Lagos – The Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, has urged Nigerians to change their ways of doing things if the nation was to achieve its potential.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the minister made the appeal at the Institute of Directors Nigeria (IoD) Fellows Investiture Evening 2015 on Sunday in Lagos,
He spoke on “Paradigm Shift in Public and Private Sector Governance’’.
“It was George Bernard Shaw who said that `Progress is impossible without change, and those who cannot change their minds cannot change anything’.
“It is clear that if the change we seek is to endure, we must not just mouth it, we must live it.
“I can tell you here and now that the driver of that change, President Muhammadu Buhari, is already living it.
“And whoever wishes to serve in his administration is duty-bound to follow suit.
“As for Nigerians, voting for change means they are ready for change,’’ the minister, represented by the Director-General of National Troupe of Nigeria, Mr Adejuwon Akin said.
He noted that when the president said no to the purchase of new official vehicles worth N400 million, he did not save that amount only, but millions of Naira more.
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“This is because if the president decides to use the cars he met in office, why must a minister or the head of a government agency order a new set of cars for his official use upon assumption of office.
“When the president travels across the country with minimum disruptions to the public, who is that government official then that will close any road or shut down an airport because he is traveling.
“The change we seek is here, and we have started living it,’’ the minister said.
He added that he studied harder before appearing for screening at the Senate believing that being that merit and nothing else would see him through.
“If what we read and hear are true, once anyone is nominated as minister in the past, he must first go and look for upwards of N100 million.
“Some of which must be denominated in hard currency, to `clear’ his path for screening. Under the Buhari Administration, this did not happen.
“I can confidently testify that I, Lai Mohammed, did not pay a dime for my screening as ministerial nominee and no one asked me for a dime either.
Also, to the best of my knowledge, none of the 35 other ministerial nominees paid, nor was anyone asked to pay for clearance in the Senate,’’ he said.
According to him, that means no minister came into office with a deficit.
The minister said that leaders, either in the public or private sector have huge responsibilities, stressing that in the area of change, the responsibilities became monumental.
“As leaders, we are the book our workers read. Therefore, we must exemplify change in everything we do.
“We will be calling on the private sector to collaborate with us, as we work to ensure that Nigerians themselves own the change agenda,’’ he said.
The minister urged the directors not to succumb to the whims of those who say change was not possible.
Earlier the President of IoD, Mr Samuel Akeju said that the Fellows Night was an annual event set aside by the Governing Council for the recognition of directors.
Akeju added that they must have achieved higher level of professionalism in their service to corporate Nigeria at various levels. (NAN)
