An elder statesman, Alhaji Tanko Yakasai, on Thursday, cautioned a fellow elder statesman, Chief Edwin Clark, against issuing threats when contributing to national discourse.
Yakasai, who is in his late 90s, cautioned Clark in a statement, titled, “An appeal to the elderly Nigerians for constructive engagement in National discourse”, and made available to the Punch in Kano.
He said, “I wish to comment on a statement, credited to my good friend, Chief E.K. Clark and published in the media concerning the part of the country that should produce our President in the coming presidential election in 2023.
“My comment is predicated on the interview granted by one of my old friends, Chief Edwin Clark. The part of the statement that incurred my displeasure is where Chief Clark issued a veiled threat on the issue of unity and peaceful coexistence affecting different communities living together in our country.”
According to the statement, Yakasai, who was a former Senior Adviser on National Assembly matters to ex-President Shehu Shagari, observed that in most of Clark’s comments on important national discourse, the elder statesman issues some kind of threats about the unity and peace in our country.
Yakasai said, “Chief Clark is not the only elder statesman that issues such threats on unity and peaceful coexistence in our country. There is another elder statesman, who is also a friend of mine and who is fond of resorting to threats when discussing national issues.’
“I think at our age, we should avoid resorting to threats whenever we are discussing national issues. What is expected of people at our age is to provide leadership by way of offering advice and correcting any mistake we discovered made by younger Nigerians in the course of national discourse.
“Threats are not expected from senior citizens in any country. What is expected of the senior citizens is leadership, moderation, and guidance. At the age of more than one hundred years of existence as a united country, what Nigeria needs from the leaders is maturity in any discussion, so that those of us with advancement in age would be moderation and exemplary leadership to the younger generation.”
Threats, Yakasai emphasised doesn’t fall into the category expected of people, who are on their way to celebrating their centenary.
He, therefore, appealed to “fellow elderly colleagues to please watch their language when contributing in an important national discourse”, stressing that will “make their contributions more positive in moving our nation forward than disuniting it”.
