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Buhari, Masari, Blame Northern Govs for Religious Conflict
From Agaju Madugba and Abel Orih Idoma in Kaduna, 12.02.2004
Three prominent northern leaders, Speaker of the House of Representatives, Alhaji Aminu Bello Masari, former Head of State, Gen. Muhammadu Buhari, and Chairman of the Northern States chapter of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Archbishop Peter Jatau, yesterday indicted northern states governors over the spate of ethno-religious conflicts in the area. Masari, Buhari and Jatau spoke at the opening ceremony of a two-day northern peace conference, organised by the Northern Governors' Forum (NGF) where Vice President Atiku Abubakar lamented what he described a wide gulf existing among the various hitherto homogenous sections of the north. For Masari, until northern leaders begin to address the scourge of poverty, illiteracy and unemployment, any efforts at solving the problem would be an exercise in futility. According to him, "as leaders, we must invest in the future of our people in order to reap the dividends of peace, mutual co-existence, democracy and prosperity. "I am quite sure that we are very much aware that the north is the most diverse and therefore the most fragile part of the country. "We must unite and address the fundamental issues affecting the north, with sincerity and high sense of responsibility." Buhari accused the Northern governors of foot dragging in certain fundamental issues affecting the north. He attributed the problem of crises in parts of the north to what he called leadership incompetence. According to him, the northern governors had earlier appointed a consultant who presented a report to redress some of these problems. As he put it, "if the NGF had examined the report they received, we will not be seeing so many young men being idle." Buhari said that the governors should take the responsibility for whatever happens in their various states, adding that the area has abundant human and mineral resources to keep the north moving progressively. Jatau decried what he termed politics of exclusiveness, noting certain policy decisions of some state governments that tended to fuel ethno-religion's crises. Jatau said, "we know that when government allows the various religious expressions to blossom, it is the nation and its citizens that enjoy peace and harmony. "When government resorts to blatant favouritism and divisive strategies in treating various religions naturally, divisions and misunderstanding become prevalent and religion gets a bad name. "Unless and until we learn to treat one another with respect, national integration will elude us. We should put the past behind us and find a way of achieving lasting peace." Represented by Kaduna State Governor, Alhaji Ahmed Mohammed Makarfi, Atiku recalled the "good old days" of the north where the various sections lived peacefully. According to him, "three or so decades ago, it was inconceivable that the people of northern states would be up against themselves. "We were brought up as brothers and sisters despite our differences in languages, ethnicity and religion. "We have no excuse to allow this wanton and senseless conflicts to continue, draining the limited human and material resources we need for development. "This conference is the greatest hope for the northern states and indeed the nation to put behind all those obstacles to peace, move forward and occupy the position our number and resources qualify us to be. "History will not forgive us if we walk out of this hall without finding lasting solution to these problems." Nasarawa State Governor, Alhaji Abdullahi Adamu, noted that northerners must not ignore the concepts of "core north" and "Middle Belt" in discussions concerning northern unity and peace. According to him, "some of us believe that the attempt by the people of the Middle Belt region, also known as the north-central zone, to create their own identity is inimical to northern interests. "Never in the history of this country has the north been as polarised as it is now. It is polarised along political, ethnic, religious and economic lines. The same applies to the growing social inequality in the region. "The super rich and the poor in this region live parallel lives. This growing inequality is a perfect recipe for social discontent. "History has taught us that pauperisation of the people ultimately leads to social upheavals in which the rich become victims." The programme chaired by former Head of State, Gen. Yakubu Gowon, attracted a large number of groups and participants from across the north, at the conference hall of the International Trade Fair Complex.
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