According to Senator Lawrence Ewhrudjakpo, Deputy Governor of Bayelsa State, the reason Nigeria isn't progressing is due to the fact that most of the nation's leaders are selfish and greedy.
Senator Ewhrudjakpo made the statement on Friday at the Chief DSP Alamieyeseigha Banquet Hall, Government House, Yenagoa, during the Literary Swansong and Day of Tributes held in memory of the late Paramount Ruler of the Tombia Community, HRH Christian Atani Otobotekere.
He stated that although the country has a vast amount of material and human resources, according to him, it is still behind other countries in the international world.
He lamented that the country's progress had been thwarted by selfishness, pointing out that every progressive country has leaders who are not just patriotic but also unselfish.
He challenged the political class to emulate figures like Chief Otobotekere in order to have an impact on society by describing the late preeminent traditional ruler and educator, known as The Poet King, as a man of impenetrable integrity.
The late nonagenarian, according to him, led the Tombia community for roughly 50 years and the clan in his native Ekpetiama Kingdom for 14 years without experiencing any significant intra- or inter-communal conflict because of a lifestyle void of greed and selfishness.
He said: “Selfish countries are less progressive. Nigeria is not progressing because of the greed and selfishness of most of her leaders over the years.
“The less selfish a country’s leaders are, the more progressive it becomes, and vice versa. Our father whom we have all come to honor today, clearly lived an impactful life.
“He was not greedy. He was not also selfish. And so, we really have to imbibe and follow the footsteps and positive legacies of people like him for us to be able to make good progress in this country.â€