We Northerners Have Destroyed Ourselves – Gov. Yero
The present configuration of Northern Nigeria is causing some backwardness into the entire region. To this end, Kaduna State Governor, Mukhtar Yero, has called for the split of the Northern States Governors Forum into three -North-West, North-Central and North-East.
Governor Yero, whoc claimed that the current problems plaguing the region, was self-inflicted, maintained that once the NSGF was split, the region would be effectively managed.
The governor, stated this at a dinner organised by CITAR-NGO on Tuesday night. At the event, he lashed out at northern leaders, who he accused of failing to invest in the region over the years.
His words, “We must tell ourselves the truth. Myself, Yobe State Governor and one other governor, had, in the last northern governors meeting held in Kaduna, came up with this idea that the meeting should be divided into North-West, North-East and North-Central.
“This is because these three areas have different peculiarities; the peculiarity in the North-West is different from the peculiarity in the North-East, so also the peculiarity in the North-Central is different from the other two zones.”
According to the Kaduna governor, the split of NSGF will bring effective control and management of the entire northern region, where all the three zones will pool resources together and direct them to what he called central body of the North.
He continued, “The governors in the South-East and South-West have such meetings, and they are progressing because they have a common peculiarity in their respective zones.”
Still lashing out atleaders of the region, Governor Yero said most of their leaders were quick to pay glowing tribute to the late Premier of the defunct Northern Region, Sir Ahmadu Bello, but had failed to invest to move the region forward economically.
“We, northerners, have completely destroyed ourselves. We have missed the road to investment and South-West, having being in control of education over the years, is gradually taking over the political power that the North used to control.
“This is because the people of the South-West are highly educated but in the North, our boys are roaming the streets; smoking Indian hemp and taking drugs, without minding to go to school.
“But our girls are better, and I keep on saying that one day in the North, the female ones will go to the office, the male ones will go to the kitchen. This is the situation we have found ourselves in the North.
“Our elders continue to talk of Sarduana, Sir Ahmadu Bello, without putting something on the ground to build on the development Sardauna had left behind many years ago. None of them want to invest in the North because they don’t want people to know that they have money.”
