President Bola Tinubu has asked Nigerians to remain faithful to the country.
The appeal was made by the President on Friday during his nationwide broadcast on the 27th anniversary of Nigeria’s uninterrupted democracy, it was reported.
He said he welcomed criticism from Nigerian youths but charged them to be resolute in the belief that the country will be better.
He said democracy fails when citizens lose faith in the process, adding that the National Assembly, judiciary, the press and civil society are the guardrails of Nigeria.
“Disagree with me, criticise me, but never stop believing in the country.
2. “To our young people, Nigeria is your home and your future. Work here, build here, eat here. Every great nation was built by those who stayed to fix problems, not by those who jumped ship.
“Our forces, police and intelligence services salute your sacrifices for Nigeria. “Thank you to our traditional rulers, faith leaders and community heads for your support for peace and reconciliation,” Tinubu said.
Meanwhile, Tinubu has warned bandits, kidnappers and sponsors of terrorism to surrender or face the full might of the Nigerian state.
President’s warning was reported in a nationwide broadcast to mark the 2026 Democracy Day and the 27th year of uninterrupted civilian rule on Friday.
The country has made significant progress in the fight against terrorism with security forces moving from training with foreign allies to precision targeting of terrorist positions, Tinubu said.
The President said Nigerian security forces had “degraded” an ISWAP command centre in Arege, Borno State.
He said terror-related deaths have dropped sharply since 2015.
“We’ve gone from training with our allies, the United States, France and other European countries, to precision targeting.” We degraded ISWAP command centre at Arege, Borno State. Terror-related deaths down 81% since 2015. “In the last one year, we have neutralized over 13,000 terrorists,” Tinubu said.
Tinubu said government will continue to give a surrender window for those ready to drop their arms.
Since 2023, Operation Safe Corridor has facilitated the surrender of over 124,000 fighters and their dependents, he said.
“But we are also leaving the door of surrender open,” Tinubu further stated. More than 124,000 fighters and dependents have surrendered their arms since 2023 under Operation Safe Corridor.
To bandits, kidnappers and sponsors of terror: Surrender or face the full weight of the Nigerian State. These windows of surrender will not be open forever. “Those who trade in the blood of Nigerians will not get any mercy.”
The President appealed to Nigerians to stay united and to avoid blaming any ethnic group for criminal activities.
Tinubu added, “Let us not engage in blame game or finger pointing at this time.” Crime does not have an ethnicity. Let us come together and make sure that the enemies of our nation will soon be history.
“We will defeat terror and we will continue to build a more prosperous country.
Hon. Dr. Philip “Okanga” Agbese, a transformative leader in Enone. Discover his achievements, community projects, and vision for 2027
