When Kano citizens brainstormed against social menace

Tackling the social menace in Kano is a herculean task though, but concerned stakeholders under the leadership of Alhaji Bashir Tofa have taken up the challenge as BASHIR MOHAMMED reports.

Kano, by its nature, is widely known to be a cosmopolitan city occupied by people of diverse ethnic and religious affiliations, who over the years, settled for different purposes mostly in the field of business and commerce by which they made the ancient city a bastion of intense activities.

The city is also known as a citadel of Islamic scholarship where tens of thousands of students seek Islamic  knowledge from all the nooks and crannies of the country knowing that with renowned scholars in the field, they stand a better chance of becoming learned in that regard.

And being a melting pot of politics dating back to the first, second and third republics where leading political heavyweights like the late Malam Aminu Kano, Lawan Danbazau, Abba Danmaikwaru, Tanko Yakasai, Alhaji Yusuf Maitama Sule, the late Alhaji Muhammadu Abubakar Rimi and a host of others emerged from, Kano undoubtedly carved a niche for itself as a centre of excellence in almost all spheres of human endeavour.

With the advent of the current crude politics and the rising spate of what the present Emir of Kano, Sanusi Lamido Sanusi referred to as ‘demographic explosion’ in years to come, the city is currently bedeviled with the rising spate of drug abuse and other social menaces among the youths, which according to experts, pose a serious threat.

KCCI brain-storm

Investigation shows that with this rising spate of deviant behaviour among youths, it is becoming a cause for grave concern to concerned citizens of the state, like the Kano Concerned Citizens Initiative (KCCI) at the instance of its chairman, Alhaji Bashir Othman Tofa. The forum found it most appropriate to convene a stakeholders meeting aimed at addressing these menaces.

The meeting, which was held recently, had in attendance some prominent figures from the academia, business community and the Ulama whose perception of the nagging problems centered on how the most vulnerable youths can be reformed and adequately rehabilitated in order to become responsible citizens of the state. It resolved to resist the urge to remain subservient towards the antics of some politicians willing to use the youths as cannon-fodders to cause chaos at the expense of peace.

Alhaji Tofa expressed concern over the persistent threat of terrorism and banditry being perpetrated by youths who, after getting drunk, find solace in committing dastardly acts regardless of the severe consequences involved, stressing that such criminal acts have been accentuated by extreme poverty and lack of education, which, he said, made the society to pay a heavy price.

According to this one-time presidential flag-bearer of the defunct National Republican Convention Party (NRC), fighting drug abuse and persistent scourge of daba among youths in Kano, is a serious problem that must be fought by those who have the progress and prosperity of the state at heart. He pointed out that the issue of moral upbringing by parents as regards the conduct of their wards is one area that must not be ignored.

He also used the meeting to challenge the government about the herculean task that lies at its feet considering the urgent need for the government to buckle up in the areas of sustainable jobs creation and the provision of qualitative education towards the development of any society. He affirmed that with the biting fangs of poverty, illiteracy and joblessness among youths, they are perpetually prone to every crime.

A senior lecturer in the Department of Mass Communications, Bayero University Kano, Dr Bala Mohammed, presented a thought-provoking lecture on terrorism being perpetrated in Zamfara state that has claimed thousands of lives as a result of the desperation of those seeking to make money through crook.

The don, while seeking a solution to the problem, called on the federal government to set Zamfara forest on fire so that the terrorists hiding in them can be smoked out in order to end the persistent spate of kidnapping and killings.

According to him, setting the forest on fire is the only way out of the heinous atrocities being committed by those he touted as irresponsible citizens.

He said even though burning the forest would have a precarious implication of desert encroachment, it would, however, preserve the lives of innocent citizens. He pointed out that with the heartless bandits perpetually domiciled in the thick forest, the search for a lasting peace would remain elusive.

According to him, the forest had given the terrorists the leeway to play hide-and-seek game to avoid the preying eyes of security operatives, affirming that the bandits would have a re-think if they know that the government has a plan to smoke them out.

On the persistent drug abuse among youths in the state, the don maintained that government should put machineries in place in the form of death penalty on notorious drug barons and their major accomplices in order to realise the dangers of their action, saying the decay in society can only be routed through punitive measures. He wondered why notorious drug barons were allowed to escape the long arms of justice.

In his remarks, the Emir of Kano, Alhaji Muhammadu Sanusi II, said the Kano Emirate Council fully supports the idea initiated by the forum aimed at tackling the menace of drug abuse among youths in Kano. He advocated the use of local hunters and other volunteers to drive the campaign.

Speaking in the same vein, the state governor, Dr Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, said his administration had effected various measures towards entrenching peace by way of reforming many drug addicts into becoming responsible citizens. He added that in the North-west axis, only Kano and Jigawa states enjoy relative peace at the moment.

Ganduje, who was represented by the secretary to the state government, Alhaji Usman Alhaji, assured the forum that his administration would remain committed in finding ways to checkmate the menace of drug abuse and daba in all its ramifications.

Other citizens speak

The one-day stakeholders meeting convened by KCCI had undoubtedly elicited discordant reactions within the public domain with many citizens expressing the apprehension that the issue of drug abuse had been a major precursor of the most disturbing problems in the state which, if not decisively tackled, could lead to catastrophic consequences.

According to Malam Mande Magashi, it is high time governments at all levels stopped playing the ostrich in addressing the menace, stressing that it is when one gets highly intoxicated that one feels obliged to commit crime without remorse.

He chided politicians for using the most gullible youths as launch-pad for their hatchet job especially during election year while their own children study in foreign universities.

He said, “People are becoming desperate to clinch a position of leadership because of innate desire to get rich over night. Using politics to achieve such objective, to me, is absolutely ridiculous. The menace of drug abuse among youths could only be tackled with our politicians having the political will to act.

“The population of our youths is daily blossoming; we have to express our deep concern about this. If our leaders stop at propounding rhetoric, we would only end up deceiving ourselves. The issue of poverty is real and must be confronted with vigour and seriousness,” he added.

Speaking in the same vein, a prominent politician in Kano, Alhaji Musa Danbirni, said it is also the responsibility of parents to ensure proper upbringing of their children right from the time they are given birth to, pointing out that leaving the responsibility in the hands of the government alone would never solve the problem.

The overriding opinion among notable stakeholders and respected opinion leaders in Kano is that addressing the menace of daba and drug abuse is a herculean task that must be fought holistically and that stakeholders must also be seen to demonstrate their unalloyed commitment towards tackling the menace at the appropriate time.

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