Atiku preaches Northern Unity at ACF anniversary, harps on managing diversity
Former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar has said that the unity of the northern region hinges on managing the diversity of the north.
As the most diverse nation in the world, he said the north has not been able to manage its diversity like China and India.
He aroused the consciousness of nirthern.leadets in a speech he delivered at the occasion of the 25th anniversary of the Arewa Consultative Forum, in Kaduna, on Friday.
According to him, the major issue with northern unity is the failure to manage her diversity.
“The North is not the most diverse part of the world. China, for example, has 56 different ethnic groups. By far the most diverse nation in the world is India, which is home to an astonishing 2,500 distinct ethnic groups. Yet these countries have been able to manage their diversities and to make concrete strides in development. Why can’t we do better?
“Our pristine Northern leadership has always recognized and admitted to our diversity. In a Speech Sir Ahmadu Bello gave at a Dinner Party in Los Angeles in 1960, he said:
“Northern Nigeria is a large and heavily populated country, full of vitality and promise. In such a large country, there is inevitably a great deal of diversity, but in this diversity, as in our great country, lies our strength.”
Sixty-five years later, he said northern leaders should be thinking of how to make their diversity work for their development.
“We must muster both the courage and the political will to overcome the many obstacles to our unity, and we know them.
“Some of the obstacles that we may not know very well are the subtle and sophisticated subversion by our adversaries who are constantly working to drive a wedge between us, often fabricating stories and capitalizing on our fears of the other, using technology, to sow seeds of discord. Their target is our God-given wealth. We have seen the Democratic Republic of Congo, and we must not relent.
“We need to have a leadership with the ability to accommodate the various ethnic and religious groups, in whose hands all can feel safe, and who will be fair and equitable in the distribution of the natural resources as well as all other opportunities in the country. Perhaps we should remind ourselves of the warning given by Sir Ahmadu Bello himself on Self-Rule day, 15th March, 1960:
“If we remain united, there is nothing this region cannot accomplish. Therefore, let me give a solemn warning against those who try to break this unity for their own selfish ends. They set tribe against tribe, Christian against Muslim, people against their Chief.”
He said the post-Ahmadu Bello Northern society has faced enormous challenges as a result of the vagaries of time, the complexity of human affairs, and intricacies but saluted the courage and resilience of the ACF leadership, many of whom have departed to the great beyond.
Atiku opined that the ACF anniversary should be an occasion to reflect on the formation of the premier Northern platform and evaluate its impact.
Atiku raised a poser on “What kind of future do we wish to leave behind?”, he said the issue of education and population must be taken seriously.
“Considering the world of the 21st century, where knowledge is the greatest capital, how will the North survive without quality and purposeful education?
“Looking at our demographics, what is our vision of the future? By UN projections, Nigeria will be 300 million in 2030 and well over 400 million in 2050, which will make it the third most populated country after India and China.
“How do we feed this population, if today we are battling with huge grain deficits?
“How do we educate this population and provide health care?
“How do we provide jobs for the teeming youth in their hundreds of millions?
“These are the critical questions we need to address for these are the big issues for every community around the world today. We have to face them and deal with them or resign to the consequences, God forbid.
“The competitive environment of the 21st century will not accept complacency, it will not accept absentee leadership, and worst of all, it will not accept a leadership without vision or direction.
“I would like to appeal to our sense of responsibility as Northern leaders to reconsider our priorities and rise up to the numerous challenges facing the North,” he said.
