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| Dr Wumi Akintide |
Who says the Hausa/Fulanis are seriously at a
disadvantage in education and wisdom compared to their Igbo and Yoruba
brothers and sisters in the South? Whoever is saying that is probably
living in the past or is totally out of touch with the reality of the
Nigerian situation or has never met distinguished northerners like
Alhaji Dangote, Lamido Sanusi, late Abubakar Rimi, Professor Jega,
Professor Yadudu, El Rufai, Jerry Gana, Kwankwaso and Dogara to mention a
few.
Anyone saying that can be said to be very insular in their views and
perception or has not been sufficiently exposed to the great progress
the North has made in the last 40 years to wipe off the yawning gap
between the North and the South which existed as of October 1st 1960
when Nigeria finally gained independence from Britain.
We must keep in mind that Nnamdi Azikiwe and Obafemi Awolowo had gone
to Lancaster House in London to initially make a case for Nigeria to
gain her independence before Ghana got her own in 1957. They both failed
because of Sardauna Bello and his northern delegation who shot their
proposal down on the grounds that the North was far from ready.
The Sardauna was right. The man did not have multiple University
degrees like Obafemi Awolowo and Ogbuefi Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe, but it was
his very thoughtful deposition and submission that carried the day at
that Conference presided over and moderated by Britain.
The Northerners have managed to maintain their stranglehold on
Nigeria since 1914 despite the disparity in their educational
qualification and capacity compared to their southern counterparts. The
quiet but strategic creation of 19 states in the North and 17 in the
South without pulling punches would appear to have further accelerated
the rapid progress of the North and to have tipped the balance in favor
of the North with regards to the 6 states in the North and 6 states in
the South. The South took a nap and by the time they woke up the North
had consolidated its strategic edge based on their questionable
projected population and their land mass or size.
Many in the South have argued that it was the British covert support
and favoritism for the North that put the North at an advantage. But
there’s more to it than that. The descendants of Uthman Dan Fodio had
their own raw native intelligence from the beginning. You can tell from
some of their proverbs and words of wisdom, like “Gajere ba yaro ba,”
which simply means in Hausa that the fact that a man or woman is short
does not determine his or her age and maturity.
The Northerners are as smart if not smarter than the Igbos and the
Yorubas. Wisdom is not the exclusive preserve or monopoly of any tribe
in Nigeria. There is no northern state today where University or NCE
graduates are totally in short supply, as was the case in 1960. The
North has come a long way for sure. Islamic education, which was their
strong suit, had its own merit, which many of us always tend to overlook
or underestimate much to our own peril.
Northerners like Lamido Sanusi, the star of this article, can be
found everywhere you look in each of the 19 states of the North and in
more than half of the 776 Local Government Areas in Nigeria. Lamido
Sanusi is probably one of a kind and arguably one of the best educated
among them in Western and Islamic education.
That man can stand his own anywhere in the world. You hear the man
speak and you cannot believe your ears. He is so eloquent and sounds
just like late Abubakar Rimi, Jerry Gana, Professor Yadudu, Professor
Jega, and Balarabe Musa and a host of them I have met in my life
journey.
I had the rare privilege of serving my pupillage under a good number
of Northerners, starting with legendary Sule Katagun who was Chairman of
the Nigerian Civil Service Commission for many years with the first
Nigerian medical doctor, Sir Manuwa from Ondo State, as his Deputy.
Alhaji Sule Katagun and Sir Manuwa were two of a kind even though one
was a medical doctor and the other was an experienced school
teacher/administrator like the first Nigerian Prime Minister, the late
Sir Tafawa Balewa the eloquent golden voice of Africa who spoke English
with the dexterity and eloquence of a Winston Churchill.
I served under Permanent Secretary Alhaji Damcida, late Yusuf Gobir, a
dapper don lawyer from Ilorin, and later on under Permanent Secretary
Abdul Azeez Attah, the first son of Ohinoyi the Atta of Egbira Land. The
Northerner that made the greatest impact on my growth and development
in the Federal Ministry of Education, however, was Ahmed Joda from Girei
in Adamawa State.
