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| Prof. Chinua Achebe |
WHY PROF. CHINUA ACHEBE REJECTED NATIONAL AWARD.
President Goodluck Jonathan on Sunday faulted renown author, Prof. Chinua Achebe, over the reason he gave for rejecting the national honour offered him by the Federal Government.
Jonathan had earlier offered Achebe a national honour of Commander of the Federal Republic.
He is billed to be awarded the national honour alongside some other notable Nigerians in Abuja on Monday (today).
But in rejecting the honour, Achebe was quoted as saying that the issues that made him to reject a similar honour from the administration of former President Olusegun Obasanjo about seven years ago remained unresolved.
Achebe’s decision to reject the latest national honour was contained in a statement he issued on Saturday.
The statement read, "The reasons for rejecting the offer ‘national honour’ when it was first made have not been addressed let alone solved. It is inappropriate to offer it again to me. I must therefore regretfully decline the offer again."
But presidential spokesman, Dr. Reuben Abati, in a statement on Sunday, said the President regretted Achebe’s decision to once again reject the national honour.
Abati said Jonathan was also surprised by the author’s claim that the issues which informed his decision to reject the same award seven years ago, still remained unresolved.
The statement said, "Coming as it does, against the background of the widely acclaimed electoral reforms undertaken by the Jonathan administration, the claim by Prof. Achebe clearly flies in the face of the reality of Nigeria’s current political situation."
The president’s spokesman added that as reflected in the improvement recorded in the conduct of the last general elections, which were applauded within and outside the country as the most credible elections in Nigeria in recent years, the administration had made tremendous efforts to positively change the political architecture complained about by Achebe and other Nigerians.
He said, "Politically, Nigeria cannot be said to be where it was in 2004 as the Jonathan administration has embarked on extensive electoral reforms to institute a regime of electoral integrity that all Nigerians can be proud of, believing that governance will be greatly enhanced in the country if the will of the people prevails at elections.
"While President Jonathan acknowledges that there are still challenges in the path of Nigeria’s attainment of its full potentials as a nation, he believes that his administration is moving the country in the right direction and therefore deserves the support, encouragement and cooperation of all citizens."
Abati said the President continued to hold Achebe in very high esteem in spite of his "regrettable decision" which he said might have been borne out of "misinformation as to the true state of affairs in Nigeria."
Posted by: Silvanus Chimobi. Lagos.
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