Former Inspector General of Police (IGP) Sir Mike Okiro, said I felt like crying by how Nigeria has degenerated since her independence in 1960.
Okiro who said he was one of the four young Nigerians who lowered the British flag at independence and hoist Nigeria’s green white green flag in its place, said he felt like weeping “because what we anticipated as small boys is not what we are seeing.”
At a press conference at the unveiling of the logo of his nongovernmental organisation (NGO), NigeriaFirst, the former IGP noted that a lot things have happened in Nigeria since independence.
“Nigeria fought a civil war, had military regimes, went through democratic settings, here we are today.
“Nigerians are crying, the economy is bad. When I look back, Nigeria is what it is now than what it was during British colonialism,” he regretted.
Okiro wants the government and the citizens to go back to the drawing board because it takes two to tango.
He stated that the system of government that matters, adding, “British practice parliamentary system; America, presidential. It depends on the people that manages it.
“Nomenclature is immaterial, because democracy is government for the people and by the people,” he added.
Okiro called on the government to address the security challenges in the country and ban importation of goods into the country.
“Security personnel should be well paid; they should be well equipped and well trained.
“I don’t see any reason why we should import anything to Nigeria. Nigeria has everything.
“In the 1980s when Babangida came in, he banned importation of sorghum and wheat; he banned importation of flower. Nigeria breweries were making beer with sorghum and maize.
“I believe Nigerians can eat what they produce. Ban importation in Nigeria that will reduce the pressure on foreign exchange,” he advised.
