By Bertram Nwannekanma

Civil Society Organisations (CSO) in the country, have called for citizens’ participation in ensuring purposeful governance and leadership in Nigeria ahead of 2023 election.

The groups, which unveiled Nigeria’s Citizen’Scenario, a projection into the possible developmental trajectory of the country leading to its centenary in 2060, tagged, ‘CS60,’ stressed that the quality and integrity of the 2023 General Elections in Nigeria would lay a foundation for future elections in the country.

Unveiling the CS60 at a virtual news conference monitored in Lagos, the CSOs identified four scenarios that described the picture of Nigeria’s developmental trajectory, which depends largely on the choices that citizens, followers and leaders would make to earn such future.

Leading discussion on this issue, Director of the Centre for Climate Change and Development, Alex Ekwueme Federal University, Ndufu-Alike, Ikwo, Ebonyi State, Prof. Chukwumerije Okereke described the scenarios as ‘memories’ of the future.
Okereke said the scenarios offer a plausible path towards a certain end results.

“As a climate change researcher and policy advocate playing an integral role in understanding how Nigeria could transition to a more sustainable economy, these scenarios lay out the stark choices which 200 million of us would face in the next two generations.
“I hope that Nigerians take note of the potential future that we can shape. The challenge is urgent and we must start immediately,” Okereke said.
Okereke, who is also a co-initiator of CS60 said the scenarios present four alternative futures for Nigeria, which are functions of the choices we make or project into the realisation of Nigeria of our dream.

According to him, the four senarios are Land of hustle (growth at all costs), Green Land (sustainable Nigeria), Land of lost hope (stuck in the rut) and Blood land (war and autocratic growth).

Article originally published in The Guardian Nigeria 

Tirelo Makwela