The Deputy President of the Senate, Senator Ike Ekweremadu, has stressed the need to uphold constitutionalism and the rule of law to speed up the growth of nation’s democracy.
Ekweremadu stated this in his Democracy Day message to Nigerians, yesterday.
He maintained that the real blessing and difference between democracy and undemocratic forms of government was the guarantee of human rights and rule of law.
He said: “As we celebrate the 18th anniversary of the return of democracy, we must remind ourselves that the greatest blessings of democracy are not just good roads, hospitals, electricity, and other socio-economic infrastructure, which are still grossly inadequate, anyway. Any government is capable of providing one, and even several dictatorships around the world have indeed provided betters ones.
“The greatest blessings of democracy are constitutionalism, rule of law, respect for human rights, courts, separation of powers, and the ballot box.
“Unless we apply the break and uphold the rule of law and democratic conventions and practices in all ramifications, our greatest losses, moving forward, will not be economic recession, lack of critical infrastructure, among others, but an irredeemably deteriorated civilian rule where the decisions of the courts, letters and spirit of the law, resolutions of the legislature, electoral choices of Nigerians as expressed through the ballot no longer count”.
The Senator, however, called on Nigerians to keep faith alive in the nation’s democracy, as there was no alternative to democratic rule.
He advised them to rather apply every lawful and legitimate means to demand for and defend their rights and the rule of law for their own benefit and benefit of posterity.
Ekweremadu wished Nigerians a happy Democracy Day.
