NIGERIA (Abuja)-Nigerian politicians has been advised to always place the interest of the country before theirs as they prepare for the 2015 general elections.

This was disclosed by President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan at Our Lady Queen of Nigeria Pro-Cathedral Church, Garki, Abuja, during a special New Year mass.

While addressing the congregation at the mass, President Jonathan said there is no need for heating up the polity, rather than facing the job of making life better for the people.

“All what we need to do is to make sure that we continue to do things rightly. That is why I always plead with my fellow politicians that yes we must play the politics but let us take the interest of the country more than our own individual interest.  And as we continue to play the politics in that direction, leaders will come and go but the country will stay. Luckily, we have a constitution that nobody will be a governor or president forever. It is only in the parliament that you can be there till you die.

“As long as we consider the interest of our country, children, grand children and we begin to plan for the next generation instead of wasting all our energies to think about ourselves, before we get to the next 100 years, the country will be better. Nigeria can even change in the next few years and things will be better for everybody.

“By God’s grace, this country will be better in 2014. Even in the power sector that people always make reference to, since we have been able to do be first phase of privatization and generation and distribution have been handed over to the private sector, we believe that even before the middle of this year, power will be reasonably stable and that will stimulate the economy.  I believe and I am convinced that 2014 will be a better year than 2013,” the president added.

Mr. Jonathan said with the prayers of his audience and other Nigerians, Nigeria would get better.

“As we enter this New Year, we will surely get our economy to continue to move in the right direction and in the direction we want it to move. We shall continue to work hard to make sure that not just the economy will be growing based on economic parameters and indices, but that jobs are available for our young men and women and that food is cheap in our markets for ordinary people to buy and eat. That is the commitment of government,” he said.

Furthermore, President Jonathan spoke about the planned Centenary Celebrations on Nigeria.

“Today, modern Nigeria is 100 years old. The formal ceremony will take place by late February, the programme will soon be advertised for all Nigerians to see and know the areas they will participate because it is a programme for all of us. All the religious houses will be involved in one form of prayer or the other.

“So, today, we are not just celebrating the New Year but we are also celebrating a special new year. A new year that Nigeria, modern Nigeria is 100 years. And we use this period to begin to think what will be Nigeria in the next 100 years. Not just to celebrate 100 years of the amalgamation of northern protectorates and southern protectorates to make the modern Nigeria, but what will be the future of our children, our grandchildren in the next 100 years. That is what occupies our mind. That is what we must all focus our attention on,” he added.

Mr. Jonathan said the federal government is steadily improving on the needed infrastructure to contain the security challenges in the country.

The President also gave the church a signed New Year card on behalf of his family and the Federal Government.

In his sermon, the Catholic Archbishop of Abuja Archdiocese, Cardinal, John Onaiyekan, told the congregation that security challenges were a global phenomenon. He read a letter sent to the world by Pope Francis showing that the world was plagued by several problems.

“My brothers and sisters, these problems are not only in our nation. You only need to read the Pope’s letter to realize that all over the world, we have problems of corruption, human trafficking, drug abuse not to talk of wars and fratricidal killings. We ask you Lord to come to our aid and defend our nation,” the cleric said.