Mark, govs, others eulogise Mandela

Posted by admin Governors, Headlines Saturday, December 7th, 2013

-Punch

The Senate President David Mark has described Nelson Mandela as one of the greatest Africans that ever lived.

Reacting to the news of his death on Friday, Mark said Mandela was a selfless leader who devoted his entire life to the emancipation of his people and by extension African people.

He said, “It is my wish and hope that African people would emulate and sustain his legacies of forthrightness, commitment, honesty and uncommon selfless service to humanity.”

The Deputy Senate President, Senator Ike Ekweremadu, has also described Mandela as an epitome of democracy and selfless struggle for common good. He said in a statement by his Special Adviser on Media, Mr. Uche Anichukwu, that his type of person would be difficult to come by.

Also the Plateau State Governor Jonah David Jang has described Mandela of South Africa as one of the biggest symbols of courage, resilience and struggle for justice for humanity.

Jang said in a statement by his Director of Press Affairs, Mr. James Mannok, that Mandela displayed virtues that have been a great inspiration to humanity.

He prayed that leaders will learn a lot from Mandela especially his spirit of sacrifice noting that he has left indelible marks in the hearts of men.

Similarly, Governor Peter Obi, Senator Chris Ngige and the Anambra State Governor – elect, Willie Obiano, expressed their condolences on the death of Mandela.

Obi said, “Africa has lost one of her greatest sons and a champion of selfless service to humanity. He lived his life for his people and for humanity and challenged obnoxious policies that militated against humanity and paid dearly for it. Madiba, may Africa continue to produce true statesmen like you!”

Ngige said, “He was the Elder Statesman of the world, an ex-president of South Africa, an embodiment of humanity, a harbinger of courage; a moving spirit for a people’s unwavering struggle to freedom; a tower of knowledge deployed to public good, and an abode of forthrightness. Africa needs these qualities. Nigeria has a gap for them and Anambra State badly needs them now, more than ever before.”

Obiano said, “RIP Mandela, our great African hero and legend. The world has lost a true leader who served his generation selflessly and an icon, whose good qualities every African leader must emulate. May God give us more leaders of such calibre in Africa.”

Meanwhile, Governor Kayode Fayemi of Ekiti State has said that people should not mourn Mandela but celebrate the ideals of freedom, equality, peace and unity for which he lived.

In his tribute, Fayemi said Mandela’s death called for reflection as his passage was an opportunity for leaders to rededicate themselves to the service of mankind, adding that the death of the famous freedom fighter has closed “an epic story of triumph of the human spirit over injustice.”

In his own reaction to the death of Mandela, Governor Sullivan Chime of Enugu State called on African leaders to emulate the selflessness, patriotism and humility, exemplified by the late anti-apartheid hero – Mandela.

A statement signed by his Chief Press Secretary, Mr. Chukwudi Achife, described Mandela as a universal symbol of resistance against oppression who also epitomised the values of dedicated and altruistic leadership.

Similarly, the Oyo State Governor, Abiola Ajimobi, joined world leaders to mourn Mandela.

In a statement by his Special Adviser on Media, Festus Adedayo, he described Mandela’s death as a colossal loss to the African continent and the entire human race, adding that the vacuum created by the departure of the anti-apartheid struggle hero would be too difficult to fill.

The Pan-Northern socio-political organisation, Arewa Consultative Forum and Vice President of the Nigerian Labour Congress, Issa Aremu, have also mourned the death of Mandela.

The Forum through its National Publicity Secretary, Mr. Anthony Sani, said in a statement on Friday in Kaduna that the former South African President was an embodiment of peace nurtured by reconciliation, forgiveness, justice, common decency, equality, accommodation and dignity.

On his part, Aremu, the General Secretary, National Union of Textile, Garment and Tailoring Workers of Nigeria noted that the news of the death of the hero of the anti apartheid struggle was a painful one.

He said Africa, the black race and all freedom loving people of the world had lost a revolutionary icon.

The NLC boss said Mandela symbolised freedom and resistance, noting that his struggle gave us dignity and his life gave humanity a sense of direction on political freedom, social justice and racial equality.

Similarly, the Trade Union Congress said in a statement on Friday that African leaders should emulate the virtues of Mandela.

The President and Secretary General of the TUC, Messrs. Bobboi Kaigama and Musa Lawal, respectively described Mandela as one truly global hero, who towered above every African of his generation.

Kaigama and Lawal said that African leaders should emulate the quality of selflessness in Mandela which made him to quit the political stage after ruling South Africa for one tenure though his contemporaries were engrossed in manipulating the constitutions of their respective countries to extend their hold on power.

The TUC also said that Mandela received medical treatment in his native South Africa unlike the leadership in Nigeria that would seek medical refuge in foreign countries to escape the poor medical facilities created by years of misrule foisted on their people.

In the same vein, the United Nations Population Fund on Friday gave graphic detail of how late Mandela championed the fight against HIV/AIDS in Africa and insisted that the pandemic was also a human rights issue.

The Executive Director of UNFPA, Prof. Babatunde Osotimehin, in a statement on the death of the former South African President said the world had lost a true statesman, a leader and a pragmatic visionary.

He said, “When he took on the fight against AIDS in Africa, he invoked the language of the struggle, insisting that HIV/AIDS was not just a disease, but also a human rights issue. Mandela was determined to break the stigma surrounding the pandemic and make it a priority on the political agenda.

“It was this humanity and honesty that defined Mandela and set him apart as one of the most influential and transformative leaders of our time.”

But as a swift reaction to the eulogies being showered on Mandela by Nigerian leaders, the Pan-Yoruba socio-political group, Afenifere, has asked them to emulate him and not just eulogise him.

Secretary of the group, Seinde Arogbofa, said he had read and heard the encomiums of many Nigerian leaders showered on the African leader.

He said it was surprising that Nigerian leaders were quick to sing his praises when they should be thinking of emulate his qualities which stood him out as a special icon in Africa.

“While we mourn Mandela, we also celebrate him. But I am surprised that many Nigerian leaders are quick to begin to make statements on the life and qualities of the African leader.

“I think these leaders of ours should stop singing his praises and begin to draw lessons from the life of the late Mandela. That is the only way his death can be meaningful to us,” the statement said.

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