A New Nigeria is Possible Beginning Today by Bola Tinubu

Democracy Day statement by National leader Bola Tinubu...
May 29, 2015, shall be recorded in our history as the
moment when democracy finally was allowed to
participate in Democracy Day. The reason for this is the
legion of average Nigerians who voted to make this
happen. Should any of you wish to see a true hero of
democracy, don’t fret. Just look in the nearest mirror.
The celebrations prior to this were false showings; they
were the commemoration of wrong.
The path we have taken to come to this august moment has
not been one of easy victory or swift progress.
Instead, it has been a path hewed by the triumph of
resilience over broken promises and fraudulent avowals of
representative governance. Reaching this fine moment has
been a story told in the cadence of the victory of common
good over arrogant power.
The voice of the solitary poor man, no one hears. But the
votes of the poor became a potent army capable of toppling
the very citadel of high privilege in order to bring forth
national awakening no less historic and important than the
very birth of this nation.
On this day, we shall witness the inauguration of
Muhammadu Buhari, a great, honorable and dedicated
public servant as our president. This is indeed an inspiring
moment, a turning point in our national direction, and the
reclamation of our best destiny.
We shall celebrate this achievement but not in mindless,
care-free fashion. The road ahead is still choked with the
debris of problems left too long unattended.
We are well aware of the challenges pitted against our
wellbeing. Insecurity, economic decline and corruption, we
must fight and fight as if we are going to war not a carnival.
Most of all, we must fight the temptation of hopelessness,
the sense that little good will come out of even the greatest
efforts.
This is where I want to thank and commend all those who
voted in the past election.
It is you who turned this day into the true celebration of true
democracy it was intended to be.
With no guarantee save your faith and armed solely with the
hope and promise of a better tomorrow through better
governance, you fought the mounting tide of power and
money. That tide tried to induce you to sell your democratic
rights and your chance for a greater future on the cheap.
In the eyes of those who were self-exalted, you had been
debased and brought low by visible circumstance of poverty
and lack. You seemed to them ripe for purchase. Yet, inside,
you retained a greatness of character and a loyalty to the
democratic ideal incomprehensible to those who believed
that everything can be purchased.
You showed them that your self-definition as human beings
and as Nigerians was not for sale or tender. As a result, he
who had been given so much, so easily by so many was
humbled. You who have been ridiculed, reduced and written
off were lifted up. The will of the people hath reclaimed its
sovereignty.
This has been a blossoming of justice and the illumination of
the power of human decency. So often, Nigeria has been
portrayed negatively before the world. Not this time.
The world is proud of what you have done and how you
have advanced the cause of fairness and right.
What you have done has lent solace to those still struggling
to establish democracy and responsive governance in their
homelands.
They now see Nigeria as an inspiring example. They seek to
be like you, to travel the road you just trod.
Today, the old Nigeria is no longer in chains as we move into
a new era and take hold of our new selves. From President
Buhari to the state governors inaugurated this day, I wish
them well and pray they govern in an open, democratic way
that assures your optimal wellbeing.
I ask that you, the people, maintain your diligence and help
guide those you have just elected.
The issues that confront us are deep and complex. They are
not susceptible to facile solution or inattention. Wise and
sound policy is within our capacity. But, we must have the
will to accomplish it. If both the governed and government
work in league, there is nothing our beloved nation cannot
overcome.
Let it be said that on this day, the nation consecrate itself to
the ideal that governance is the sacred instrument of the
people and never again shall it be the exclusive recreation
of a select few. No longer shall Democracy day be a shallow
ritual. Henceforth, it is a living truth.