The man who is now 86 had taught me a lot of what I knew and he was
not even a university graduate. He earned a Diploma in Journalism and
was the Chief Information Officer and later Permanent Secretary of
Information under the late Sardauna Bello as Premier of the Northern
Region. He became one of the Federal Permanent Secretaries fondly
referred to as the 4 musketeers or super Permanent Secretaries at the
time. The 4 were Allison Ayida, Philip Asiodu, E. M. E. Ebong and Ahmed
Joda. The star of this article in some ways is a star performer like
Ahmed Joda.
Lamido was born the grandson of His Royal Highness Sanusi the First,
the deposed Emir of Kano, a great aristocrat who had a chance to regain
his throne like the late Olowo Olagbegi but turned down the offer on
principle. All he wanted was for his body after death to be returned
back to Kano for burial with his ancestors. Can you believe that? The
powerful man had a premonition that one day another Sanusi would emerge
in Kano inshallah to redeem his name and reputation.
He was never bitter about the fact that he lost his throne based on
some political persecution by the then Sardauna Bello as Premier of the
defunct Northern Region. He bore no animosity against his distant
cousin, the former Nigerian Ambassador Ado Bayero who was picked to
replace him.
Sanusi the First was exactly right. Guess who took over from Ado
Bayero a few years ago? It was his grandson, the star of this article,
Lamido Sanusi who received his High School education from King's College
Lagos and later graduated from an Islamic University in Cairo. He later
became an activist lecturer at Ahmadu Bello University, attended many
Diploma programs, in-service trainings, and seminars in some of the most
prestigious universities in the world, including the London School of
Economics and Harvard.
He did not have to pad his resume by claiming to be a graduate or
alumnus of all of those institutions like the abrasive Senator Dino
Melaye has done. Lamido ended up becoming the governor of the Nigerian
Central Bank at the pleasure of President Umaru Yar’Adua the highest
educated Northerner so far to be elected President of Nigeria. Umaru
Yar'Adua had earned a Master’s degree before becoming President.
Umaru was not your average Nigerian Politician. He, in fact, was
picked to become President as a compensation for his late brother
Brigadier General Musa Yar’Adua who was number 2 to General Olusegun
Obasanjo up to 1979 and who remained very loyal to Obasanjo to the very
end. He did not flaunt his northern origin or connection to intimidate
or undermine the authority of General Obasanjo like a few other
Northerners would have done.
Most Northerners instinctively knew that the North held the secret
key to power in Nigeria as far back as the Amalgamation Proclamation
fraudulently imposed on Nigeria by Lord Lugard way back in 1914 as
recently revealed by Richard Osuolale Akinjide in a public lecture.
Umaru Yar’Adua saw in Lamido Sanusi a virtue and an expertise that most
Nigerians can now see clearly.
Lamido Sanusi belongs to that high caliber of Nigerian bureaucrats
and Northerners in his role as the Governor of the Nigerian Central Bank
and before elevation and coronation as the powerful Emir of Kano.
I quite often wonder aloud if Nigeria gained or lost by having a
young man as dynamic as Lamido Sanusi settle for an anachronistic
traditional title for the rest of his life. But if we keep in mind that
Sardauna Bello had a choice to become the first Nigerian Prime Minister
but chose instead to remain Premier as he was fixated on becoming the
Sultan of Sokoto. That would tell you the value system of the average
Northerner may be slightly different from the value baseline of the
average Igbo or Yoruba man.
On reflection, I cannot blame Lamido for rating the title higher than
any position he has ever held in government. I am like him in some
ways; I value tradition and want to excel and exceed where my father,
the pioneer Olugunshin of Igunshin in Akure Local Government, and where
my grandfather, ”Erinlakatabu Ogiso Otolu Apaara,” Kabiyesi Deji
Afunbiowo Adesida, the greatest Deji of Akure, have left off, but I
would not trade off a job as lucrative as the governor of the Central
Bank for the job of a traditional ruler even though one is a transient
job and the other is for life. If you are a good governor of the Central
Bank, you are forever going to be in demand if you know what you are
doing.
