Africa Does Not Deserve To Be Pitied –Amb. Uhomoibhi

Africa Does Not Deserve To Be Pitied     –Amb. Uhomoibhi

By: Oriaifoh Godwins

Africa does not deserve pity from the rest of the world as we are not a continent to be pitied; rather, we deserve genuine partnership and collaboration.

Ambassador Professor Martin Ihoeghian Uhomoibhi, OFR, the former Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, former Undersecretary General of the United Nations and the first African to be elected as the President of the United Nations Human Right Council, said this, on an NTA network programme: “Good Morning Nigeria” of 20th September 2023, in support of one of the points made by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu in his recent address to the United Nations General Assembly, UNGA .

According to Ambassador Uhomoibhi, this ‘genuine partnership and collaboration’, is of course, entrenched in the United Nations Charter. He said; ‘…I will like to make a case in agreement with President Tinubu’s speech to the United Nations General Assembly, that Africa should not be pitied…we must solve our own problems by ourselves and depend less on the western world’.

 ‘Americans built America, Britons built Britain, Africans must build Africa, and Nigerians must be ready to build Nigeria’.  He said.

Ambassador Uhomoibhi, who pointed out that, we must take responsibility for our destiny, added that, leadership is critical in achieving this. He however lamented that, our political leadership selection process is flawed, as we do not always put our best foot forward. He described the leadership pattern of our traditional rulers as distinct and different in the way they govern, as they are knowledge based institutions. In contrast, he said, our western/modern governments by political elites, is a script that we study in the university. 

Ambassador Uhomoibhi, who said; ‘…Leadership is about service, not about accumulation of capital, neither is it about impoverishing others…’ said, when we act out, the western style of leadership that we studied in the universities, it is about vested interests. He said, the selection process must however, be more transparent and accountable; and the whole of Africa, must understand that, you cannot give what you do not have.

Ambassador Uhomoibhi, who said, ‘Nigerians are good and very wonderful people… and because of that, we extend our goodness to others’, also pointed out that Nigeria is the only country in the whole world that stabilized two countries simultaneously, thousands of kilometres away from the shores of Nigeria, even without borrowing a dime from anywhere to do so. He said, Africa, especially Nigeria, has not had a fair deal in the membership of the United Nations, especially bearing in mind that Nigeria has been key in contributing to world peace and security, as we have never had the reason to go to war with any country in spite of provocations.

Ambassador Uhomoibhi lamented that since the United Nations was created, till date, not one African nation is represented in the Security Council of the Organ of the UN.

Ambassador Professor Martin Ihoeghian Uhomoibhi was the President of the General Assembly of the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO). He is the Chairman of the Academic Advisory Council of the National Institute of Policy & Strategic Studies (NIPSS) Kuru. He is the Proprietor, Pan African Institute for Global Affairs & Strategy (PAIGAS).

Ambassador Professor Uhomoibhi, is the foremost aspirant contesting for Edo state governorship position come 2024.