The Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Sa’ad Abubakar, has berated the Federal Government for the high level of crime and insecurity in the country, noting that things were not right with Nigeria.
The respected traditional ruler blamed the crises across the nation, especially in Kaduna where more than 50 people were killed last week, on hunger and joblessness.
The Sultan, who spoke in Abuja yesterday at the ‘National Dialogue for Democratic Stability’ organised by the Alumni Association of the National Institute, warned politicians to avoid stoking the embers of division ahead of the 2019 general election.
He 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.
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“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.”
The Sultan noted that the security problems bedeviling the nation would have been surmounted if there was effective coordination between the security agencies in the country.
He stated, “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.”