Sunhak Peace Prize:  I wish I could secure global peace, end human suffering – Jonathan

…I wish I could end national, global conflicts – GEJ

…says I hate to see peoples suffering

Soni Daniel, Editor, Northern Region

Former President Goodluck Jonathan says he would be a happier man if he could end human suffering and bring about peace and stability in Nigeria and across the globe.

The former president spoke at a reception organized for him in Abuja by his friends and associates to mark the conferment of the Sunhak Peace Prize award on him by the Sunhak Peace Prize Foundation in South Korea.

The Sunhak Peace Prize was founded by Dr. Hak Ja Han Moon, the wife of the late Rev. Sun Myung Moon and it is aimed at ending worldwide suffering, conflict, poverty and threats to the environment by promoting a comprehensive, future-oriented vision of peace.

Jonathan, who was honoured with his wife, Patience, said he is often overwhelmed with grief and concern when he comes across citizens who are suffering and laboring to survive.

“I wish I could end the suffering of people that I come across daily. I do not really want to see human beings suffering and I would be happy to give a helping hand to them if I had the means and be in a position to do so,” the former president said.

“Indeed, I always feel bad seeing people suffering. But let me assure you all seated here today, that my commitment to peace remains unchanged till I die. I will continue to seek peace and pursue it for as long as I am alive,” Jonathan said, amid a thunderous applause from the crowd of supporters and friends.

The former president thanked the man behind the reception party, Robert Azibaola, a fellow of the Nigerian Society of Engineer, for bringing together the people who honoured him for winning the peace prize in Seoul.

Jonathan was surrounded by many former aides, friends, former governors and associates as well as religious, traditional and political leaders, among them, the Labour Party Presidential Candidate in the 2023 election, Peter Obi, who chaired the event.

Obi said the reception could not have come at a better time than on Easter Sunday, a time of peace and reconciliation with Christ, the leader of the Christian faith.

Referring to Jonathan, Obi said, “You made Nigeria to be peaceful in your time as the president of Nigeria; may God grant you more peace and strength”.

The former Chaplain of the Aso Villa, Prof Obioma Unwuzurumba, who also spoke at the ceremony, described Jonathan as a man that Nigerians will continue to miss for a long time, given the things he did to make Nigeria better while in office.

The former Chaplain however lamented that Nigerians missed the golden opportunity given to them by God to excel in peace and prosperity by failing to re-elect Jonathan as president in 2019, thereby exposing themselves to avoidable challenges.

Prof Obioma Unwuzurumba said: “The man we are celebrating today is a man of good heart and who is always unwilling to hurt a fly. My only regret today is that God gave Nigeria a gift and they rejected that gift.

“President Jonathan, you are a peacemaker who should be highly celebrated. The country has refused to acknowledge God but delights in playing dirty politics. Nigeria lost a man of peace by not electing Jonathan president in 2015. May God give us a leader that can save the country,” Onwuzurumba prayed.

The former Information Minister, Labaran Maku, said it was befitting and pleasing for a peace foundation in faraway South Korea to be the one to recognise and award Jonathan with a peace prize, confirming the biblical saying that a prophet is not without honour except in his hometown.

Labaran Maku said: “It is not easy to find in our clime a leader who stands out as a beacon of peace by losing an election without putting up a deadly fight back. Jonathan is indeed a patriot who should be cherished by all Nigerians. We should pray for him to be in good health and to continue to champion global peace and prosperity,” Maku said.

The organizer of the reception and managing director of Zeetin Engineering Limited, Robert Azibaola, described former President Jonathan as a leader, who is totally committed to making peace and resolving conflicts across the country and the globe and prayed for more strength for him to continue to champion the cause.

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Crédito: Link de origem