Professor Ango Abdullahi was former
Vice-Chancellor of the Ahmadu Bello
Univerisity (ABU), Zaria, and the
current Chairman of the Governing
Council of Abubakar Tafawa Balewa
University, Bauchi. When it comes to
national issues and critical matters that affect the North, the spokesman of the Northern Elders’ Forum has never hesitated to speak up.
In this interview with Daily Sun,
Professor Abdullahi claims that former
president, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo,
under-developed the North. He also
bares his mind on the dwindling
economy of the region, the Boko Haram insurgency, the state of the education sector in Nigeria, among other issues.
Excerpts: Rot in education sector
Recently, I have taken some keen
interest at the state of education in the country.
That propelled me to write to the
Honourable Minister of Education on
two aspects of educational development in the country. The two
levels I chose are closely inter-related
and critical. Secondary education is
key. Nigeria has continued to record
almost 90 per cent failure rate in WAEC and NECO. It’s a major disaster.
You cannot hope to put these children
into tertiary institutions with a view to
finding them various areas of academic endeavours, which will lead to various areas of manpower that will be critical to the development of this country.
Modern day development as we see all over the world today is very much
anchored on the level of education the students are getting out of secondary as well as out of universities.
The rate of growth, taking place in
China and India is largely because of
the intensity with which they pay
attention to the development of
technical education. We are having a
serious crisis in Nigeria as far I can see.
Unless something is done without
delay, we will continue to slide
backwards. You may see so many
universities coming up.
What we are doing there is simply
addressing the quantum rather than
the quality of education. I am the
Chairman of the Governing Council of
Abubakar Tawafa Balewa University,
Bauchi. The allocation for research for a whole university every year is less than N20 million. You don’t expect serious research to happen in this kind of school.
Without research, there is little you can teach students. What is happening is that, teachers and students have to rely on researches from other universities in the world. I see a serious decline in the quality of education in the country from bottom upward.
Unless something is done quickly by all the stakeholders, we will continue to have serious problems David Mark
statement on Boko Haram unfortunate I didn’t realize that I was coming hard on the Senate President.
All I wanted to do was to remind him
that as far the constitution is
concerned, he is the number three
citizen of the country. He happened to
come from the northern region. Given
his position as the Senate President, he is the number two political leader from the northern region.
One expects naturally that he is one of our leaders. In fact, he should be in the forefront of leadership together with the Vice president. For him to
unfortunately come up with that kind of statement, it portrays him as
somebody trying to pass through the
back. He ought to be part of the
solution in view of his special position
in the north. But he is saying that
northern leaders are not doing enough.
That means that, if he is part of the
northern leadership, he should include himself as not doing enough. But if he has excluded himself from being part of the northern leadership, then he can pass on the blame to those who should take the responsibility. So, this is what I reminded him about.
It was misread that I was being hard on him. Addressing poverty in the North Let’s be fair to Nigeria and let’s start from the basis. If you look at the most recent report based on the indices that have been accepted world-wide, you will discover the hardship faced by Nigerians daily. These indices are called human development indices.
They are not just used to measure
economic development, but social
development as well. The recent
reports claimed that over 100 million
Nigerians live in poverty as defined by
the international scale. The North is not 100 million. That means there is
poverty in every part of the country.
I agree that there is no even socio-
economic development in Nigeria.
There are reasons. Poverty is more
pronounced in the northern parts of the country. One can easily arrive at a
reason for this disparity. The north has been educationally disadvantaged. It is the decision of the region more or less. I remember back then in the Western Region, Chief Obafemi Awolowo put education first in the region.
So, I will be right to say that the South-West states are the most educationally advanced states in Nigeria. This is the disadvantage the North was in particularly at the point of independence. Education still remains the main disadvantage of which the north still remains today. That explains the inability of its people to actively participate in the economic process of this country. People may argue that the North has been in charge of the political control of this country for years.
