Olutayo Urges Tinubu to Scrap State of Origin, Promote National Unity

President Bola Tinubu has been urged to eliminate the concept of “state of origin” from national documentation in a bid to foster unity and integration across Nigeria.

Making the call during a Sunday sermon in Abuja, Senior Pastor of Good Tidings Bible Church International, Dayo Olutayo, said:

“I will propose that we should remove the state of origin from our identity cards and other relevant forms; instead, home address should be used so that anywhere you are in Nigeria, it is a home to you. That is the dream of our founding fathers. Just like the American Dream, our founding fathers also had the ‘Nigerian Dream’ which they wisely put it in codes such as national flag, coat of arms, national anthem and pledge.”

Olutayo said that scrapping the classification would help reduce tribalism and allow Nigerians to see one another as equal citizens regardless of location.

“People are tribalistic because they lack the understanding that we are one blood. Where languages were confused, that was when we began to have problems,” he noted.

He further suggested that traditional rulers should be empowered to help address local conflicts and promote understanding, saying, “Let the traditional rulers be given the responsibility to address certain issues. Once our ancestors are united at the traditional level, they will call their children to order.”

Olutayo emphasized that the vision of Nigeria’s founding fathers was not limited to any region. “The founding fathers of Nigeria came from the North, South, East and West,” he said.