by Isi Esene
Former United States president, Bill Clinton has attributed the growing terrorism menace in the country to poverty.
Clinton said this yesterday in Abeokuta, Ogun State, at the ThisDay Newspapers awards ceremony organised to recognise deserving individuals.
The former US president said the challenges facing the country could be surmounted with effective leadership, poverty eradication, equitable distribution of wealth, job creation, and quality education.
He reportedly said, “You have to somehow bring economic opportunity to the people who don’t have it.
“You have all these political problems — and now violence — that appear to be rooted in religious differences and all the rhetoric of the Boko Harams and others, but the truth is the poverty rate in the North is three times of what it is in Lagos,” he said.
Clinton went on to enumerate the major challenges facing Nigeria saying, “You have about three big challenges. First of all, like 90 per cent of the countries who have one big resource, you have a number of ways with your own money. It shows you have different ways. Now you are at least not wasting the natural gas, you are developing and selling it through the pipelines. You have to do better job of managing the natural resources.
“Secondly, you have to somehow bring economic opportunities to the people who don’t have. This is not a problem specific to Nigeria. In almost every place in the world, prosperity is heavily concentrated in and around urban areas. So you have all these political problems for now even violence .
“There appears to be political and religious differences and now, the rhetoric of the Boko Haram and all that. You have to have both powerful state and local governments and a national policy that work together.
“If you just keep trying to divide the power if you will, into loosening strategy, you have to figure out a way to have a strategy that will help share the prosperity.”
Fifteen teachers and ex-teachers from primary, secondary and tertiary institutions from across the country were honoured with the ThisDay Awards of N2m each.
Lifetime Awards were also given to others, including prominent industrialists, Oba Otudeko, Chief Razaq Okoya, and the Osile of Oke-Ona Egba, Oba Adedapo Tejuosho.
Amongst the dignitaries who attended the event were former President Olusegun Obasanjo; the Chairman of Punch Nigeria Limited, Wale Aboderin; the Alake of Egbaland, Oba Adedotun Gbadebo; a former Governor of Ogun State, Chief Olusegun Osoba; Publisher of Vanguard Newspapers; a former Vice-President of the World Bank, Oby Ezekwesili; and the Founding Managing Director, Guaranty Trust Bank, Fola Adeola.
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