By Ahmed Idris
The Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Mr Boss Mustapha, said on Monday that democracy only thrives where there is peace, transparency and accountability.
The SGF said this at the 2018 Democracy Day Lecture, with the theme: “Peace Building and Good Governance for sustainable development”, held at the International Conference Centre in Abuja.
He said democracy is a globally accepted practice for electing leaders, distributing wealth, enthroning good governance and bringing development to the people.
“In Nigeria, we have for almost two decades, experienced four consecutive and successful transition of power from one democratic dispensation to another. Most notable is the fact that we recently witnessed a transition from an incumbent to an opposition.
“That singular feat gives assurance that our democracy has taken root in our country, the Nigerian people can now freely decide who their leaders would be and that their votes now count. Democracy entails, preventing arbitrariness in governance, ensuring justice and equity, freedom of speech and absence of corruption, where nationhood thrives,” he said.
He said democracy also ensures fair administration of justice in accordance with the rule of law and genuinely building inclusive institutions that would provide the people with a voice in the decision-making processes that affect them.
He said the theme of the 2018 democracy day lecture was apt as the most important role of democracy and all its attributes was about about sustainable development.
He said Nigeria is a member of the United Nations that signed unto the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) commitment which aims to keep people safe.
He said the 2030 agenda for the SDGs emphasised that ”there can be no peace without sustainable development and no sustainable development without peace.
He said the country is similarly a signatory to the Open Government Partnership and has committed to four key thematic areas namely: promoting fiscal transparency, access to
Information, anti–corruption and asset disclosure, citizen engagement and empowerment.
