Interim National Chairman of the African Democratic Congress, Senator David Mark, says the North is bleeding and only his party can address the myriad of challenges bedeviling the region, if voted into power.
Mark stated this at the 3rd expanded meeting of the National Political Consultative Group (North) in Abuja attended by ADC members and supporters from across the country.
Mark, a former Senate President, while delivering a keynote address on the theme, “Unity, and social cohesion as panacea to the challenges facing Northern Nigeria”, said the North is confronted with deep-seated challenges of insecurity, poverty, ethnic, religious tensions, political fragmentation, social and economic stagnation.
He added, “These challenges did not develop overnight nor will they disappear until we resolve to take deliberate, collective and decisive action. We must first admit that we are the architects of our problems, we must stop the blame game if we truly and genuinely want to find a lasting solution.
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“Division has cost us progress, while indifference and inaction have continued to deepen our division. If we are to overcome our present travails, we must return to the principles of justice, equity, mutual respect, and shared purpose that once made Northern Nigeria a beacon of hope, peace, unity and development.
“The time for lamentation is over. The North is bleeding profusely, and we are the only ones who can heal it. Let us commit today to reject hate speech and divisive politics, invest in unifying projects—education, healthcare and infrastructure, hold each other accountable for our actions and inactions and shake hands across the divide and restore our bond of brotherhood.
“If we do these, I have no doubt we will rebuild this region into a powerhouse of not just peace and social cohesion but also of economic progress, human ingenuity and compassion.”
Mark expressed regret that in the last decade, banditry, terrorism, insurgency and communal clashes have turned villages in the North into battlegrounds, displacing millions and crippling the region’s economy.
The ADC national chairman said despite its vast resources, the North remains the poorest region in the country, with alarming rates of illiteracy, unemployment and poor infrastructure.
