President Bola Tinubu has at a dinner in Malabo, organised in his honour by President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo of Equatorial Guinea on Wednesday, urged all African countries, as a matter of urgency, to pursue peace and unity in order for Africa to achieve collective sustainable growth.
Tinubu solicited for the end of old legacies of nepotism to give way for unity and peace, which are non-negotiably important for Africa’s development to thrive.
“We better roll our sleeves, put on our nickers and move for peace, stability and progress,” Tinubu said
The dinner is part of events lined up as Tinubu undertakes a three-day official visit to the Central African country. The Nigerian President and his host earlier held talks and signed agreements on various areas, including petroleum, security, among others.
Speaking further at the dinner, President Tinubu told his host that Africa must take charge of solving its problems, rejecting external expectations that only birth conflict and instability.
“We have to work together to make peace the focus of our development to develop. Without peace, you cannot develop. Our problem is not that we don’t know what to do, we identify them, we understand what to do, our problem is how and when we should do them and I say the time is now.”
“We better roll our sleeves, put on our nickers and move for peace, stability and progress,” he said.
President Tinubu also noted the massive brain drain Africa is suffering due to poverty, archaic judicial systems and tribalism, urging leaders to address these root causes to foster development.
He said, “Why are we complaining about healthcare problems if our doctors cannot have a home in their continent if our nurses are faced with destitution, if our judicial system is archaic and if the tribe is the hero in the middle of nothing?
“Tribalism has no place in Africa, we have to take the continent and take it strongly and together, help one another, develop our resources for our progress, find solutions among ourselves, dwell on research and development, reward those research and development programmes, bring out the results, don’t sell it out.”
Tinubu then went on to call on international organisations to invest more in African research and development.
“To the international organisations, we say thank you, we are partners, we’ll continue to partner, but put more than half of the results of research and development here in the continent, we have a lot of youths to cater for, millions of them yearning for progress,” he appealed.
Tinubu then added that the long-standing conflicts in the Congo and Sahel requires collective action if peace is to be achieved.
“We definitely will continue to promote peace and stability throughout the continent. Some others of our brothers in shackles, are still there at each other’s throat. We must work together, and do everything possible to promote peace between them. What we are seeing in the middle of the region, Congo Republic and other areas of the Sahel is not pleasant for our today and promising for our tomorrow,” he said.
Tinubu also noted that Wednesday’s gathering remains “a significant milestone in the history of Africa and particularly West Africa, between the Federal Republic of Nigeria and the Republic of Equatorial Guinea.”
“I am very happy to have listened to the very deep thinking coming from my brother, the President of Equatorial Guinea on Africa. Yes, it is Africa that must solve its problems. They want Africa wretched and raggedy, full of conflicts, and antagonism of one another, but we’re saying no. Peace, stability and democracy are the way forward for a progressive development and we agreed on that.”
Earlier, President Mbasogo In his remarks thanked President Tinubu for accepting his invitation to visit Equatorial Guinea while hailing the strong relations between the two nations, the host President expressed his satisfaction with the growing cooperation between Nigeria and Equatorial Guinea, citing education, mining, hydrocarbons, trade, defence, agriculture and investment.
Mbasogo lauded Nigeria’s extensive experience in agriculture, trade, tourism, and economic development, and expressed his desire for a mutually beneficial exchange of experiences between the two countries.
He also emphasised the need for African solidarity, calling for stronger regional and international cooperation to address challenges such as maritime crime, security threats, and economic diversification.
He then intimated the African leaders of the need to strengthen constitutional institutions and fight injustices, advocating for greater African representation on the global stage, particularly on the United Nations Security Council.
While thanking President Tinubu for his visit, he highlighted his confidence in the new spirit of cooperation between the two nations saying it would deepen their ties and promote mutual benefit for their peoples.
