Utomi Talks Strategy At The Let's Talk Nigeria Forum

By Uche Nworah

Frontline presidential aspirant Prof Pat Utomi has been speaking to Nigerians living in the United Kingdom on the cardinal points of his presidential campaign which hinges on the 4 Cs – Character, Competence, Compassion and Commitment. He was speaking at the Lets Talk Nigeria event on the 29^th of October 2006 organised by Europe 4 Nigeria. He said that his election strategy requires all Nigerians to rise up and let their votes count, saying that Nigerians should let good outshine evil in the coming elections. He bemoaned the attitude of some Nigerian elites whom he said were part of the problems in Nigeria. According to him, ‘if elected, my government would tap into the abundant skills and resources of Nigerians in the diaspora’. ‘My belief in the Nigerian diaspora is borne by the fact that the dream of a Nigerian renaissance should be championed by the Nigerian diaspora’, he concluded.

His messages of hope and restoration were well received by the audience who gave him a standing ovation in the end.

During their speeches, many Nigerians present at the event who also represented various political and socio-cultural groups condemned successive governments in Nigeria for toying with the future of this generation. In an emotion laden voice, many of the contributors expressed feelings of anger and frustration with the Nigerian situation; some others however expressed hope and remained optimistic for the future in their contributions.

Dr Anthony Kila, the convener of Europe 4 Nigeria challenged Nigerians to take their destinies into their hands. He admonished those who only critique the government without suggesting a way forward. He also gave reasons why the organisation was officially endorsing Prof Pat Utomi’s presidential bid, ‘he stands head over shoulders amongst the many contenders jostling for Nigeria’s top job’, he said.  

In his contributions, Mr Peter Adeluisi, a senior police officer with the London Metropolitan Police narrated how he was asked to wait for 6 months before he could secure an appointment to see the former Police Inspector General (Tafa Balogun) to discuss his proposals to transfer his services to the Nigerian Police Force. He recommended the setting up of a system which would make it easier for Nigerian professionals in the diaspora wishing to relocate to do so without many difficulties.

Femi Okutubo, the editor – in – chief and publisher of Trumpet newspaper tasked members of the media to continue to live up to their roles as the fourth estate of the realm, according to him ‘The onus is on the Nigerian press to help champion Nigeria’s national rebirth’. ‘At the moment it appears that we are co-perpetrators with the very same politicians we are constantly critiquing’, he concluded.

John Iteshi, an Ebonyi indigene almost brought the event to a halt with his venomous attacks on Nigerian politicians and their accomplices. He cited the case of the incumbent governor of Ebonyi state (Sam Egwu) whom he claimed has become stupendously rich at the expense of Ebonyi indigenes.

Another respondent who identified himself simply as Mr Mbanefo queried the decision of Europe 4 Nigeria to endorse Pat Utomi’s candidacy; this triggered a heated exchange with Mr Chris Udechukwu, CEO of Businessinafricaevents.com who asked Mr Mbanefo to tell the gathering who his preferred candidate is, ‘I’ll gladly swap my support for Prof Utomi if Mr Mbanefo can name any other presidential contender with much stronger and credible credentials than Prof Utomi’, he challenged.

Mr Frank Kokori, Chief Gani Fawehinmi and Mr Femi Falana made their own contributions via videocast. They urged Nigerians in the diaspora not to lose hope as Nigeria would eventually assume her rightful place in the international community. In an emotion laden voice, Mr Kokori recounted the Nigeria of the 70s and 80s when her citizens only went abroad to study, ‘Nigerians never did menial jobs abroad, they come back immediately after studying, we were treated like loyalty back then, we want those days back’, he pleaded.  

Eugene Nwosu, the Chairman of Nigerians in Diaspora Organisation (NIDO) in Ireland commended Prof Utomi for his steadfastness in the quest to change Nigeria’s socio-economic landscape, ‘I have no doubts that you are the right man for the job’, he said.

Eze Umezuruike, a guest at the event thanked the organisers for putting the event together and remarked that it was one of the best of such Nigeria themed events he had attended lately. He however advised them to remain true to their sincere intentions, and cautioned that they should not go the way of other Nigerian organisations by becoming just avenues for jostling for political appointment in Nigeria. 

Let’s Talk Nigeria is one in a series of planned events by Europe 4 Nigeria to sensitise Nigerians on their civic responsibilities, the events are also planned to give Nigerians the opportunity to network and talk about the issues that concern them.

Europe 4 Nigeria expressed appreciation to the many Nigerians who turned up on the cold October night for the event, it was unfortunate that some of the invited guests did not show up, this is quite disappointing especially because some of them made ridiculous demands and attached stringent conditions to their attendance which the organisers couldn’t meet including demands for first class flight tickets and five star hotel accommodation.

The inaugural edition attracted many Nigerians living in Europe, including children who accompanied their parents to the event. Information on future events can be found on the group’s website – www.europe4nigeria.com  

November 2006. info@uchenworah.com

Robot  Villager

# 1 Utomi Talks Strategy At The Lets Talk Nigeria Foru...Read the full article. Posted by Robot| 12.11.2006 10:16

e.w  Villager

# 2 Please can someone enlighten me. How does all this talk in Europe and America help the Utomi Campaign? About 5 months to election day, shouldn't Mr Utomi be concentrating on the people back home that matters? I hope all the embassies got get voting booth? And where was this talk advertised? Me no see mention of am for square. Posted by e.w| 12.11.2006 13:03

Vaya con Dios  Villager

# 3 Is this the same presidential candidate that spoke at the World Igbo Congress this year in Boston, Massachusetts, trying to garner support for his campaign by invoking tribal emotions? Na wa o! {During the proceedings, it was reported that: "Ukiwe’s address was a total disaster. The audience was glad when his punishment ended. And he sat down. When the next speaker, Pat Utomi, stood up, he made everyone present forget that Ukiwe ever spoke. In a brief but thunderous presentation that earned him a standing ovation, Utomi excited the audience with his optimist view of where he will take Nigeria to. “Only an Igbo man can make it happen,” Utomi thundered, as he systematically buried the memory of Ukiwe. “What is good for the Igbo will be good for Nigeria.” As Utomi sat down, the audience stood up and screamed, “We have found the president.” } See the full story here: WIC 2006 Ukiwe flopped, Uto... Why is he now talking strategy abroad, when he had started his campaign by invoking tribal emotions? He shouldn't forget that the real election battle will be held at home in Naija..... Posted by Vaya con Dios| 13.11.2006 10:03