Former minister of external affairs Prof. Ibrahim Gambari yesterday prescribed commitment to excellence and mentoring of the youth population in the country as solutions to Nigeria’s problems.
The ex-Nigerian envoy to the United Nations (UN) spoke in Ilorin at the 7th annual general meeting of the Ilorin Emirate Professors Association.
Speaking on; “Roles and responsibilities of academia in good governance,” Gambari advised government to take mentoring of the younger generation of Nigerians seriously.
He said, “Our founding fathers believed in mentoring others and at the end of the day pushing those mentees into positions of responsibility. I therefore urge the ruling class not take the communities for granted.”
He tasked academics to engage in dialogues that ensure good governance.
“Today’s world is characterised by disruptions of all sorts mostly technologically driven, social polarisation, new age nationalism, political instability and climate change. In the midst of this governance architects are forced to make tough decisions which involve allocating scarce resources to myriad of challenges and demands. We must provide support in the form of clarity in the process of making such decisions.
“For the academia in Nigeria, it is important that we evolve in how we practice and must understand where the world is headed, given all the complexity we currently face in a very turbulent geo-political world order.
“Additionally, there never has been a more critical time where our voices should be heard in a very constructive tone and pitch and the only way to do it is by maintaining our independence and dignity while speaking truth to power,” Gambari said.
The diplomat recommended the amalgamation of sciences, social sciences, humanity and technology to overcome the complexities in Nigeria.
Earlier, the chairman of the occasion, and chairman of the Governing Council of the Kwara State University, Malete, Prof AbdulGaniyu Ambali preached love, peace and unity among scholars from the emirate and counseled against the pull-him-down syndrome.
The president of Ilorin Emirate Professors Association, Prof AbdulKabir Solihu, said beyond conventional mandates of teaching, research and community service, the academia is increasingly called upon to provide thought leadership, evidence-based policy input and ethical guidance in governance processes.
