Politics

Things are not right with Nigeria – Sultan of Sokoto

Published

6 years ago

October 24, 2018

The Sultan of Sokoto, Sa ’ ad Abubakar, has criticised the Federal Government for lack of coordination and the nation’ s security agencies for not working for a common purpose .
As the 2019 elections drew nearer , the Sultan also warned that politicians might want to orchestrate the type of violent crisis that rocked Kaduna last week in which over 50 persons were killed by hooligans .

This , he said , would be done to scuttle the elections or to give the masterminds an advantage over their opponents .
Speaking in Abuja on Tuesday at the ‘ National Dialogue for Democratic Stability ’ organised by the Alumni Association of the National Institute, Abubakar said things were not right with the country, citing the increased level of crime and criminality across the federation .

The Sultan said , “ I cannot say things are right with Nigeria ; things are not right with Nigeria . We all know that and that ’ s why we have these security issues , kidnappings , killings , everywhere , everywhere you find a community .

“ One of the saddest things that have happened in the last five days is the killing in Kaduna . If you know how these killings started , you would feel so bad . It is not a religious crisis ; it was caused by people who don’ t have jobs , they are hungry , they want to lead a good life .

“ You would find that all that took place was the looting of shops , that ’ s all , nothing more . There was no burning of churches and mosques . People were going about killing people , breaking cars.

“ As we inch closer to elections, we are going to get worse scenarios because politicians would definitely use it to do whatever they want , to scuttle elections or to make sure they are at an advantaged position ”

No coordination in government

Citing the Interfaith Initiative for Peace conference held in Abuja last week which was attended by President Muhammadu Buhari and the Archbishop of Canterbury , Justin Welby , the Sultan complained that its outcomes had not been implemented .

He also came hard on the current administration , stating that there was no coordination in the government, noting that the security agencies also were not working for a common purpose .

He lamented that there was little cooperation among the heads of the security outfits .

Abubakar said , “ Who coordinates ? Is it the office of the SGF ( Secretary to Government of the Federation )? Is it the NSA ( National Security Adviser) who coordinates national security? Is he really coordinating national security? That ’ s a big question we need to ask too. ”

“ There is a disjoint between the security agencies ’ leadership and also the followers. The intelligence agencies are also working at different levels , so we continue to have this problem .