Former Nigerian Head of State, General Yakubu Gowon (rtd), has appealed to the Nigerian to exercise patience and grant President Bola Tinubu more time to deliver on the promises of democracy.
In a meeting with journalists at the State House, Abuja, Gowon emphasized the efforts of the relatively new administration in tackling the nation’s challenges.
Gowon, who met with President Tinubu for the first time since his inauguration on May 29, 2023, urged citizens not to be overly critical of the government’s policies. Drawing from his own experiences, particularly during the Nigerian Civil War era, Gowon highlighted how leaders often face intense scrutiny and criticism.
He stated, “Nigerians, we’ve got to give the president time to get things really done. And it is too early to sort of say absolute result, perfect result will be achieved now. That is my opinion.”
Furthermore, Gowon discussed current challenges within the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) with President Tinubu.
“I came to discuss various matters especially the issue of the ECOWAS problem at the moment which I think needs to be resolved. And being the surviving leader, or founding fathers of the ECOWAS, I think we had to discuss some of his plans in order to see what can be done to bring the matter under control.
“So, this is what has brought me here and we had a very interesting meeting and I’m sure some of you have read report that I refused to attend ECOWAS conference isn’t it? Is it you that did that report? Who did that? You know trying to give that impression that it was me who was probably trying to sort of sabotage ECOWAS. No, that is not the case. I think there was a miscommunication but then it gave the opportunity for Mr President to call me so that we can discuss what I was to do.
“So that ECOWAS meeting was part of the discussion we had today. So that has been done and solved and I hope that we can probably be able to have that message done later on today at ECOWAS headquarters probably by 5pm they will let you know.”
He clarified the misconceptions about his alleged sabotage of a recent ECOWAS meeting, stating that the issue was a result of miscommunication.
