Home > Turai, Maitama Sule Back Western Sahara Independence
From Damilola Oyedele in Abuja
First Lady, Hajiya Turai Yar’Adua has joined the call for the independence of Western Sahara from occupation by Morocco, stressing that colonialism ought to have been totally abolished from the African continent.
Speaking through her representative, Hajiya Zainab Ali Kotoko at the launch of the Nigeria Movement in Solidarity with the Western Sahara People by the Nigeria Labour Congress, Yar’Adua reiterated the commitment of the Federal Government to the emancipation of the Saharawi people.
Expressing her solidarity with the NLC movement, Yar’Adua added that the support is essentially buttressed by the fact that Nigeria already recognises Western Sahara as a sovereign state.
Nigeria’s Former Representative to the United Nations and former Chairman of the UN Committee Against Apartheid, Dr. Yusuf Maitama Sule also asked Nigerian Government to live up to its responsibility as a frontline nation in the African continent and help the Western Sahara attain its freedom from occupation by Morocco.
He also called for a bloodless revolution in Nigeria to ensure good leadership with moral values so that the nation can indeed be in the forefront of Pan-African policies.
Lamenting that an African country is bound by colonialism by another Africa country, Sule urged all Nigerians, including politicians to extend the support that Nigeria had extended to freedom fighters in South Africa, Angola and Namibia to the Western Sahara.
“By helping get their freedom, we are not doing them a favour but we are doing our duty as Africans to ensure that all Africans are free. Nigeria must play its role and not shirk its responsibilities”. “Let no one misunderstand me, I am calling for a bloodless and cultural revolution to the philosophy of Mahatma Ghandi. We need a re-orientation, Nigeria must be in the forefront in Africa, but it must have good leaders, not rulers or looters, leaders who see the plight of the common man through compassionate eyes and a sense of patriotism, leaders with visions, who would have the prudence of handing over power when their constitutional time is up” he said.
He added that force or fear cannot be used to govern, but equity and fairness which must be extended to all Africans. He called on Nigerian government to apply pressure on Morocco to end its human rights violations by its occupation of morocco.
Minister for Labour & Productivity, Prince Kayode Adetokunbo, and expressing solidarity with the movement lamented that such conditions are still on Nigeria’s doorsteps.
He reiterated the FG’s commitment to fight oppression and exploitation everywhere on the globe especially the African continent.
He added that “the Nigeria labour Congress has done a great job giving its platform to this struggle especially as Nigeria formally recognised Western Sahara since 1984, and still stands behind it. The human spirit raises above oppression, with the support of the Nigerian Government, the people and the NLC, a course has been set which can only lead to freedom for Western Sahara.”