Individuals and groups seeking international bodies and foreign powers to meddle in the internal affairs of Nigeria are unpatriotic, Katsina State Governor, Aminu Bello Masari, has said.
Masari said this on Monday in an Eid-el-Kabir message signed by his spokesperson, Abdu Labaran.
The governor spoke against the backdrop of recent calls by Catholic Bishop of Sokoto, Mathew Kukah, on international bodies and foreign powers to forcefully interfere in the country ’s internal affairs, due to current insecurity.
He said as a sovereign nation, Nigeria deserves the respect of foreign nations whatever their status on the global stage may be.
“For any compatriot to wilfully call on foreign powers to meddle in the internal affairs of Nigeria, is to display the highest level of unpatriotism,” he said.
“No responsible citizen, least of all those who are the foremost beneficiaries of the commonwealth, would encourage foreign powers to interfere in the internal affairs of their nation, regardless of its adversities.”
He called on the Nigerian elite “to borrow a leaf from their counterparts in those foreign powers and guard Nigeria’s sovereignty jealously”.
“In those climes, the leading citizens partner with the government to protect and advance national interest. They do not go to the market place to expose the perceived inadequacy of their leaders,” he said.
