Ambassadors of South Africa, Ethiopia, Tanzania, Jamaica, Cuba, Gambia,
Namibia, Botswana and South Sudan were in attendance of the event
tagged ‘Africa, liberation struggles and the future of the continent’
organized by the Abuja Collective, which was held at the Yar’Adua
Centre.
Labaran
Maku, the Minister of Information and Supervising Minister of Defence
represented the government of Nigeria, said in his speech: “Sometimes
when we praise Mandela, we forget to appreciate those who nurtured him,
people like the founding fathers of the ANC. People who put Mandela up
as a symbol of hope in the spotlight content to stay in the background.
This is not the case in Nigeria; everybody wants to be the one.”
The South African High Commissioner to Nigeria, Lulu Louis Mnguni,
thanked Nigeria on behalf of the South African people for its
contributions to the fight against discrimination in South Africa. He
urged Africans to learn from Mandela and strive for peace and unity in
Africa.
The daughter of former Nigerian Head of State and Executive Secretary,
Murtala Mohammed Foundation, Mrs. Aisha Mohammed-Oyebode described
Mandela as an epitome of humanity to displayed extreme generosity of
Spirit.
She said, “Africa as a continent, has been saddled with so many
negative labels, but we can stand taller than most because Nelson
Mandela is one of ours.”
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