President Muhammadu Buhari said Nigerians are better and stronger together in the entity called Nigeria, noting he defended the unity of the country as a soldier during the civil war between 1967 and 1970.

The President spoke virtually from Aso Villa as chairman of the 12th Bola Tinubu Colloquium, “Our Common Wealth:  The Imperative of National Cohesion for Growth and Prosperity’’, to celebrate the 69th birthday of  All Progressives Congress chieftain, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, in Kano.

He spoke against the backdrop of calls by groups and individuals for secession in different parts of the country.

While the Aare Ona Kakanfo of Yorubaland, Iba Gani Adams, Sunday Adeyemo, also known as Sunday Igboho, and other individuals and groups are calling for creation of Oduduwa or O’Odua Republic, the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, and its leader, Nnamdi Kanu, as well as Niger Delta ex-,militant leader, Asari Dokubo, are agitating for a Biafran Republic.

Buhari’s declaration also came on a day Iba Gani Adams said the clamour for Oodua Republic is long overdue, adding that  the call for self-determination is a true reflection of the present mindset of all Yoruba sons and daughters in the diaspora.

Similarly, a coalition of over 174 Yoruba groups in Diaspora, Yoruba One Voice, YOV, restated its avowed commitment to the actualisation of O’odua Republic, saying the call for self-determination remains the last option for the Yoruba nation.

But the Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen Ibrahim Attahiru, vowed yesterday that under his watch, the Nigerian Army will be resolute in dealing decisively with any and every threat confronting the country.

Nigerians better, stronger together — Buhari

Speaking at the colloquium also virtually attended by the Vice-President, Yemi Osinbajo; House of Representatives Speaker, Femi Gbajabiamila; Senate President, Ahmad Lawan; among others, whose flights to Kano were disrupted by poor weather, President Buhari said the theme of the occasion was suitable for the contemporary issue of secession and national unity in the country.

He said: “Despite occasional inter-ethnic tensions in our national history, it seems to me that we have all agreed on one point , that notwithstanding our diversity or ethnicity, culture, language and religion, Nigerians are better, even stronger together.

“Asiwaju (Tinubu) himself is a known advocate of unity and cohesion in Nigeria. This has been a constant factor in his outstanding political career from the time he served in the short-lived Senate in the Third Republic to his involvement in the struggle for the actualisation of the June 12 mandate of the late Chief MKO Abiola to his much acclaimed years of service as the governor of Lagos State from 1999 to 2007.

“I can also relate personally to the ideals of One Nigeria. As a military officer, I have served with great comrades from all the nooks and crannies of our country.

“In the course of my career, I have also been opportuned to serve in all parts of Nigeria, seeing first-hand the enticing possibilities of a strong, united nation.

“More importantly, I fought for the unity of Nigeria during the civil war – 1967 to 1970, and I saw first-hand the unspeakable horrors of war, not just from fellow soldiers from both sides but from civilians, innocent children, women and the elderly left behind.

“As we all know, the peace-keeping recovery and reconstruction that followed could also not have succeeded under an atmosphere of inter-ethnic animosity. We must count our blessings in Nigeria and see in them the crucial factors of peace and unity.”

He said:   “By this gesture governor Ganduje has helped us to tell two stories; this is the first time that the colloquium is being hosted outside Lagos and Abuja, the capital city.

“And it is befitting that Kano should be that place, this city of radical and progressive ideas and ideologies, a city whose leading political lights have been left of centre, which is the dominant tendency within our great party the APC.

“Second, it helps us to underscore the point that this country and its people are stronger and more powerful together than apart. For the purveyors of breaking up into small components/countries, perhaps they should be reminded that we would not have been able to accept Governor Ganduje’s offer to come to Kano at short notice since we would all have needed visas to come to Kano.”

The Vice President called for a new set of Nigerians across all divides who are committed to a country operated on high values integrity, justice, love, among others.

He said:  “We believe that we now have an opportunity to increase the numbers of a new tribe of Nigerians; a tribe of men and women of all faiths, tribes and ethnicities committed to a country run on high values of integrity, hard work, justice, and love of country.

“A tribe of men and women who are prepared to make the sacrifices and self-constraints that are crucial to building a strong society; who are prepared to stick together, fight for equity, and justice side by side.

“A tribe consisting of professionals, businessmen, politicians, religious leaders, and all others who believe that this new Nigeria is possible and already we have built and are building the building blocks for this new Nigeria.”

Prof. Osinbajo extolled the leadership style of the former Lagos state governor, saying that central to that style is; first a belief that development, economic, social, political development depends on enabling a contest of ideas.

He opined that, “Whether that is within a political party or its caucuses, a cabinet meeting or even just thinking through a problem.

“By exposing his thoughts and ideas constantly to debate and contestation, he refines his views constantly and is at the cutting edge of issues as varied as artificial intelligence, vaccines, to even what sort of legal processes or arguments should be filed in a matter in court!

“I remember once when he was suggesting to me that he thought it was better that we should contest jurisdiction in a particular case and so many other times when he had introduced his own legal thoughts to a matter. I have had to keep reminding him that he is not a lawyer! And I am sure others have had to remind him several times that he is not many different things.

“Second, and perhaps more importantly, because he is not afraid of having his ideas scrutinized, criticized by even subordinates, he is able to lead a vast array of persons of strong, deeply held convictions, and a variety of ideologies.

“The third in that leadership style is that he is completely comfortable engaging across ethnic, religious, and partisan divides.

“It is his belief that national development is only possible where we, the leaders are constantly interrogating ideas, perspectives, and opinions which are what led some of us who worked with him through the years, to formalize our constant debates so that on his birthday we open up discussions on some issues or issues of national importance.”

He observed the latest Tinubu Colloquium came at a time when a combination of challenges worsened by the fallouts of a global pandemic has created a storm of socio-economic problems.

“The default mode of some at times like this is to stoke tendencies viewpoints and opinions that threaten the federation and our unity,” he lamented.