Real reasons we created new Emirates in Kano- Ganduje

 Governor Abdullahi Umar Ganduje speaks on his achievements in the first 100 days of his second term in office, the focus of his administration, Ruga policy and his relationship with Emir Sanusi Lamido Sanusi. BODE OLAGOKE brings excerpts.

You recently asked herdsmen in the south to relocate to Kano. Of what benefit will this be to your state?

I don’t subscribe to calls for Fulani herdsmen in the South to come back to the North because Ruga should not be a national issue. It should be a state issue. If there are Fulanis in Southern states who want to remain there, the constitution allows them that right. But they should negotiate with the inhabitants of that state under what terms they should carry out their herdsmanship without harming anybody. If you are living in an environment, then you should not harm the environment and the environment must not harm you.

That can only exist when you negotiate. You cannot build a night club near a church or near a mosque. You have to negotiate with the owners of the church or the mosque. So, if you want to practice herdsmanship which is ok and beneficial, there must be symbiotic relationship between the herdsmen and the farmers.

You see because of climate change and increase in population and the land is not increasing, grazing areas is scarce. You don’t have to be a herdsman now to rear cattle because anybody is free to rear cattle. That is my understanding of the situation. You can remain where you are and run your business, but you must negotiate.  

What is the true situation between the Kano state government and Emir Sanusi?

The Emir of Kano has no problem with the creation of new Emirates in Kano. Of course, he had a problem with anti-corruption agency in the state and the committee did its own work and submitted a report to the state government. Many people have been appealing to allow peace and stability to reign in the state. The state government has already said that we do not intend to remove the Emir of Kano. But at the same time, we are sceptical of controlling the anti-corruption agency because it is an independent body.

The role the Emir played during the election has to do with his own conviction. What is important is that we have won the election and we are not going to look back. So, the creation of emirates has nothing to do with that misunderstanding. After all, Abubakar Rimi of blessed memory created emirates. But Rimi was a much younger and radical politician, but he was not as experienced as we are. That was why his own emirates could not survive. But this time, I want to assure you that eventhough it is in the court, it will survive. This shows experience in politics and governance.

Governor el-Rufai says the APC should abandon zoning for competency in 2023. What is your view?

The way I looked at it is that it is an issue between idealism and realism. Idealism is a situation whereby things should be done in accordance with ideas. If things are done like that, then everybody should have equal treatment and everybody has equal chance to contest and then, what the people decide should be done.

Now, the issue of realism. Nigeria is a multi-ethnic, multi religious country with several geo-political zones. In reality, people are yearning for participation of different political zones and not the politics of North and South. So, the reality of the situation is that people are crying of marginalisation in the leadership of the country.

But the idealism is that people should participate and be elected based on their capacity. So, it is not the governor of Kano state that should decide whether it is idealism or realism. It is the party that will determine which should be applied in Nigeria and you know that it is a political strategy. So, the political party should decide which option to follow.

What is the status and sustainability and the of the tsangaya education?

The Tsanganyya system as started by the former president was a very good system. But it was at micro level. As of today in Kano, we have over 2million almajiris. We don’t have the infrastructural facilities to provide classrooms for over two million amlajiris. Even our children in the formal system, are about three million. So, the number of almajiris are almost to equal the number of our children in the formal system.

But what we intend to do is to recruit volunteer teachers like the federal government has done with those teachers who are unemployed. We can give them allowances. We are not uprooting the almajiri system because it has its own purpose. We have already discussed with the owners of the almajiri system. What we intend to do is to  post English language and mathematics teachers to those Tsanganyya schools so that the children should be able to take common entrance examination later, which is a national examination. With that they should be able to get admission into junior secondary school. That is what we intend to do to ensure its sustainability.

Of course, there is the issue of feeding and school uniform. For basic education, already, there is a law which makes it compulsory. So, we are not creating something new. The only thing is the senior secondary school and we intend to make law on that. We are also inviting some corporate organisations to take part and provide corporate social responsibility in helping to sustain the system.

As a Fulani man yourself, share your thoughts on “herdsmenship” and how it ought to be?

There are three type of herdsmen in Nigeria. The first is those who are coming with thousands of cattle from West African countries and you don’t expect them to carry the food for the cattle. Along the way, they have to cut trees and provide food for the cattle and that create some problem. They are attacked by farmers and along the line, they have learnt to attack farmers as well. They go about with their families on horses and donkeys and also carry arms and have graduated into being bandits. That is an ECOWAS problem which Nigeria should negotiate.

The second is the herdsmen who are from the Northern part of Nigeria. They trek through the north central zone to the south. They normally don’t have a lot of cattle like the ones coming from West Africa. They too create problems because of trekking from one place to the other.

The third are those herdsmen who are born in places different from places of their socio-cultural and socio-religious origin. I am sure that in the South, you can get some Fulani herdsmen who are born there and are not trekking to come to the North, but are permanently there.

They also have problems because when their young ones cannot go to school, they can also cause problems. This is my own classification and I am doing it because I am a Fulani man. So, I know what it feels to be a herdsman and business should not continue as usual. Herdsmanship should be a socio-economic venture and not a socio-cultural venture, as it is right now.

You seems to have good plans herdsmen, are there plans for farmers?

The farmers are already enjoying their incentives from the federal and state governments. A lot of imputes are being provided for them by both the federal and state governments. We have over 10,000 extension workers in Kano, our fertilizer blending plant is working 24 hours.

It is not for the herdsmen, but for the farmers. I told you that we are going to cluster irrigation. We have the Islamic Development Bank coming to assist in the irrigation scheme for farmers. The farmers are the ones enjoying interventions from the federal government.

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