The vice president of Nigeria Yemi Osinbajo says he places high value on transparency and social justice as requirements in the advancement of the common good of Nigerians.
This was one of the highlights of the interaction between the Vice President and a group of Harvard Business School students who visited him on Friday at the Presidential Villa.
The vice president said, ”In a situation where societal or governmental institutions are not strong enough to compel individual behavior in a way that advances the common good, spirituality and commitment to such values as social justice and transparency are important.
“Just looking at these values, there is a great deal of unanimity about what is the right thing to do. The question is whether or not you will do those things, whether you are motivated enough to do them, or whether you are compelled to do them.
“Spirituality helps in that sense to help you to decide what to do and what not to do. Especially where institutions are not strong enough to restrain people from behaving in a particular way or not”.
The students who are currently on an African excursion asked questions about leadership, faith, spirituality, government policies in education, health, economy, and national image, among others.
Responding to the questions Osinbajo attached his personal commitment to the virtues of integrity, transparency, and social justice which are also virtues exhorted in the different faiths and religions in the country.
“For me, spirituality connotes values. I came into government with values about what I think is important, especially around transparency, social justice, and justice, among others. You are almost always a product of the values you believe in. Fortunately, a lot of these values cut across different faiths, they are not necessarily restricted to religion or one faith.
“In societies that are more developed institutionally, you don’t need to be told that you shouldn’t do certain things because you could end up in jail if you do and there is a good likelihood that you could be detected and the process will go through and you will be punished.
“I speak about corruption and all that. But where the institutions are weak, some people have reasons for not doing the right thing,” Prof. Osinbajo submitted,” he said.
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