Former Nigerian head of state, Abdulsalami Abubakar has recommended African leaders use constructive engagement in resolving conflict and challenges rather than force.
The former Nigerian leader made the submission on Saturday in Abuja while speaking at a conference organized in his honour.
He observed that many countries in Africa including Nigeria are embroiled in one form of crisis or the other but the leaders need to understand the use of force in resolving the issues is not the best option.
According to him, resolving the crisis affecting countries could be better achieved through constructive engagement and dialogue.
He added that leaders must show strong political will to tackle and resolve challenges while also gaining broader perspectives on issues.
In his words, “Africa as a continent has not been freed from conflict, indeed conflicts of diverse kinds are still one of the greatest challenges in Africa.”
“Conflicts persist in Democratic Republic of Congo, Somalia, Southern Sudan, Central African Republic, Mali, Mozambique, Libya, Nigeria, Ethiopia, among others.
“Consequently, as African leaders, we must be resolute and have the strong political will to resolve these conflicts and other developmental challenges confronting our continent.
“Therefore sustaining peace should be a continuous work in progress and we must change our approach of using force to maintain peace.
“But rather seeking constructive engagement with diverse stakeholders to broaden our perspectives of the issues in contention.”
www.tracknews.ng reports Abubakar is the head of the National Peace Committee (NPC) which had since 2014, been at the forefront of ensuring peaceful and credible elections in Nigeria.
