A national leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Bola Tinubu, has said the West African region will not be enough to contain Nigerians if there is a crisis leading to a mass exodus in Nigeria.
Nigeria has witnessed renewed cases of insecurity and inter-ethnic clashes in recent times with clamour for secession also gaining strength in some quarters.
Speaking at the eighth-day Fidau prayer for the late Lateef Jakande, first civilian governor of Lagos State on Friday, Tinubu said there was a need to stop treading the warpath in the country.
He warned against ethnic conflicts in the country, noting that should such snowball into a full-blown crisis and there is a need to vacate Nigeria, the entire West African region will not be too small to accommodate Nigerians.
He said: “Nigeria is currently facing a crisis; a crisis of insurgency, banditry in all aspects of security, but God Almighty that made this country as one of the largest and most resourceful countries will protect us.
“I appeal, in his (Jakande’s) memory today, for us not to turn whatever challenges we are facing right now into ethnic, tribal, and religious crises.
“If there is a crisis, where do we go? We will submerge the entire West Africa, there will be no enough space to accommodate us.
“Those who have seen the effect of war, the effect of tribal conflict, of religious conflict, will never want it for Nigeria.
“We pray to God to strengthen our minds, guide our faith, put peace, and bring peace unto this land, may Allah bless all of us.”
Seunmanuel Faleye is a brand and communications strategist. He is a covert writer and an overt creative head. He publishes Apple’s Bite International Magazine.
