Sultan of Sokoto: Nigeria Sitting on Keg of Gunpowder

•Says youth unemployment poses grave danger 

•Laments nation’s economic hardship 

•Declares people deeply frustrated, hungry

John Shiklam in Kaduna

The Sultan of Sokoto and Chairman of Northern Traditional Rulers’ Council (NTRC), Alhaji Muhammad Sa’ad Abubakar III, yesterday, said with the staggering youth unemployment in Nigeria, the country might be in imminent danger.

The prominent traditional and religious leader lamented the economic hardship in the country, saying Nigerians are deeply frustrated, hungry, and resentful.

Speaking at the Sixth Executive Committee Meeting of NTRC, which held in Kaduna, the sultan said Nigeria was in an explosive situation, especially the northern region. He expressed concern about the millions of unemployed youths, without income and food, and said this posed serious danger.

“We must find jobs for our teeming youths that are sitting idle and I have said it so many times, we sit on a keg of gunpowder, having teeming youths, millions of them, without jobs, without food, we are looking for trouble,” the sultan said.

According to him, insecurity and poverty are the major issues causing trouble for the people of the north.

The sultan regretted that NTRC had held similar meetings on several occasions with the northern governors, “Still we are faced with these security issues.”

He stated, “To make matters worse, we are faced with rising levels of poverty of most of our people, and a lack of normal sources of livelihood for the common man to have even a good meal a day.

“But I believe talking about insecurity and the rising level of poverty are two issues that we cannot fold our arms and think everything is okay.

“I have said it so many times and at so many fora that things are not okay in Nigeria and, of course, things are not okay in the north.

“To me, this government is a continuation of the former government; it is the same party. So, what really is the problem? I think that is one of the reasons we are here to talk to ourselves.”

The sultan said traditional rulers owed it a duty to millions of Nigerians, who believed in the traditional institution, to bring solutions to the various problems facing the country.

He said, “I have said so many times that we never lack a solution to our problems, what we lack is implementation, because we meet today, we bring out so many beautiful ideas on how to solve our problems, and we go back to our various places and go to bed, leaving such solutions here in this conference hall. So, how do we implement them?”

The traditional ruler said the meeting would come up with various suggestions on how to resolve the numerous problems in the north.

He believed, “Education is important, so whatever issue you want to bring us here, you must talk about education. You must talk about health issues and the two monsters that have been harassing all of us here, that is, insecurity and poverty.

“And let’s not take it for granted. People are quiet, they are quiet for a reason because people have been talking to them. We have been talking to them, we have been trying to tell them things will be okay and they keep on believing.

“I pray to Almighty Allah that they will not one day wake up and say we no longer believe in you, because that would be the biggest problem, because we can’t quieten these people as traditional, spiritual leaders and diplomats forever.”

The sultan appealed for a full and frank discussion by the conferees.

He said, “So, I think it is good we talk about these things and let us be very honest with ourselves, let us be very frank about what we are going to tell ourselves here; it is no time to hide things.

“We have reached that level, people are very agitated, people are hungry, they are angry, but they still believe there are people who can talk to them.

“They believe in some of their governors, some other traditional rulers, and some of their religious leaders. Fortunately, some of us double as traditional and religious leaders.

“So, we have this onerous task of reaching out to everybody, calming them down, and assuring them things will be okay, and they should continue to pray and pray and still do something good because prayer without work will not bring anything.

“We are only advisers to the political leaders, that is all we can do, but if we are empowered and as strong as the governors by the constitution, by the amount of funds they get from the federal and state revenues, we can also do a lot.

“However, we are ready to work with the governors, because we believe in them, we believe in what they are doing, and must work with them.

“And if the governors, too, want to have peace and stability in their states, they must work with the traditional leaders.”

Similarly, speaking at the occasion, the governor of Kaduna State, Senator Uba Sani, who was represented by his deputy, Dr. Hadiza Balarabe, called for strong partnerships among northern states on security and other development issues.

Sani also called for the establishment of a command and control centre to coordinate joint efforts against terrorists, bandits, kidnappers and other criminal elements.

He stated, “States in the north must forge strong partnerships on security and other developmental issues and concerns.

“Going forward, northern states must develop a common strategy and operational plan to tackle insecurity.

“We must establish a command and control centre to coordinate our joint efforts against terrorists, bandits, kidnappers, and other criminal elements within this region.”

Director-General, Department of State Services (DSS), Alhaji Yusuf Magaji Bichi, who was represented by the state director, Alhaji Abdul Enenche, stressed the need for the traditional institution to help in identifying threats before they start manifesting.

The DSS boss called for collaboration among stakeholders, just as he lamented the role of saboteurs and informants, saying they are a challenge to the fight against insecurity.

He said, “The informant keeps frustrating the role of security agencies. They live amongst communities and this brings to mind the role of traditional rulers, who can assist security agencies in fishing out insider threats.”