Nigerian Vice President Yemi Osinbajo has condemned the exploitation of ethnic and religious prejudices during elections. Speaking at the National Institute of Policy and Strategic Studies’ (NIPSS) Policy Making and Good Governance Lecture Series, Osinbajo stressed that political elites should not use such prejudices to alienate or divide any section of the country. Osinbajo Strongly Condemns The Exploitation of Religious and Ethnic Prejudice In Just Concluded Elections.
He noted that leaders must conduct themselves with a high sense of responsibility to build a new Nigeria with justice, equity and shared prosperity. Osinbajo urged that deliberate efforts should be taken to deal with ethnic profiling and prejudices before they influence political contests. He said, “when ethnic or religious prejudices are weaponised for political purposes, we are confronted with a lethal potentially destructive situation.” Osinbajo also condemned the reported attempts in some parts of the country to deny Nigerians their right to vote in the last elections based on their ethnicity. He stated that “any attempts to deny people the right to vote in any locality on the basis that they do not belong in that place is condemnable in the strongest possible terms.”
Osinbajo emphasised that the most prosperous countries are those that have learned to harness diversity while building inclusive institutions. He added that discrimination against people based on their identity is explicitly condemned by most legal codes.
Osinbajo Strongly Condemns The Exploitation of Religious and Ethnic Prejudice In Just Concluded Elections
Still, there is a tension that exists between the new Nigeria and the old Nigeria understood by a generation much more accustomed to political mobilisation on the basis of identity. The Vice President urged Nigerians to learn from the Rwandan genocide and to avoid the tragedies fuelled by bigotry and prejudices. He proposed the implementation of laws to safeguard society from the dangerous manipulation of ethnic sentiments. Osinbajo emphasised the need for inclusion and unity across tribes and political divides.
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Osinbajo condemned the exploitation of ethnic and religious prejudices during elections. He noted that political elites must conduct themselves with a high sense of responsibility to build a new Nigeria where there is justice, equity, and shared prosperity.
Osinbajo Strongly Condemns The Exploitation of Religious and Ethnic Prejudice In Just Concluded Elections
He urged that deliberate efforts should be taken to deal with ethnic profiling and prejudices before they influence political contests. The Vice President emphasised the need for inclusion and unity across tribes and political divides.