I have a strong suspicion that part of the reason Lamido Sanusi had
wanted that title so bad was to fulfill the dreams of his grandfather
the deposed Emir of Kano. He probably felt he had reached the peak of
his career as an economist and as governor of the Central Bank, the
equivalent of the chairman of the Federal Reserve in the United States.
He probably wanted a title where he no longer has to kowtow or carry
the bucket for anyone including his State Governor or even the President
of the Republic. I think he proved that beyond all shades of doubt when
after his suspension by President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, he was
turbaned the powerful Emir of Kano and guess who came to town to pay him
homage and shout “Ranka Dede” to him a few months later?
It was Goodluck Jonathan who was kept waiting at the Emir’s Visitor’s
Lounge for the powerful Emir to emerge from the inner chamber of his
Taj Mahal Palace to say hello to the President who was there to beg for
the Emir’s support to enable him win a second term in office. “Allahu
Akbar,” God is truly awesome!
President Jonathan had to know that power has changed hands. You
don’t fool around with powerful rulers like the Sultan of Sokoto, the
Emir of Kano, the Etsu Nupe, the Emir of Daura to mention a few and
expect to win in the North. By the same token, you don’t fool around
with powerful rulers like the Oba of Benin, the Obong of Calabar, the
Amayanabo of Buguma, the Oonirisa of Ile Ife, the Alaafin of Oyo and
expect their people to vote for you in the South. No way.
Lamido Sanusi is therefore right on that score to probably value the
title more than his transient position as governor of Central Bank or
even president of the Republic. I personally thought he should have
joined one of the major political parties with a chance to win the
presidency of Nigeria where he can bark and bite and not the title of
the Emir where he can only bark but not bite. He probably knew he might
not win the presidency in a country which is notorious for electing
mediocre and compromise choices who fumble more often than not. I
thought he could have done more good for Nigeria as president because
the man is as tough as a nail and could have made a difference as
president.
I call Lamido Sanusi a breed apart not because of his royal pedigree
but because of what he has done and has been doing with his powerful
title. He has built a reservoir of goodwill for himself in the North as
the former governor of the Central Bank and a very competent and
brilliant one who has received all the awards and recognition there is
to receive as a world renowned economist.
While I have never met him personally, I knew his senior brother,
Ambassador Sanusi, the former Nigerian ambassador to Morocco, very well.
He was the ambassador when I served for 3 years as the delegate
representing Nigeria on the Board of Trustees of CAFRAD (African
Training and Research Center in Administration for Development) based in
Tangiers, Morocco on the edge of the Mediterranean Sea in North Africa.
Lamido Sanusi shared the same DNA with his brother the ambassador.
The man was a lion who could not be intimidated by anybody. His brother
did something for Nigeria I was very proud of as a delegate of CAFRAD.
He stood by Nigeria like a Rock of Gibraltar when I moved a motion on
behalf of Nigeria to rotate the chairmanship and the meetings of CAFRAD
between member countries instead of permanently ceding the chairmanship
to Morocco for more than 45 years. Nigeria won the motion by a landslide
and it was my finest hour as the delegate of Nigeria. I could not have
done it without the support of Ambassador Sanusi.
That was how Chief Oluyemi Falae became the first Chairman of CAFRAD
in 1981 when Nigeria hosted CAFRAD as the first member country to do so
outside Morocco. It would not have been possible if Ambassador Sanusi
had caved in to the pressure put on him by Morocco to side with their
delegation. They told him that he as a Muslim by faith could not afford
to oppose another Muslim country. Ambassador Sanusi much to his
everlasting credit refused to buckle under pressure.
I have the greatest respect for the man for that reason and his
younger brother, Lamido Sanusi has convinced me he is a lion like his
brother. You don’t fool around with the Sanusis of Kano. They are all as
principled as their patriarch, the deposed Emir of Kano.
