Nigerians no longer trust people they elect — FG

By Sola Omoniyi, Lagos

The Federal Government has lamented that Nigerians no longer believe the leaders they elect, and stressed the need to reintroduce national discourse on reorientation.

Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, stated this while fielding questions from State House correspondents after meeting behind closed doors with President Bola Tinubu at the presidential villa, Abuja.

The minister noted that the belief in the concept of nationhood and patriotism had broken down, saying the president had now given him the marching orders to initiate a programme to reconstruct it.

He said: “Well, of course, you know that the belief in the concept of nationhood and patriotism has broken down in this country. This is not in doubt. We’re trying to rebuild that, to reconstruct that.

“Mr President gave me a marching order to see that Nigerians believe in this country once again. We’re coming up with a national discourse on orientation or reorientation so that Nigerians can believe in their country.

“You know that people don’t even believe leaders that they have elected. Flags are not flying anymore. You go to the government overseas, you don’t even see the symbol of our collective existence, flying even in public buildings.

“We’re bringing that about, we are bringing back this concept of discipline that Nigerians should have. Patriotism. Belief in the nationhood that our founding fathers have told us.

“So it is going to be a new minister of Information and national orientation and national orientation is going to be at the centre of it.”

The minister revealed that plans were underway to revive the information office in the 774 local government areas in the country to have the required personnel to implement the new reorientation drive.

“Well, the national orientation agency has offices in the 774 LGAs. Of course, there’s attrition now, not all the people who will man these local government offices are there, but we are rebuilding that.

”We are going to put officers of the envoy around all the 774 LGAs and we are coming up with a roadmap that will revamp that sector so that Nigerians can believe in their country once again,” he said.

Idris assured that the Tinubu administration would not seek to gag the media, being a believer in freedom of the press himself, but warned that the media must exercise such freedom with responsibility.