Should The Northern Leaders Delegates Walk Out Of National Conference; what Does It Speak of Nigeria Future?

At the closing day of the Northern Leaders and Elders Conference/Meeting, which brings together northern groups, the elders have advised delegates from the north to the National Conference to stage a walk-out on the conference as it becomes clear that it will be used to work against the interest of Nigerians.

The communiqué advised that all delegates to ensure that the conference agenda is carefully clean so that issues which may further threaten the country’s peace, security, harmonious co-existence, 2015 elections or which may offend the provisions of the constitution are avoided.

They were further advised that when it comes to decision-making, the delegates should seek to achieve full consensus on issues, or, failing that, submit all positions and opinions to the federal government, adding that voting on any issues should be avoided particularly in view of the possibility that they majority is likely to be contrived from the skewed composition of pronounced partisan interest.

However, speaking at the meeting, Professor Ango Abdullahi stated that the meeting had a representation of many northern groups who were concerned about what was happening in the north and was at the meeting to join forces with Northern Elders Forum (NEF) to speak with one voice.

Ango said the north did not need to participate in the National Conference to look for solutions to its problems and that the region had a difficult challenge to find political direction.

He said that some people were of the opinion that the northern region must be decimated and that he had been receiving threatening text messages for his  stand against anybody or anything that did not want to see north united.

Meanwhile, Dr. Yima Sen who presented the paper entitled “Challenges of Managing Pluralism in the North” said that the country under President Jonathan was going back to the ‘Leviathan’ time where leaders did not care about killing men, women and children.

He frowned at the so-called politics of Christianity by the federal government, noting that the early missionaries that brought the religion from America and Europe did not preach hatred or  mix politics with it.

Also in the paper he presented entitled “Imperative of Change for North and Nigeria,” Malam Nuhu Ribadu said the unfortunate security problem in parts of the north, which has become the byword for Northern Nigeria today, is an example of challenges that many nations had confronted. However, it is the ability of the constituted authorities to manage it and successfully contain it that differentiate ours from what happens elsewhere, he said.

“We slipped from that much-cherished position to something of a decrepit nation. Today, we lag behind in almost every index of progress. The elite have regrettably become more of self-conceited bunch, grabbing everything they could from the land, instead of thinking of what to give back to the land that made them”, Ribadu noted.

Ribadu said that what the north needed were basic fundamental tools for progress which is unity, and noted that northerners must do everything possible in restoring confidence as one another’s brother’s keeper.

Hence, with this development, walking out of national conference by Northern citizens is not in the best interest of the existing unity of Nigeria. The major reasons why this so called national discuss we organize is to discuss sensitive issues that can further enhance the unity of the country

  I don't think there is any region in Nigeria that does not have their own problems, as a result of unity and co-existence every Nigeria citizens foreseen a problem and that is the basis of these National discuss. what is suppose to be the major priority of  every representative is to look for a diplomatic way to table all the problems and solve it together as one people and one nation!

Nigeria state belongs to everybody , solving the  problems of the country must also be the duty of every citizens. Hence, all delegate represented at this conference are stakeholders to determine the future of Nigeria. So, regional or tribal or personal interest should not be given more priority than national interest. Therefore the Northern delegate should know that Walking out of National conference will not be in the interest of Nigeria unity"

God Bless Nigeria