Independence: Mbah Urges Nigerians to Embrace Thanksgiving, Courage, Says Tinubu’s reforms Creating opportunities for states

Our Reporter 

Governor Peter Mbah of Enugu State has urged Nigerians to approach the country’s 66th Independence anniversary with thanksgiving, courage, optimism and a renewed commitment to nation-building, saying the challenges confronting the country should not obscure the possibilities ahead.

Mbah spoke on Thursday at a thanksgiving Mass held at the Government House Chapel, Enugu, to mark Nigeria’s 66th Independence anniversary.

The governor noted that this year’s celebration was largely low-key and devoid of the usual fanfare, but said the quiet nature of the commemoration should not diminish the significance of Nigeria’s independence or the progress the country had made over the years.

“Nation-building is not always accompanied by fireworks,” Mbah said, stressing that some of the most consequential contributions to Nigeria’s development were taking place quietly across the country.

According to him, Nigerians were making contributions every day in classrooms, hospitals, farms, construction sites, factories, businesses, laboratories and security formations, as well as in numerous other places where citizens continued to work for the advancement of the country.

“There are moments in a nation's journey when the difficulties are so immediate that it becomes difficult to see the possibilities beyond them. But dawn does not announce itself with noise. It begins quietly.

“So, even as we acknowledge the difficulties that confront us, we must also acknowledge that Nigeria’s journey has not been an underwhelming one,” he said.

Mbah said Nigeria had survived crises that had torn other nations apart, adding that the country’s resilience remained a reason for hope.

He also said the economic reforms introduced by President Bola Tinubu were beginning to create new opportunities and conditions for economic growth, particularly for states willing to take advantage of the emerging opportunities.

“Let us acknowledge honestly the challenges before us. But let us also refuse the temptation to define Nigeria only by her difficulties.

“A nation is not measured only by the problems it faces, but also by the courage with which it confronts them.

“That is the spirit with which we must approach Nigeria at 66 – not with blind optimism, and certainly not with despair, but with faith, courage, honesty and work,” the governor said.

He added: “It is heartwarming that the President’s policies and reforms have created remarkable opportunities for states that are prepared to take advantage of them.

“Today, there are also indications that some of the difficult reforms undertaken at the federal level are beginning to create conditions for greater economic stability and production.”

Enugu’s renaissance

Mbah described Enugu as an example of what could be achieved through resilience, self-belief and purposeful governance, saying the state had moved from a narrative of decline to one of renewal.

He recalled that there was a time when public discourse about Enugu was dominated by what had been lost and perceptions that the state’s best days were behind it.

“Today, a different story is being written. A renaissance is taking place – across our schools and hospitals, our roads and even in the skies, in once moribund factories, our agricultural communities, and our tourism space,” he said.

The governor said the transformation demonstrated what could happen when a people refused to surrender to the limitations of the past.

“This is why the story of Enugu is a story about what becomes possible when a people refuse to surrender to the limitations of yesterday.

“And that, for me, is the optimism that Independence Day should stir in every Nigerian,” he said.

Mbah thanked the people of Enugu State for their support and reassured them that his administration would remain focused on its development agenda.

“We will not be distracted from the work. We will remain faithful to the policies and projects that have changed the trajectory of our state and earned Enugu a more respectable reckoning, both within Nigeria and beyond,” he said.

He pledged that his administration would continue to prioritise the welfare and security of residents, education and economic development.

“We will continue to invest in education because the greatest infrastructure we can build is the human being.

“We will continue to strengthen our economy because prosperity must ultimately be measured by the quality of life of our people.

“And we will continue to build a state in which our children do not have to leave home to find a future,” he said.

Bishop Onaga commends Mbah

In his homily, the Catholic Bishop of Enugu Diocese, Most Rev. Callistus Onaga, said Nigeria still had not fully realised the promise of independence despite its enormous human and natural resources.

He cited persistent security and economic challenges as some of the obstacles to the country’s development, but said Nigerians nevertheless had reasons to thank God.

Onaga particularly commended Mbah’s administration for what he described as significant progress in Enugu State, especially in the area of security.

The bishop stressed that development and sustainable investment could not thrive in an atmosphere of insecurity.

“My dear brothers and sisters, if you were here between 2021 and 2023, the security situation was terrible.

“Those who may not know why I say this, let me tell you. Within that period, I buried four priests, killed. Some were kidnapped. But thanks to God; when the present government of the state came in, something was done immediately,” he said.

Onaga said he had personally witnessed improvements in the security situation, while acknowledging that more remained to be done.

“I feel it. I think Enugu is the most beautiful state to have in Nigeria.

“Of course, it is not to say that it is all over. No. We need to do more,” he said.

The bishop urged political leaders and public office holders to regard the authority entrusted to them as an opportunity to serve the people, particularly the vulnerable and disadvantaged.

“It is the power to love, to serve, and to care for the weak and the poor – those on the fringes of existence,” he said.

He further called for a stronger moral foundation for Nigeria’s development, saying the country’s progress should be anchored not only on material advancement but also on justice, holiness and truth.

“Our national map will not rest on purely material foundations. It will rest on a new moral condition built on justice, holiness, and truth,” Onaga said.

The thanksgiving Mass was attended by heads of other arms of government, senior government officials and other leaders.