The Arewa Consultative Forum, ACF, has observed that the North remains essentially a work in progress.
The forum noted that all the indices that track human progress, most of all poverty, illiteracy, health and security of life and property, tend to place the North at the deep end of the trough.
The forum, therefore, dissociated itself from the planned nationwide protest against bad governance, believing that it was ill-timed and counterproductive.
Chairman of the ACF, Mamman Osuman, who led other members of the forum on Monday during a visit to Governor Uba Sani of Kaduna State, explained, “Regarding the planned national protest, the ACF is not a party to it and will not support it as it is ill-timed and counterproductive.”
He said that the visit was meant to promote a deeper and wider conversation around the current crises of insecurity and poverty ravaging Northern Nigeria.
In their wisdom, he observed that Northern leaders, including state governors, Emirs and Chiefs and other elders, decided to establish the ACF in 2000, stressing that it was against the background of a similar crisis of widespread insecurity and strife.
According to him, the intention was to bring together on one platform, representatives of the diverse peoples of Northern Nigeria without regard to political, ethnic or religious affiliation.
According to him, “Today, however, despite our valiant efforts, the achievement of peace, unity and progress in the North remains essentially a work in progress.
“All the indices that track human progress, most of all poverty, illiteracy, health and security of life and property, tend to place the North at the deep end of the trough. A great deal of work awaits all Northerners.”
Osuman stated that it was incumbent on the leaders and citizens alike to change the narrative without further delay, pointing out that ACF remained committed to articulating and defending the interests of the peoples of the North through its various activities.
One such, he emphasized was the recently constituted Technical Committee that reviewed the 1999 Constitution (as amended) by the ACF, stating that the report of the Technical Committee formed the basis of ACF’s submission to the joint committees of the National Assembly on Constitution review.
