Mr. Cui Jianchun, Ambassador of the People’s Republic of China to Nigeria, says that Nigeria needs a strong party to guide its development, just like the Communist Party of China (CCP).
Cui made this known in Abuja on Wednesday at a panel discussion on “The 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC): Outcomes and Importance for Nigeria and Africa.”
The Nigerian News Agency reports that the roundtable was organized by China Studies in collaboration with the Chinese Embassy in Abuja.
Cui said China has been able to achieve its development breakthroughs and lift its more than 1.4 billion people out of poverty under the CPC‘s effective people’s policy.
He said Nigeria could learn from China’s philosophy and let the strong parties lead the country and ensure they implement their campaign manifestos for the good of the people and the development of the country.
“I have talked with the party leaders, we believe that the two major parties and the 18 parties can benefit from the 20th CPC National Congress. I have the opportunity to share the ideas.
“We really believe that the CPC can do a lot for party building in Nigeria because I believe that the party is not just about power, but about people.
“It is about development, it is about how to lead the nation to achieve the good vision.
“We will continue to share information next week. We think we need a strong party in Nigeria, we need a party to lead the nation.
“The Chinese philosophy is that the party is not just for the platform, the campaign manifesto, but more importantly, how we can implement the party manifesto.
“The Chinese lessons, the Chinese experience can be shared with the Nigerian side,” Cui said.
Mr. Charles Onunaiju, Director of the Center for China Studies, said that Africa and Nigeria, to be specific, had greatly benefited from the Communist Party-led government in Africa.
Onunaiju said the completion of the Lekki deep-water port, which would make Nigeria a maritime hub in West Africa, was an initiative of China-Africa cooperation, especially since Nigeria engaged in the Belt and Loop Initiative. Route designed in 2013.
However, he said it was important for Nigeria to follow the example of the Chinese Communist Party and apply it to the Nigerian context, where political parties should focus on solving problems rather than partying.
“The most important thing for us, of course, we will always do it our way, we will put it in our own context.
“But I think that the general thing is that the congresses of the parties should be focused on solving problems. It shouldn’t be jamborees.
“The party congress in China draws up a road map, it is not about the candidates wanting to be this, that they want to be that.
“These are the lessons of the Chinese Communist Party congress. Every time it is held, it is a sober organization, it is the most important political festival in China. It develops a new paradigm, new critical roadmaps on the way forward.
“You have to define the party congresses, what has been delivered, how our people are committed, are the most excluded people, are the most involved people, in what way can people be more involved.
“How can we assess how far we have come, what are the policy options we have implemented in the past, how has it impacted people?
“If you read the party general secretary, he catalogs everything that has been achieved, also outlines the challenges ahead, and then defines a roadmap.
“The platforms of the parties should be more adapted to the results, to the practical tangibles, these are the lessons from China, which also has many things in common with us, a developing country, from the third world to the first world.
“Forty-five years ago Nigeria was richer than China, today it is a different story. So we can do more so that our party congress is not just a party, our political party more than music.
“Let it be a defining framework to launch into the new phase of development,” Onunaiju said.
Also speaking, a former lawmaker, Senator Shehu Sani, said Nigeria needed to learn a lot from China, especially regular political party meetings to discuss successes, challenges and the way forward.
Sani also suggested that the Chinese government should create opportunities for Nigerian political leaders to participate in the CPC National Congress to learn from them and apply it to the Nigerian context.
reports that the 20th CPC National Congress was held from October 16 to 22 in Beijing, China.
edited
Source Credit: NAN