Gowon, Atiku And Arewa Agenda
by
I am a northerner by birth. I was born in Makurdi, capital of Benue State and attended a Catholic primary school where children of most of Nigeria's ethnic groups never for once had any ethnic consciousness because we all spoke pidgin English and our parents spoke Hausa language. Even in while in the South, I regularly went to Makurdi on holidays. But for the selfishness of militicians (politicians in military uniform) and 'professional' politicians who consciously divided Nigerians along ethnic lines, I would have rightly claimed to be a northerner because my roots and friends are mostly from the North. This is not self-advertisement. The relevance of this opening paragraph is to demonstrate that I am very much interested in what goes on in the North because that part of the country will continue to be my first home. And I cannot wish it away. Consequently, what happens within the Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) affects other Nigerians and me.
After many searches for credible persons to lead the organisation, two individuals are strategically important to the ACF. They are General Yakubu Gowon, former head of state, and Atiku Abubakar, the current Vice President. According to reliable sources, the future of the ACF would largely be determined and shaped by these two individuals. Gowon is a moderate, a Christian who believes strongly in a secular North where all ethnic groups and all religious organisations, essentially Christians and Moslems, would harmoniously co-exist. Atiku, to a very large extent, shares these views. More importantly, they believe in a strong, united and prosperous pan-Nigeria. Recently, Atiku forthrightly warned some selfish politicians who believe deguatically, that the Obasanjo-led administration deliberately marginalises the North. To demonstrate the hollowness of such an allegation, Atiku declared: "Let me make further clarifications; the Defence Minister is General Yakubu Danjuma and he is from the North. The new Chief of Staff is Wuyep from Plateau State and the new Chief of Naval Staff is Afolayan from Kwara State. I even forgot to remind you that the Minister of State in charge of the Army, Mallam Batagarawa, is from the North."
It is normal and even sensible of members of the ACF to insist that they as representatives and "protectors" of northern interests have the moral and political responsibility to salvage these interests. However, both Gowon and Atiku have before them serious challenges and obstacles in the realisation of the Arewa Agenda.
There are conflicting signals emanating from the ACF. Some see the Arewa Agenda as essentially the utilisation of all means available to recapture the presidency and enthrone the controversial Sharia jurisprudence - a time bomb that could destroy the country. However, Gowon and Atiku should reshape the Arewa Agenda. Right now, it is an open secret that the North is the most backward section of the country where poverty, misery and under-development are integral part of the cultural reality. The middle class is very small, like in the Niger-Delta region of Nigeria. Paradoxically, it is from the same North that emanates most of the richest men in the country. Consequently, the North cannot face the challenges of the third millennium. These challenges include; a well-educated and literate population equipped with carpenters, electricians, mechanics, plumbers, teachers, doctors, engineers and scientists. The North needs a highly skilled working population that can gradually eradicate poverty and misery. Here, part of the solution is secular education. Gowon and Atiku should ensure that the Arewa Agenda includes the institutionalisation of secular education in the North. It is now a matter of life and death for the ACF. Struggling for the juicy political positions at the federal level is not enough. The ACF must strive to pull out the majority of northerners from backwardness. This is not the time to continue to build more mosques and churches. The North urgently needs more schools where both Christians and Moslems would learn basic skills and become more tolerant to one another. The state and northern billionaires have a duty to invest their billions in building well-equipped schools and well-paid teachers. These children who have resigned themselves to fate in selling adulterated fuel on the streets and begging on a permanent basis could be potential scientists, nuclear scientists, doctors, teachers and engineers. The ACF should work out modalities of getting these children back to school. Gowon and Atiku should ensure that secular, and not religious education, becomes the major agenda of the ACF.
The poor state of the northern economy should also be a source of concern for the ACF. Here, I want to specifically mention solar energy. The North has an abundance of sun throughout the year. Instead of lamenting about the inefficiency of NEPA, members of the ACF should mobilise both the private and public sectors to tap solar energy and make it affordable to the masses. This is no time to complain over marginalisation. It is on record that some members of the ACF and their collaborators participate actively in the smuggling of petroleum products across the border. Consequently, the North perpetually experiences fuel shortage and where there are petroleum products, they are expensive. This kind of economic sabotage hurts the North and the northern masses. Gowon and Atiku should assist in drawing up a code of conduct for the ACF, making it a criminal offence to smuggle petroleum products across the border.
Lastly is the issue of haulage services and transportation. Goods from the South are very expensive in the North because they are taken there by road. Most of the vehicles are in very bad shape. The alternative is rail transportation. The ACF could organise into co-operatives the multi-billionaire northerners to go into partnership with the Nigeria Railway Co-operation (NRC) with a view to ensuring that goods are moved into the North from the South by rail. The future is in rail transportation. And the ACF should undertake such a venture now!