Scripts of Peace Building; The Bills of Inclusivism By Parliament Chibu Ndubuisi. 31/07/2017

                      

             Scripts of Peace Building and the Bills of Inclusivism By Parliament

                                             Chibu Ndubuisi.  31/07/2017

Peace be to you.

Unfolding the chapters of nation building requires constant and constructive dialogue engagements among various units in the polity. Legislative bill propositions, interest and pressure group aggregation of ideas, executive arm of government enabling policies of hope, and the judiciary giving adjudication that will stand the test of time in concrete terms.

The Nigeria Senate on the 14^th of June 2017, passed a motion titled “The Need for National Unity and Peaceful Coexistence in Nigeria” sponsored by the 109 senators. This is how the desire for peace burns in their hearts. They went further proposing the “bill for Independent Candidature” aimed at making space for those not interested in mainstream political parties processes and procedures, another “bill on Reduction of Age Qualification for the office of the President and Governor and membership of the Senate, House of Representative and the State House of Assemblies”. The United Nation Security Council Resolution 2250 (2015) urges member states to increase representation of youths in decision making at all levels, giving youths a greater voice  in decision making at the local, national, regional and international levels. This is what the parliament has just enabled.

This is how the scripts of peace are written by playing the politics of inclusivism. The Senate equally passed the “Peace Corps bill” to make space for others not like the mainstream bodies. The legislative bodies are trying to answer conflict with inclusivism and reconciliation.

Inclusivism is the philosophy of closing gaps of many fault lines that hinders political, social and economic participation. It is about giving groups in a society the chance to be heard and have their interest addressed. It is about honouring the dignity of the nation by dignifying all. This is how the politics of responsibility makes all of us responsible to each other. The responsible nation is the nation that responds to the yearnings of the citizenry in positive ways.

The recent decision of the Federal High Court in Lagos to nullify different cut off marks for admission in to Unity Schools is a step in the right direction. It will help empower those who are brilliant not to be discriminated on the basis of their state of origin and the nation will gain more by training her best to secure their future.

A paradigm shift is gradually coming to be. Wars are won by weapons but it takes ideas to win peace.it is not about hard power anymore but soft and smart power. You can bomb the world in to pieces but you can’t bomb it in to peace. More than any nation on earth we need a National Peace Collage   just as we have a War Collage. We need institutions where people are trained not to diminish others but to dignify them.

Now is the time to intensify education of peace.

Peace be with you.