Major Hamza Al-Mustapha, a former Chief Security Officer to late General Sani Abacha, a Nigerian military head of state, has reaffirmed their commitment to getting the North back on track, and to get it totally unified.
Speaking to journalists at the sidelines of an event in memory of Sardauna Ahmadu Bello, the Premier of Northern Nigeria in Kaduna, the former Chief Security Officer to late Abacha said it would be wrong for them to sit idly and watch the North decay.
He said in order to bring back the North on the path of progress, “we know we would hurt people.”
” It is better to hurt people and get it back on course for us to achieve what we desire,so that the country at the final end,would be the beneficiary of the unity in the North.”
He explained that “institutions that are in the 19 Northern states ,are either weak or not there at all.We are seeing gaps that are responsible for the social ills bedevilling the North.”
” Therefore, identifying the problems and rather than seeing succour, we would always continue to see crime rate been on the increase which is a capital shame.”
“We cannot sit and say,we are from the North and continue to see institutions decay,crime rate on the increase, leaders indifferent, younger ones in disarray, and we believe that is the right environment to be.”
“That’s why when you allow wounds to get bad,definitely in the process of healing, there must be pains.”
“So without mincing words,we are calling for processes of healing. Not only calling, we are part and parcel of it.We may say one or two things, that may disturb segments of leadership, old and young, it matters not.”
“Our intention is to get the North back on track, and to get it totally unified. To do so,we know we would hurt people. It is better to hurt people and get it back on course for us to achieve what we desire,so that the country at the final end,would be the beneficiary of the unity in the North.”
‘If there is,the economy would be affected, security, social problems,the politics in itself, politics and polity,democracy would be healthier, and then I can see other parts of the country would also copy.”
“So we are starting here,not only to speak, the speaking is to get the leaders and the younger ones awakened, for us to now march forward, outline plans.I learned by February 22nd,there is another meeting coming up in Bauchi, I deliberately intend to be there,identifying some of the associations that are vibrant, what is left for us is to garner what’s necessary to get them involved.”
He alleged that incumbent leaders from thr region were directionless and do not care for their states.
“When it comes to sitting as 19 Northern Governors, to chart a course where they can have think tanks, on social development, developmental programmes,education, security, welfare, wellbeing of the citizenry,we don’t see any of such been at the center,” he alleged.
“There is today not a single joint central fund in developing educational development in the North. There is no programme as such.Power,industrial growth ,loans to the poor,and poverty if we see from whichever direction, you look at the North. The most unfortunate thing is that you see everywhere are traces of poverty, shamefully. I’m a Northerner,thats most shameful.”
He said their Kaduna meeting which coincided with the unfortunate assassination of Sardauna Ahmadu Bello on January 15th,1966,would not end there ,as there would be numerous other things that would be going on,God willing.
“There are people whom we believe, steps like these are hurting them,because they enjoy if everybody is in a directionless attitude within the environment.But unifying the North is all that matters.”
He said they are calling for leadership that matters and not people who loved the funfair, running away from the responsibilities of the offices they have.
He.expressed sympathy over what happened on January 15th 1966, and to the the condition of the common man in the North and Nigeria as a country.
“It may be bitter for them to hear, but that is the fact ,” he said.
Source; Vanguard
