ACF's BOT. RECEIVES REPORTS FROM SECURITY, TAX BILLS, UNITY AND RECONCILIATION COMMITTEES

By Gambo Abubakar Kaduna 

The board of trustees of Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) has received the reports of committees constituted on issues concerning to the peoples of the northern Nigeria.

The committees include; the raging security crisis, the unity and reconciliation for  peace between the people of the North, and the tax administration bills which Mr. President recently sent to the National Assembly.

 While addressing members during the meeting held at the forum office in Kaduna, the Chairman ACF board of trustees Alhaji Bashir Dalhatu, Wazirin Dutse, "said Arising from the discussions, the meeting proceeded to appoint committees of elders and experts to study these issues more closely and advise the Forum accordingly. 

 The Chairman however explained that, the purpose of the meeting is the committees to brief and the members to have a chance to ask questions, make comments, or seek clarifications.

  "As you will recall, Lt. Gen Abdulrahman Dambazau chaired the Special Committee on Security with the retired Inspector General of Police, Alhaji Mohammed D. Abubakar as deputy."

  While the committee on Unity, Peace and Reconciliation, led by the Ajlyan Katagum, Alhaji Mahmud Yayale Ahmed, with Engineer Babachir D. Lawan, a former Secretary to the Federal Government, as deputy chairman.

The report of the Committee on the Tax Reform Bills, chaired by the former Governor of Kaduna State, Alhaji Ahmed Muhammed Makarfi, was, much to their credit, well received by the northern caucus of the national assembly as well as the wider publics.

 ACF also condemned the lingering insecurity in north despite the best efforts of the increasingly overstretched security forces, it has gotten worse and keeps deteriorating by the day. Senseless killings have persisted in parts of Plateau, Borno, Benue, Niger, Zamfara, Sokoto, Katsina, and other parts of the North.

  "In spite of this, ACF assured all the people of the North of the determination to take all necessary measures in consultation and collaboration with the political, traditional, religious and other leaders to bring this crisis to an end in the shortest time possible.

  The ACF Chairman BOT further said that,The maltreatment and attacks on Northerners in the South is especially Ironic and painful given the fact that, for centuries, the North has kept its doors wide open and welcomed people from all parts of Nigeria, courtesy of our unlimited hospitality and brotherhood. It is deeply regrettable therefore that Southerners have refused to reciprocate this noble gesture by the North.

  In some parts of the Southeast, Northerner cannot expect to acquire one square foot of land not to speak of owning any significant landed property.The time has come for governors and legislators in the Northern states to carry through a comprehensive reform of the system of land ownership and control. He added. 

  The The law creating the FCT Abuja in 1976 specified a number of actions to be taken by the federal government as preconditions for the area to become the federal capital territory. 

 "One important condition was that the indigenous population within the area demarcated as FCT would be paid adequate compensation and relocated to the neighboring states that currently include present day Nasarawa, Niger, Plateau, Kogi and Kaduna."

  The ACF also complained for 50 years since that law was passed but the federal government has failed to adequately implement its provisions. As a matter of fact and much to the regret of fair-minded Nigerians, the indigenous people of the FCT, have been forcefully driven away from their ancestral land and rendered landless and homeless through no fault of theirs.

  The forum also appeals for injustice and maltreatment of the indigenous people of the FCT Abuja call for an urgent review. The time has come for Nigeria to fulfill its obligations towards the indigenous people of Abuja, including the creation of their own state within the federation of Nigeria.

The view has been expressed and it bears repeating here, that current preoccupation with the 2027 national elections is premature and a disservice to the principle of the 4-year-term-limit given to elected officials.

   "It will suffice to say that Northern Nigeria is watching and auditing the actions of the elected and appointed officials; especially at the federal level."

 In other words, Northern Nigeria will remain faithful not to particular politicians or political parties but to those who care about our regional interests and are willing to promote and protect them.It is clear that Northern Nigeria is today bedevilled by numerous existential problems, some of which I have tried to highlight above. 

What is not in doubt is the fact that the North has in abundance what it takes to compete and prevail in any fair competition  within the federation of Nigeria and even within the larger African continent. 

  The Chairman further noted that, North has 19 out of the 36 states. We also have the FCT as a veritable component. We have a majority in the Senate, the House of Representatives, the National Economic Council as well as the Council of States. The North occupies close to 75% of Nigeria's land area and about 60% of the population.