The Nigeria Labour Congress,NLC has joined the rest of the world in mourning a global icon and brand, Mr. Nelson Mandela who passed on at the age of 95.
A statement by NLC President ,Abdulwahed Omar said ,”Mandela was a rare and uncommon breed whose demise will certainly create a void difficult to fill not only in South Africa but around the world. He is irreplaceable and his contributions to peace, priceless. Mandela was the rallying point of an inimitable and unstoppable moral force with which world leaders with a conscience sought to identify.
“His contributions to the struggle against the obnoxious apartheid regime was not only legendary, he became the symbol of the struggle that earned him 27 cruel years in prison in Robben Island. It was a fitting tribute that he came from prison to be president of a multi-racial South Africa. The genius in Mandela was clearly etched in his policy of national reconciliation through the instrumentality of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. The world was spell-bound. But Mandela was not yet done. He left office after one term, sending a strong signal to sit-tight rulers, especially in Africa.
Mandela was a remarkable man. In spite of a turbulent political career and a tumultuous family life, he created happiness for himself and inspired millions of others. Failing health did not deter him from condemning evil, injustice, oppression or exploitation wherever it was found in the world. Few, if any, joined issues with this total giant. For him, diplomatese is no substitute for truth. Similarly, he believed the true value of a man does not lie in his being accepted but in making others accept what is right.
NLC said “Mandela came, identified his mission and fulfilled it. The exit of this legend may yet not be his end. Legends live after themselves after all. That is why they are legends.
Mandela in the words of Jacob Zuma was the glue that held South Africa together. His death may yet waxen that glue, given the overwhelming outpouring of grief. Besides that, every nation needs a rallying point. For South Africans, in death or in life, that point will continue to be the Madiba.
“The Nigeria Labour Congress sends its deep condolences to Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) as well as the family of this great man for all seasons.
Also , Governor Adams Oshiomhole of Edo State eulogised the late President of South Africa, Mr Nelson Mandela, saying there are a lot of lessons to be learnt from his
life by Nigerian leaders.
In his tribute to the late anti-apartheid crusader, Governor Oshiomhole said people like Mandela don’t die, but only transit from this world to higher glory.
He said: “Mandela cannot be referred to as dead. The right word is transition. He had this real gift of leadership and that he comes from this black continent of Africa makes it even more significant.
“The lessons from Mandela are very clear, those values of leadership without bitterness; the capacity to forgive and to forge unity in a country that was detained and bogged down by ethnic, racial and colour divide. He played up what united the people of South Africa and demonstrating his own personnel forgiveness of those who imprisoned him for 27 years, providing the right atmosphere for prosperity everyone, including those who deprived
him of the good things of life.
“There are lots of lessons we should learn from this. Can we not afford to be Mandela in our homes, States and at the national level. And for Nigerians where leaders are busy contesting election on the basis of ethnic divide, can we learn from Mandela that it is possible to inspire a people to downplay those primordial sentiments and rise to national challenges and
build the nation, create prosperity, address the challenges of the poor and be loved by the poor?
“There won’t be another Mandela in the continent or indeed another Mandela anywhere in the world. It is a shame Nigeria cannot claim to have anybody near him even though we had the opportunity.
“There are other lessons for Nigeria. Mandela’s condition was managed in South Africa by South African doctors. I want to see how this can help us to have a deeper reflection, so that Nigeria can learn from the positive side of South Africa. Also this was a man who after spending twenty seven years in prison, had the opportunity to be president and he chose to
preside only for four years and decided against the wish of his people to step aside for the younger ones to take over leadership. It shows that you can be relevant even out of office. I hope all of us can learn that there can be life, happiness and even greater respect, out of office, than you command while in office.”
