STRENGTHENING NATIONAL UNITY VIA INT’L DAY OF FRIENDSHIP
Saturday July 30, the world over
is commemorated the 2016 edition of the International Day of Friendship. The
resolution concerning the annual International Day of Friendship was adopted
unanimously by the United Nations (UN) General Assembly in May 2011 in
recognition of the fact that friendship can contribute meaningfully to the
efforts of the global community towards the promotion of dialogue among
solidarity, civilization, mutual understanding as well as reconciliation.
The resolution mandated the international
community to recognize July 30 of every year as International Day of Friendship
thereby inviting all the UN Member States, several arms of the UN system, as
well as other international and regional bodies coupled with civil societies,
to observe the day in accordance with the culture/customs and other appropriate
circumstances of their respective local, national and/or regional communities
through public awareness-raising activities.
It’s often said that ‘two good heads are better than one’. It’s also
widely noted that ‘a tree does not make a forest’. These and many more similar
quotations, which signify the essence of partnership or amalgamation, have been
adhered to by millions of personalities and schools of thought across the globe
owing to their obvious inevitable role in human existence.
The aforementioned philosophies are not unconnected
to the fact that, no individual or group can do it all alone if efficiency or
effectiveness remains his/its watchword. No doubt, this was the reason God
ensured that a woman was formed having created a man. Needless to say; the
creator Himself understood the unavoidable essence of companionship. This
simply implies that everyone requires a friend in whom he/she is well pleased
toward arriving at the anticipated success room.
A friend, in a nutshell, is a person that one likes and knows well. It could
also be described as a supporter of a cause or a staunch fan of a certain organization.
A true friend is the first person you wish to call whenever you receive good
news; he/she is equally the person you wish to share your pains with; he is
that person or fellow that would like to accompany you on the most boring
errands or trips and make them seem fun; he is that fellow that is invariably
willing to tell you what you need to hear, not what you want to hear.
In the same vein, friendship is a kind of relationship between two or
more people who care about each other. Since friendship has to do with people
who truly care about each other, there’s no gain saying that sometimes it
requires that people put someone other than themselves first. Indeed, true
friendship signifies that some occasions might warrant you sacrificing your happiness
for that of others. Hence, life is all about sacrifice, which is usually a
product of compassion. What’s the essence of life if you can’t cough up a
reasonable time to think about others?
Notwithstanding, a friendship is meant to be a symbiotic relationship
rather than a parasitic one. Hence, many qualities are required or necessary
for a good friendship to hold, including honesty, transparency, trustworthiness,
loyalty, tolerance and unconditional acceptance. These, among other factors,
have the tendency to yield an unconditional love between the parties involved.
For any friendship to be reliable as well as successful or hitch-free, either or
both parties, as the case might be, must possess all of the above at all times.
In Nigeria, for instance, which is an amalgamation of various
friendships or relationships, for the union to remain in peace and progress,
the leaders must be willing to be transparent and honest to the teeming
followers, thus they must always exercise the political will towards leading
transparently. The electorate, on their part, must equally reciprocate the
gesture by being loyal and submissive. Any union is anchored on reciprocity
among its overall members, and Nigeria isn’t an exception. We must take into
cognizance that national unity would continue to suffer from epilepsy if trust
is nowhere to be found; and there will never be trust if honesty and
transparency is missing.
Happiness ought to be seen as a
keyword by the people or groups who constitute a certain friendship or union, irrespective
of the circumstance. Of course, we aren’t unaware that human beings can clash
very easily, which is why it’s hard for some persons to maintain many friendships
at a time or simultaneously. In view of this assertion, members of a particular
friendship are expected to uphold absolute honesty at all cost with the sole
aim of sustaining the relationship in question.
Another pertinent factor to acknowledge towards sustaining national
unity is unconditional acceptance. The various ethnic groups across the
federation must be prepared to accept each other unconditionally since they are
bound to be one indivisible body. We found ourselves together, or as one
nation, thus we must strive to sustain the oneness regardless of our respective
distinct cultures and backgrounds. No doubt, this is the only way we can boast
of unconditional love, which is the only factor that can yield the awaited
societal uplift. Unalloyed love produces absolute peace and unity that are
required for both human and capital developments. The Ministry of Information
and Culture under the watch of Alhaji Lai Mohammed, in collaboration with
various relevant bodies, can help in making the general public comprehend this
fact via awareness cum thorough sensitization campaigns.
During penultimate year’s
commemoration of the International Day of Friendship, precisely on 30th
July 2015, the United Nations Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon urged the global
community to use the potential of friendship to strengthen common bonds and
inspire efforts for peace and sustainable development. The UN boss further
stated that “The day is an important opportunity to confront the
misunderstanding and distrust that underlie so many of the tensions and
conflicts in today’s world.” He went further to say that the event is a
reminder that human solidarity is essential to promoting lasting peace and
fostering sustainable growth among mankind, therefore enjoined the
international communities to cultivate warm ties that would strengthen our
common humanity and promote the well-being of the human race.
Hence, I call on Nigerians both home and
abroad to strive towards achieving national unity through the effort of
undiluted friendship. It was Lucius Seneca that said “One of the most beautiful
qualities of true friendship is to understand and to be understood.” In her
words, Helen Keller stated that “Walking with a friend in the dark is better
than walking alone in the light.” Similarly, Hubert Humphrey succinctly
disclosed that “The greatest gift of life is friendship, and I have received it.”
To this end, I appeal to us to receive friendship in our various endeavours
since it has been proven beyond doubts to be the pathway to man’s eternal
happiness.
Acknowledging that two good heads are truly better than one, it’s therefore
not needful to say that all hands are expected to be on deck toward ensuring
that friendship is created as well as sustained at all cost for the sake of
national unity and harmony, which definitely would yield the long awaited national
development. Think about it!
Comr Fred Doc
Nwaozor
(TheMediaAmbassador)
-Researcher, Blogger,
Public Affairs analyst & Civil Rights activist-
Executive Director, Centre for Counselling, Research
& Career Development - Owerri
_____________________________________
frednwaozor@gmail.com
+2348028608056
Twitter: @mediambassador
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