Comrade Garba Muhammad, a leading aspirant for the post of National President of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), has appealed to other aspirants and members of the union to eschew rancour and work together for the progress and unity of the Union, especially the forth-coming Delegate Congress.
In his Eid Maulud message, he charged all to, in the spirit of the celebration, ensured that they work together as one and continue to uphold the tenet of the profession as the watchdog of the society.
Muhammad, a champion of integrity in the profession, enjoined all members to work toward free and fair elections during the conference and commit towards rallying round whosoever emerges as the new NUJ President for the progress of the profession in the country.
“All we are asking for is a level-playing ground for all candidates vying for the various executive offices of the union.
“For me, the union should be stronger in unity and progress, irrespective of who becomes the new President through a free, fair and credible election. Let the best candidate win, but of course, we should not jettison the fair gentleman zoning agreement in existence,” he said.
Dwelling on the Eid Maulud celebration, he appealed to religious leaders in the country to prioritize their preachings and teachings on peace, unity and progress of Nigeria.
“Religious leaders, clerics and others alike, should lay much emphasis on peace and unity among the people, devoid of any political or ethnic bias, for prosperity and nation building.
While congratulating members of the Muslim Ummah for their roles in bringing peace and harmony to the country, especially the Northern region, which has been ravaged with banditry and insecurity in recent times, Muhammad urged religious leaders to work with government in finding a lasting solution to the insecurity scourge and economic retardation.
“It is my belief that if all of us (including professional, traditional and religious leaders) work together, we can find a solution to the problems of insecurity currently ravaging our nation,” he said.
Muhammad also called on well meaning Nigerians, to as a matter of urgency, partner with government and security agencies in finding a lasting solution to the menace of banditry.
He appealed to government to put in place various policies and programmes that will ameliorate the current pains majority of the populace is passing through.
“Government and those in power should know that Nigerians are passing through hard times. The masses are not smiling, there is hunger and poverty in the land,” he said.
He reiterated the fact that he is in the NUJ Presidential race to contribute his quota towards improving the profession and is ready to work with other stakeholders in ensuring positive and impactful changes take place in the union.
“Like I said, part of the reason why I want to be the National President of the NUJ, is to work in collaboration with the government and relevant stakeholders in bringing positive changes to how the affairs of the union are handled, and also bring back the unity of members while ensuring that the practice of true professionalism is imbibed by all regardless of where we all come from,” he added.