Federal Government on Monday said it felt worried by a number of internal and external factors threatening the Commonwealth of Nations members’ fledgling democracies.
Top among its worries, the government said, are the global economic meltdown, climate changes, terrorism, human and drug trafficking as well as the soaring prices of staple food items.
President Umaru Yar’Adua made the remarks at the 2009 Commonwealth Observance Day celebration in Abuja.
Vice President Goodluck Jonathan represented him at the occasion.
He said Nigeria’s membership of the Commonwealth till date has not been without its attendant difficulties, particularly during the inglorious years of authoritarian rule.
Yar’Adua observed that Nigeria’s expulsion and subsequent readmission after its return to democratic governance, "from five dark and inglorious years of authoritarian rule, to the warm embrace of the
Commonwealth in 1999, form part of its history within the Commonwealth of nations.
"The challenges facing us today are equally daunting, our fledgling democracies are threatened by a number of factors, including home grown and external aspects.
"These challenges with its strings of inter-relativism needed to force the world in rising to a new level of cooperation in addressing them, especially now that the Commonwealth celebration calls for inculcating in youth exemplary leadership qualities to meet the challenges of the future, "he added.
The President noted that "our tomorrow is guaranteed by the character and values internalised by our youth today.