Former Deputy National Chairman (South) of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), Olabode George, has warned Nigerian youths against repeating mistakes of the past.
He said that without the knowledge of history among the youths, the mistakes that led to the civil war and disagreement in the western region could be repeated.
Speaking in Abuja at the elder statesmen’s reflections on Nigeria and the launch of a national compendium organised by the National Orientation Agency (NOA), he said that most youths, 35 years downwards, are unable to say what led to the civil war or disagreement in the western region.
He said: “The great American philosopher George Santayana said ‘those who forget the past will be condemned to repeat it,’ these days we realise that history is no longer taught in our schools, civic education is no longer taught in our schools; it must be made compulsory in our schools.
“It gives them the foundation of understanding where the nation is coming from. They can appreciate the enormous problems of those who are in governance and the pitfalls of the past which can be avoided.
“Take anyone from the age of 35 downwards and ask them what led to the disagreement of the old western region or the Nigerian civil war they will not know. We have remained a nation for 104 years; that in itself is a great achievement. Let us beam further on the part of progression and Pacific relations and continue to stamp out the ideology of hatred.”
In his remarks, the Director General, NOA, Dr Garba Abari, said that the compendium beams the searchlight on gladiators who fought to keep Nigeria together despite the odds.
