London G20 Summit minus Nigeria!
“By any measure, the London summit was historic. It was historic because of the size and the scope of the challenge that we face and because of the timeliness and the magnitude of our response”. Barack Obama, United States President.
“This is the day that the world came together, to fight back against the global recession. Not with words, but a plan for global recovery and for reform and with a clear timetable”. Gordon Brown, British Prime Minister.
“Since Bretton Woods, the world has been living on a financial model, the Anglo-Saxon model. It’s not my place to criticise it, it has its advantages. Clearly, today, a page has been turned”. Sarkozy, French President.
“I would like to say that this is a turning point…but as a responsible man I cannot say this twenty or 25 years ago. One could not even imagine that such different countries with such different economies, such different mentalities and historic traditions would sit at the table and could agree in such a difficult situation on how to act, especially so quickly”. Medvedev, Russian President.
“We have agreed to set up a clear financial market architecture. We have taken an important step towards creating order in an area in the world where there was previously no order”. Markel, German Chancellor.
The excerpts above were how the world leaders described the London G2O summit which was a historic event. This summit ended on April 2 2009. Nigerian president Musa Yar’Adua expressed sadness and regrets that Nigeria was not invited to the London G20 summit. Dear Musa Yar’Adua, Nigeria was not invited because the Nigerian house is not in order; otherwise Nigeria deserves a sit on the G20.
Mr President (Musa Yar’Adua), since you have expressed regret over the exclusion of Nigeria from the G20, the task is now on your desk to put Nigeria on the right track so that the outside world would take us serious. Another G20 summit is coming up again in September 2009, perhaps if you can steer the ship of Nigerian state with transparency, honesty and selflessness the world might decide to invite Nigeria. Nigeria certainly deserves a place in G20 because of her size, her population (about 140 million), her strategic position in Africa, her position as the sixth largest oil producer, and the country with the largest black people. If for no other thing, Nigeria could go as an observer. After all Spain was invited, even though she is not a member of the G20.
Mr President (Musa Yar’Adua), this is another reminder that the world does not take Nigeria serious. To even make matters worse, Nigeria was grouped among some 20 failed states in an article that appeared on Guardian Newspaper of UK, Thursday November 27 2008 page 23. This will do a terrible damage on our battered image abroad. Our clamour for foreign investors will be a joke taking into account our poor image.
I will advise you to make a viable and transparent plan of action so that Nigeria and the Nigerian masses can benefit from the funds which the G20 pledged to developing nations. Nigeria is part of the global economy, therefore your government should fashion out a way by which Nigeria should benefit from this biggest global economic stimulus of our time as announced by the G20. However for us to benefit from G20 global economic recovery package, transparency will be highly needed on the Nigerian economic sector. Transparency is what your administration should endeavour to establish. May God bless Nigeria.
Chinedu Vincent Akuta
An activist and leader of “Support Option A4 Group” Leicester-UK
akutachinedu@yahoo.com
http://briefsfromakuta.blogspot.com/
Do we as Nigerians take Nigeria serious? I wish and hope we will have serious minded and selfless leaders that will promote our images. When is the question