Lamido Sanusi left his footprints on the sands of history in the
Central Bank. He stood his ground and called the bluff of Goodluck
Jonathan and Sambo Dasuki his fellow Sokoto Prince, and the son of
former Sultan of Sokoto for looting the Nigerian Treasury and he did it
with clarity, courage and conviction.
He went to the floor of the House and the Nigerian Senate as governor
of Central Bank to call their bluff and to tell the senators and the
legislators to their faces they were stealing Nigeria dry and he
cautioned that their heavy salaries ought to be cut in half if not more
to provide employment for Nigerians roaming the streets without jobs.
He made concrete suggestions first to Jonathan and now to Buhari on
what should be done to restore sanity to the Nigerian economy. He
practices what he preaches and does not suffer fools gladly. He has
continued with the crusade and mission as the powerful Emir of Kano.
He challenged and condemned a tradition or culture in the North that
forces underage girls into marriages with cradle snatchers who are old
enough to be their fathers. He preached reconciliation and peace between
the North and the South by making overtures and courting the friendship
of his peers in other parts of Nigeria. He visited his colleagues like
the Oba of Lagos, the Awujale of Ijebu Ode and he welcomed the new
Oonirisa of Ife to his domain with pomp and pageantry. He shows he
understands his role and responsibilities as the Emir of Kano and the
father of all his people and their spiritual leader as their Chief Imam.
Lamido Sanusi has started a quiet revolution to speak the truth to
power in Nigeria pretty much like retired Major Ken Chioma Obi has done
with his recent posting widely publicized on the Facebook. The brave
Major is making pretty much the same case that Lamido Sanusi has been
making that the salaries and allowances of our legislators and lawmakers
are over bloated and should be cut by half to provide gainful
employment to millions of Nigerians who are now going to the garbage
dump to look for something to eat because they cannot find employment or
afford 3 square meals a day.
He made a very persuasive case that the people the legislators claim
to represent are now jumping to the Lagoon and committing suicide in
broad daylight while their senators are busy looting the Nigerian
Treasury earning 36 million Naira per month per senator while their
counterparts in the House of Representatives are taking 25 million Naira
per month minus other allowances for doing nothing.
If they cut those salaries and allowances just by half, the Buhari
government can employ 70,400 Nigerians with monthly salaries ranging
from N90,000 to N92,500 per month. A consensus is fast building up in
Nigeria because of the awareness created by powerful individuals like
Lamido Sanusi and retired Major Ken Chioma Obi to mention a few.
He has single-handedly embarked on the CBN empowerment loan program
in conjunction with World Bank to help boost and empower men/women and
Farmers to help limit the problem of unemployment. The loan comes with
very low interest. The powerful Emir is doing pretty much what the
richest man in Africa, Alhaji Dangote from his city has been doing to
help in areas where Government has been failing due to endemic
corruption. He and Dangote have become a 2 man Battalion in Nigeria in
that regard by doing everything in their power to bail out Nigeria and
to save the country.
I take off my hat for his Royal Highness Lamido Sanusi, the charismatic Emir of Kano, and so should Nigerians.
I thank you for your time.
Culled from Sahara Reporters
Emeh Achanga is a lawyer, journalist, blogger and a creative writer, the CEO Miss Petite Nigeria; her blog www.misspetitenaijablog.com is one of Nigeria’s leading blogs which serves entertainment, fashion, and lifestyle gist. What makes her blog one of Africa’s and Nigeria’s favorite blog is her Blogger’s Diary – a series of personal real-life stories which she shares with her readers.
Emeh was the Style Editor for Reloaded Magazine a world class Entertainment/Fashion/Lifestyle Magazine; she was the Official scriptwriter, Calabar Festival 2012 Ebony Life Tv -a contractual job to write TV scripts/Documentaries for the 32 day long Calabar festival. She was the Editorial Head/Lagos State Governor’s correspondent Change Media Project Ltd from February 2010 to December 2012 to cover, report, write on all official activities of the Lagos State Governor, to oversee all production and editorial details as far as Media production is concerned and to write articles for Lagos state Magazine (Mega Vision).
