Vice President prof. Yemi OsinbajoVice President Yemi Osinbajo has declared in Osogbo today, Wednesday: “The greatest problem that our own country has is the absence of integrity. Integrity is key anywhere in the world. Some people must make the sacrifice for others’ sake.”
Professor Osinbajo, who addressed the Southwest Regional Youth Summit in Osogbo, Osun State said that if the government is able to remove corruption from the nation’s economic and social life, “we would have solved 70 percent of our problems.
“The truth of the matter is that if we do not ensure that businesses can thrive, nobody would be able to create opportunities for others. The reason why it is difficult for people to open branches of their businesses is that if you are not there yourself, you might as well forget your business.”
The Vice President said that every society that does not emphasize integrity always fails, adding that any society that does not stand on integrity cannot succeed.
“The whole of the economy is based on trust, even the currency that you spend is based on trust, and business is based on trust. Many times as Nigerians, we have lost that trust even dealing with international partners we have lost that trust.
“So, it is important for us to understand that no matter what we do, we must emphasize this Omoluabi ethos, the ethos of integrity. It is so crucial, without hard work it is impossible to do much. People say all sort of things, they say if you are well connected, you will be a success. “There is a limit to what connections can do, even when you are connected enough to be given a job, if you are not serious and hardworking at that job you won’t move up on that job, so hard work is crucial.”
Professor Osinbajo said that he had studied very closely what young people are doing because he recognized that this country, which is the largest economy in Africa, is the key to the future, not just of Africa, but of the development of the world.
The places that are left to make the kind of growth and progress that the world can make are not very many. Africa is one such place. So we must watch closely what is happening in Nigeria, and that is one of the reasons why I watch and see exactly what young people are doing and try to encourage them.
He observed that every generation owes itself the duty of converting its challenges to opportunities and success.
“And you must not see yourselves as young people of the South-West alone. Yes, you are South-West citizens, you were born and bred here, but you are actually citizens of the world. You are citizens of Nigeria. You must make contacts across the country, you must build bridges across the country; you must see yourself first and foremost as a Nigerian citizen. It is from this Nigeria that we would make the kind of progress that each and every one of us need.
“There is no point doing our business only in the South-west, Nigeria is our playing field; this country is big enough. The advantage of our country is that it has everything that we need, and we must take advantage of it.
“So while we are here locally, we must think nationally, and we must think globally. And we must act nationally, and we must act globally.”[myad]
