Governor Simon Lalong of Plateau state, Thursday, inaugurated the consultative committee on role of traditional rulers in governance architecture of Nigeria.
Inaugurating the committee in Lafia, Nasarawa state capital, Lalong appealed to members of the public, groups and organisations who have submissions that will assist the committee to come forward with their positions.
Lalong who is the chairman, Northern States Governors Forum (NSGF) said the establishment of the committee was in line with the resolutions reached during last engagement of the forum in Kaduna state.
“On November 2, 2020, Northern governors interfaced with chairmen of the Northern states traditional rulers council led by His Eminence the Sultan of Sokoto on recent developments in the country arising from the ENDSARS protests and subsequent fallouts.
“At that meeting, we appreciated the roles played by the traditional rulers particularly in containing the menace of the ENDSARS protests in the North.
“In this regard, the meeting again revisited the issue of the role of traditional rulers in governance where we collectively agreed that our royal fathers ought to be given formal roles in the governance architecture of the country,” he said.
Lalong said both political and economic development would be more successful when rooted in widely shared institutional and cultural values which traditional authorities represent.
He said traditional rulers can therefore contribute more robustly to the development of the society beyond the advisory roles they perform at the moment.
The committee headed by the Emir of Lafia Justice Sidi Bage (rtd) has eight weeks to complete the assignment and submit its report.
The committee has specific terms of reference which includes – to review available reports earlier submitted by previous committees, panels and commissions on roles of traditional rulers in governance architecture and advise the Northern states governors’ forum appropriately.
“To propose defined roles for the traditional rulers particularly in the governance architecture of the northern states and Nigeria.
“Any other recommendation to assist the forum in pushing for defined roles and responsibilities in the governance architecture in Nigeria, and Northern states in particular.”
