There is so great a need for civility and mutual respect among those of differing beliefs and philosophies. We must not be partisans of any doctrine of ethnic superiority. We live in a world of diversity. We can and must be respectful toward those with whose teachings we may not agree. We must be willing to defend the rights of others who may become the victims of bigotry.

Our ethnicity is part of us, however, it should not isolate or distance us from the community in which we live. People of different cultures cannot not live peacefully together unless they have respect for each other. I accept that seeking further integration is a challenge and it cannot be imposed or done under duress; the feeling has to come from within ourselves. To create an environment for that to happen, we have to develop situations and opportunities that place people in a position to make choices and this is one of them. And unless we begin to see our neighbours as people, as human beings rather than by ethnicity, it is difficult to shed our stereotypes of each other.

There are so many different people in the world, and we sometimes struggle because of those differences, but at the end we all try our best to make other people comfortable and compromise so that we can live together.

"We have to recognise our cultural differences, but accept that they enrich our society. We also have to accept that all communities and citizens have contributed to the nation. We must understand that our homeland can only reach its full promise if we all continue to contribute, with fair and equitable benefits for all. Finally, we must recognize that for the accomplishment of full nationhood and unity, we have to give greater emphasis to our common interests".

We must walk together, preserving our culture and identifying but paying respect to difference, to the other person. We can work in a way pleasing to God only while respecting, appreciating and helping each other. Let us walk together!

We must work harder to build mutual respect, an attitude of tolerance, with forbearance one for another.

We pray that we may compete with ideas, not insults, that we lessen the tension in the nation by the way we treat one another, none of us is perfect.

"Let us respect each other and avoid causing unnecessary hurt to those with beliefs and faiths different from ours." (Pacific Magazine).

The efforts must be shared between those who welcome and those who wish to integrate. The acceptance of the basic rules of our society, of our democratic ideas, of our ways of life and our cultural plurality are a precondition which cannot be argued against.

We must learn about each other and the power of our diversity.

I urge all Nigerians to embrace dialogue, tolerance, and understanding as we work together to build a more harmonious society. Let us remember that our diversity is our strength, and together, we can overcome the challenges that threaten our unity

We understand one another and we are able to work together for the good of society. Through this dynamic of frequent meetings, in spite of provocations, we are able to maintain peace.

We all have our weaknesses, dear friends; so we must strive to be considerate of one another.

In a democratic society we must live cooperatively, and serve the community in which we live, to the best of our ability. For our own success to be real, it must contribute to the success of others.