We must all work together to defeat banditry, terrorism – Defence Chief

Nigerians, regardless of ethnicity or religion, are encouraged to band together and battle their common adversaries, according to Chief of Defense Staff Gen. Christopher Musa, who made the plea on Saturday in Abuja.

Speaking during the Unity Schools Old Students Association (USOSA) sports carnival’s second edition, Musa enumerated societal vices, banditry, and terrorism as mutual foes.

“Nigeria is challenged; so we need a united Nigeria to confront all the challenges we are facing.

“Nigerians must unite and confront the evil that is coming against us. So many people do not like the blessings we are having as a country.

“We must shame them by working together as a team and together we will continue to move forward,’’ he said.

Musa, an old student of Federal Government College, Sokoto, noted that sports is a unifying factor that unites people and stressed the need for Nigerians to foster peace and promote national unity.

“At this sports carnival today, we are all one; we all love Nigeria. Nigeria gave us so much while in unity schools and that is what we are trying to bring out.

“This is a good opportunity and we all know how sports unite us and teach discipline to understand oneself and to make sacrifices to know that there will be failures in life.

“What does one do when he or she fails? He or she rises and moves forward and that is what we are trying to preach,’’ he said.

Musa also called on Nigerians to continue to promote Nigeria’s diversity for national development.

In his remarks, President-General of USOSA, Mr Michael Magaji called on Nigerians to continue to promote teamwork and excellence within Nigeria’s diversity as a way of adding value to national common heritage.

Magaji noted that the vision of the founding fathers of unity schools many decades back had led to the promotion of Nigeria’s values and the educational system.

“We see Nigerians in unity from all parts of the country coming here and using sports to promote teamwork and excellence which help to manage and understand the country’s diversity.

“Unity schools were set up more than 50 years ago primarily to promote quality education, but more importantly to promote nation building.

“We must continue to work together to integrate the ideals of this project for our common goal,’’ Magaji stressed.

The military government of retired Gen. Yakubu Gowon set up 12 additional Unity Schools in 1973.

This was after he visited one of the first three Federal Government Colleges in Sokoto in 1970, soon after the end of Nigeria’s civil war.

According to NAN, there are more than 3,000 old students of more than 55 unity colleges scattered around the country today in attendance at the sports carnival.

The sports carnival has “Reigniting Unity in Diversity’’ as its theme. 

NAN