The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, his Deputy, Ahmed Wase and two principal officers of the Senate on Thursday admonished Nigerians not to be fazed by the hard challenges that characterized 2020 as they step into 2021.
In their separate New Year messages, they asked Nigerians to keep hope alive as 2021 promises a better future.
The Senate Principal officers are the Majority Leader, Yahaya Abdullahi, and Chairman, Committee on Media and Public Affairs, Surajudeen Basiru.
The Speaker, in a statement by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Lanre Lasisi, said despite the challenges of 2020, the new year holds a lot of positives for Nigeria and Nigerians
Gbajabiamila also called for continuous unity and peaceful coexistence among Nigerians, saying: “We have no other country than Nigeria; this is the only country we can call ours.”
“It is my hope and prayer that the year 2021 will be better than all the preceding years of our nation’s history.
“In this New Year, let’s remain resolute and determined in our nationhood. Yes, we may be going through challenges as a nation, but with our collective determination, we shall overcome.”
Also, Wase said Nigerians should not despair in spite of the challenges bedeviling the country.
In a statement by his spokesman, Umar Muhammad Puma, the deputy speaker advised Nigerians to believe in the prosperity of the country.
He also pleaded with Nigerians to have faith in their leaders and continue to pray for them for the wisdom to lead right.
He said: “On behalf of my family, constituents and indeed the House of Representatives, I wish to heartily rejoice with all our countrymen and women for seeing off the year 2020 and successfully entering 2021.
“I thank the Almighty Allah for keeping us going and keeping Nigeria as one in spite of the challenges we have had in the last decade. God had a reason for keeping Nigeria as one united entity. I therefore urge Nigerians to believe that the new-year could be better.”
Senate Leader Abdullahi also spoke in a similar vein but urged Nigerians to stick to the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) protocols for the containment of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Abdullahi said: “We pray that what happened in 2020 would not happen in the new year. We also appeal to Nigerians to persevere and that the difficulties that we encountered like the COVID pandemic, the lockdowns and the security challenges that the country faced in 2020 will be a thing of the past.
“We also want to assure Nigerians that the government is on top of the situation and that new initiatives are on to provide our security forces all the necessary support and equipment that is required to bring both the insurgency and banditry to an end.”
Basiru gave the assurance that the Senate would focus on critical law reforms that would better the nation’s socio-economic well-being in 2021
He urged Nigerians to persevere in the face of difficulties, saying the Federal Government is working on new initiatives that would make life better for all.
The lawmaker said: “First and foremost, I think we need to be cautious of this pandemic. It is very important that we adhere to the protocols…if we are able to do these, we will save not only our health but we will save our country huge resources that we need for development rather than using it to tackle pandemic.
“Second, is for us to be committed to playing our roles for national development. In our own little space, we should show leadership, sacrifice and commitment to the country.”
