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Toast To The Commonwealth
By
DR GOODLUCK EBELE JONATHAN,
GCON, GCFR
President, Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces
of the Federal Republic of Nigeria
AT
THE QUEEN’S BANQUET,
62ND COMMONWEALTH HEADS OF GOVERNMENT MEETING (CHOGM)
PERTH, AUSTRALIA
FRIDAY, 28 OCTOBER 2011
PROTOCOL
Your Majesty, The Queen
Head of the Commonwealth of Nations
Honourable Julia Gillard, our respected host
Excellencies, Presidents and Heads of
Government
Secretary-General of the Commonwealth
It is my special honour and privilege to be
asked to propose a toast to the Commonwealth in the presence of
Her Majesty, The Queen.
Let me begin by noting the special
significance of this moment in the history of the Commonwealth,
especially as Her Majesty will soon be marking her Diamond
Jubilee and we might not have the opportunity to meet again as
Commonwealth Family before the historic event.
Accordingly, on behalf of all of us, I would
like to join the Honourable Julia Gillard, Prime Minister of
Australia and our host, to express profound thanks and
appreciation to Her Majesty for leading the Commonwealth, these
past six decades, with passion, dedication and commitment.
Our Commonwealth is remarkable not only
because of the diversity of its membership, but principally
because we are united by a set of shared values. Whether as
rich, poor, small or large nations, we all aspire to live a life
of freedom and dignity and to achieve economic and social
progress for our people.
I believe these are precisely the same
values that will ensure that our organisation remains relevant
to its times and people in the future.
At her ascension to
the throne in 1952, nearly 60 years ago, her Majesty captured
the strength of our organisation when she noted that:
the Commonwealth bears no resemblance to
the empires of the past. It is an entirely new conception built
on the highest qualities of the spirit of man: “friendship,
loyalty and the desire for freedom and peace.”
The fact that the Commonwealth is now
globally recognised as a force for good, particularly in the
areas of democracy and development, bears testimony to the
widespread acceptance of its established values and principles.
We must build on these attributes and strive to strengthen our
rainbow coalition of governments, civil society and businesses,
all united in partnership to deliver public goods and beneficial
outcomes to Commonwealth citizens.
Your Majesty
Excellencies
I have much pleasure in asking you all to
please rise and raise your glasses in toast to the Commonwealth:
“THE COMMONWEALTH”.
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