{"id":13494,"date":"2018-11-16T17:27:34","date_gmt":"2018-11-16T17:27:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/everyday.ng\/?p=13494"},"modified":"2018-11-16T17:27:34","modified_gmt":"2018-11-16T17:27:34","slug":"saraki-seeks-greater-commitment-to-eradicate-corruption-at-7th-zik-lecture-in-awka","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/everyday.ng\/?p=13494","title":{"rendered":"Saraki Seeks Greater Commitment To Eradicate Corruption…at 7th Zik Lecture in Awka"},"content":{"rendered":"
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President of the Senate, Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki, on Friday, said that Nigeria can only grow and achieve its true destiny if the present system of governance is rid of\u00a0corruption.<\/div>\n
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Saraki, who stated this in his speech as chair of\u00a0the 7th<\/sup>\u00a0Zik Lecture of the Annual Zik Series, held at the Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka, Anambra State, said it is time for all Nigerians to recommit to the efforts aimed at eradicating corruption from Nigeria as envisioned\u00a0by the nation\u2019s founding fathers, one of whom was the great Zik of Africa.<\/p>\n

In a statement by his Chief Press Secretary, Sanni Onogu, the President of the Senate also stated that\u00a0the late Zik believed\u00a0and worked for transparency and accountability, virtues that would help to banish the \u201ccankerworm of corruption\u201d from the country, if they are imbibed and practiced by all Nigerians.<\/p>\n

Saraki said: \u201cWithout wishing to pre-empt the subject of today\u2019s lecture by His Excellency Benjamin Mkapa, former President of Tanzania, which is titled, \u2018Taming the Monster of Corruption in Africa\u2019<\/i>, we should ask ourselves what Dr. Azikiwe would have made of the political landscape of today, particularly with regard to the problem of corruption. Let us think upon the example he laid down, the ideals he stood for, and from which he never wavered.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs we listen to this 7th<\/sup>\u00a0Zik Lecture, let us meditate upon the legacy of Azikiwe, one of the greatest Africans of the 20th<\/sup>\u00a0Century. As founder of the historic West African Pilot newspaper, Azikiwe was for freedom of the press. He was for accountability and transparency…He believed in, and fought for Nigeria\u2019s unity.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen I think about his legacy, I am indeed humbled; and it is a thing of pride to be chairing this event today. As we listen to the 7th Zik Lecture delivered by the eminent keynote speaker, let us recommit ourselves to defeating the monster of corruption in our country; and by so doing, set a standard for the whole of Africa.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is by ridding our system of governance of the cankerworm of corruption that this country can grow to achieve its true destiny as envisioned by the founding fathers, one of whom was the great Zik of Africa,\u201d he stated.<\/p>\n

He noted that the Great Zik of Africa was not only an astute politician and statesman, but a man who\u00a0thought deeply about his country in particular and the African Continent in general.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe thought deeply about the direction Nigeria was going, and he did his very best to steer her on the right path,\u201d he said. \u201cWe need more thinkers in our national life, and it is my expectation that today\u2019s lecture will go some way towards nudging those of us in this audience in that direction.\u201d<\/p>\n

Saraki described the Annual Zik lecture series, held at the\u00a0<\/span>Nnamdi Azikiwe University, as a veritable platform to propagate Zik\u2019s ideals, formulate new ideas and devise solutions to current national challenges.<\/p>\n

He said: \u201cIt is fitting that this\u00a0Annual Lecture Series has as its setting an institution of learning in his name. I say this because Zik of Africa was a renowned intellectual, and the power of his mind connected Nigeria to the entire Black World.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is fitting, therefore, that we remember the great man of learning in this place of learning. It is fitting that we walk in his footsteps in our quest to formulate ideas and devise solutions to current challenges. It is fitting that erudite lectures are delivered to advance his cause and propagate his ideals.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe often lament these days that our politics is bereft of ideas. The more reason one welcomes and wholeheartedly supports this lecture in memory of a man of ideas whose example inspires us still, and can give rise to new idealists in our national life,\u201d he stated.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

President of the Senate, Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki, on Friday, said that Nigeria can only grow and achieve its true destiny if the present system of governance is rid of\u00a0corruption.   Saraki, who stated this in his speech as chair of\u00a0the 7th\u00a0Zik Lecture of the Annual Zik Series, held at the Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":13495,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-13494","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/everyday.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13494","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/everyday.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/everyday.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/everyday.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/everyday.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=13494"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/everyday.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13494\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/everyday.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=13494"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/everyday.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=13494"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/everyday.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=13494"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}