leaders have not done well, making it difficult for the country to achieve substantive results in development.
Musa was elected as governor of Kaduna State on the platform of the Malam Aminu Kano led People’s Redemption party in 1979.
He was eventually impeached by a predominantly National Party of Nigeria dominated Kaduna state House of Assembly in 1982, after an intractable dispute.
However, Musa explained that the aspirations of the country could be achieved if both the leadership and followers resolved to play their part in earnest nation-building.
“Honestly, the country has not fared well at 60. It is very disappointing that this is where we are.
“But things can be better; we can still achieve the dreams of the founding fathers if we all play our role in nation-building,” he said.
READ ALSO: Why I’ve been quiet about Nigeria – Babagida
He urged leaders to always make the welfare and well-being of the people the focus of their policies and programmes.
The former governor stressed that political and economic restructuring of the country was key for progress
“We need to restructure the country politically and economically. We need to ensure that power actually resides with the people.
“The economic and political models we are currently operating only empower a few. Governments must be structured to impact positively on the masses,” he said.
He decried the security challenges in the country, saying the problem was threatening the progress and prosperity of the nation.
Musa said if the country had acted at the right time, the rising cases of banditry and the problem of insurgency could have been averted.
“We acted too late. Things are getting out of hand because we did not act at the right time. If we had taken timely actions, we would not be here,” he said.
Musa, however, said that the situation could still be reversed “if we sustain doing the right thing,” he said.
