By; Mohammed Kawu, Bauchi
Governor Bala Abdulkadir Mohammed has sought the collaboration of security agencies with traditional and community leaders to navigate all security problems and challenges that are attendant with poverty and lack of good governance, among others, sweeping across the country and Bauchi state in particular.
He said that the preponderance of these problems is around public and religious gatherings or places, assuring that the state government is ever-ready to provide all necessary logistics support to members of the expanded security council may collectively require in maintaining the relative peace being enjoyed by the state.
Senator Bala Mohammed spoke while declaring opened the extended state security council meeting that included traditional rulers, community leaders and some selected members of the State Executive Council (SEC) that were stakeholders in Bauchi security architecture.
He explained that the extended security council is meeting at a time that Nigeria faces complex and formidable security challenges, such as banditry and kidnapping, criminal tensions and border criminal movements, misinformation and other opportunistic crimes, which challenges are no longer isolated.
Governor Bala told the security chiefs, “As for us, we are ready to give you the latest that we can provide that will be provided to ensure that you work. We are federalists. We believe in the authority of the federal government, irrespective of our position as opposition”.
“We cannot work without authority, and you should recognize the symbol of that authority. Without you, there is no governance. So you must be able to ask yourself, whatever you do, you must resist our traditional leaders, you must coordinate with them, especially through the commanders in the various divisions”.
“With the royal highnesses in their numbers, on behalf of the security and both government agencies and selected commissioners, it is very expanded company, separately from the meetings. Your presence is the responsibility, the collective shared commitment, peace, unity, and stability of God’s state”.
The Governor further told participants, “And I’ve also shown responsibility and responsiveness. I thank you for responding promptly to give you that goodwill on willingness and the demands raised by the coordinations and collective responsibility”.
“They are mobile, adaptive and interconnected, as well as unique coordination and global spaces, and local grievances and skirmishes. No state is immune, and no single institution can address these threats alone. Both states have, by the grace of Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta’ala, a collective effort to make relatively stable compared to many parts of the country”.
“We all give to Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta’ala, to our security agencies, our royal highnesses and our traditional rulers, all leaders across the ladder, religious leaders, local government authorities, and our deliberate governance structure, which emphasize on stakeholders”.
The Governor said however that relative peace is not permanent peace, as according to him, geography, borders, forests, mobility corridors, markets, and bodies and rivers and the global population require constant vigilance, adding
“We have become a very troubled, selfless case for criminality because of our geography and our position’.
Mohammed expressed gratitude to Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala for making the state to have reformed it’s traditional institutions, emphasizing “Today we have all this area of first and second class emirates in both the state. I wish to speak directly and effectively to our traditional rulers, both our long-established emirates and the new appointed ones”.
According to him, with institutions of trust, moral authority, and grassroots governance, as well as organization of emirates and district leadership structures, the state government is poised to bring governance closer to the people, strengthen inclusion, and deepen peace with honorable council res
[22/01, 12:09] MUHAMMED KAWU: According to him, with institutions of trust, moral authority, and grassroots governance, as well as organization of emirates and district leadership structures, the state government is poised to bring governance closer to the people, strengthen inclusion, and deepen peace with honorable council responsibilities and legitimate accountability.
He also told the traditional leaders, “We have made sure we give you all the best letters of work, our residences, and remuneration as well as allowances that is provided by law since the creation of Nigeria under the Northern Nigerian law. All necessary tools for governance have been provided to you as our fathers and custodians of our tradition and our heritage”
“The regional rulers are therefore expected to play the final for our people, including early morning and intelligent gathering within their domains. Community co-production and engagement, especially in planning, family and community justice. Moral leadership, disqualifying criminality, violence and lawlessness. Community mobilization against crime, extremism and social decay”.
“Structured information flow with district heads, local governments, authorities, security agencies, up to the Government House. Traditional institutions are not parallel governments, but they are critical partners in governance”.
Mohammed added, “We are not inheriting, and it is our heritage, we have to move very forward, what our forefathers have established, even the colonial masters adopted, because it is good and it is working, it was working and it is still working”.
He expressed zero tolerance on issues such as sale or allocation of land without due process, government approval or legal documentation; harbouring children or protecting suspected criminals with a known belief or by negligence; and interference with local security operations and deliberate use of traditional authority to legitimize illegality.
“Silence in the face of crime is complicity. Authority without accountability is abuse. Information gathering and reporting framework. Every emirate and district expected to exhibit a simple but reliable system for one receiving information from village heads, ward heads and community leaders”.
“This mediation focused on seasonal movement of people, livestock and goods, forest and border surveillance, farmer-herder relations and land pressure, urban crime trends and youth vulnerability, misinformation and incitement, especially via social media, political temperature and early warning ahead of future political activities, protection of markets, places of worship, schools and transport corridors, as well as religious tolerance and respect of our diversity. Withhold credibility and weight of the strategy.
“History will not judge us if it will judge impact, restraint and courage. This is a moment to demonstrate by traditional authority the immense force for unity and responsible leadership. Both states are at the top of place where one can show to the world that the traditional rulers are working and they can work here effective what is provided in the constitution because of their community and inherent responsibility of governance that have been inherited over the years”.
Bala conclusively stated that security is a shared duty of governance between the security agencies, traditional institutions, and citizens alike, hence the need for frank speaking, careful listening, before leaving the meeting with clear goals, shared understanding, and new commitment to make peace in the state last the test of time
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