Today, I can produce a book which we
researched to show you that in the
federal employees’ structure, the north is represented by only 18 per cent. The remaining 82 per cent comes from other parts of Nigeria. If you extrapolate that in budgetary terms, the recurrent budget of the federal government on personnel cost for example, 82 per cent of that goes outside the north. You can translate that into various parts of the economy.
For example, take the banks. Out of
the 25 mega banks, only one is owned by northern investors. So, it is quite clear that the north is socially and economically more disadvantaged than the rest of the country. There is no way the country can develop with the current disparity. Even the allocations northern states get are insufficient in tackling the huge gap. We must review current revenue sharing formula Revenue sharing is only one aspect.
There ought to be a deliberate federal
policy that will address specific areas of need in various parts of the country.There has been a specific policy to deal with the problem of the Niger-Delta which started from the first republic.
This led to the development of bodies
like OMPADEC and others to deal with
the problem of the Niger-Delta
specifically. Why can’t they do the
same for other parts of the country
where you can identify some of the
causes of economic disability and
environmental degradation?A whole ministry in addition to OMPADEC, NDDC and derivation of 13
per cent has been created for the
Niger-Delta areas. These are some of
the things that indicate that people in
positions of authority are not serious in dealing with the developmental needs of all the parts of this country.
Curtailing pervasive insecurity You are
absolutely correct.
This is the mistake some highly-placed officials always make. They have assumed that the issue of Boko Haram is a problem of the North. This is absolutely irresponsible and short-
sighted. Where are the Igbo shop
owners in Borno, Yobe and in some
substantial parts of Kano State? People are afraid because they don’t know who will be attacked next.
Trying to achieve peace is a major
requirement for anybody in a position
of authority. There are various claims
as to who should be responsible for
what. Book Haram for me, started as a
simple religious group. I wouldn’t even call them a sect. They have been in existence for about 11 years. From time to time, you will always find
people who are reading their scriptures slightly different from their mainstream counterparts. There are other groups.
This is what has always been. This very group I think, their situation was badly handled in 2008/2009. From then on, instead of quickly nipping whatever problem it was in the bud, the matter took a totally different colouration. I think it was badly handled by law enforcement agencies. If it was a religious sect, it should have been kept that way and dealt with accordingly.
Unfortunately, politicians started
employing them against their
perceived opponents. This matter has
been politicized. Coming down to Jos,
what we have had in the Plateau was
more or less ethno-religious crisis. I am glad to know what retired General Jerry Useni said recently.
He said Governor Jang is the problem of Plateau State because he has refused to handle it as the governor of the state, but pandering sentimentally towards his own tribe. This is the real cause of the crisis in Plateau State as of now. Boko Haram to me was something that would have been nipped in the bud early, but was allowed to assume a dimension it is today. The question now is, who is going to stop it? Everybody has a role to play.
Some are more responsible than the
others. Government has a larger role to play. The primary responsibility of who to find a solution to this problem is the government. From community leaders to traditional rulers, everyone has a role to play. We should start asking questions as to why this is happening.
Dealing with the matter by force is not the solution. They are now learning that using military might will not solve the problem. We even reminded the government in our recent submission to President Goodluck Jonathan.
Government at all levels should enlist
every stakeholder they consider
important to come out and find a way
of reaching out to these boys in the
bush. They always give the excuse that they don’t know them, but they are not fictitious.
We believe that with the current
approach through the communities,
they will be able to reach out to them.
The North and 2015 The position of the Northern Elders’ Forum (NEF) on 2015 is that there should be free and fair election. As I told you, I was in the
constitutional conference for three
times. In 1994/1995, the question of power sharing was a major discussion at that conference. Eventually, it was argued that the north by virtue of its size had dominated politics at the centre and this will continue unless special concessions are made. The delegates reluctantly accepted that power should be shared between the north and south. There were no geo- political zones then.
The agreement was that power should
rotate between the north and the
south. We put it in the constitution and the government said no, because the constitution is a permanent document.
They said at some point, Nigerians will
trust themselves and will not care
where the president of the country will emerge from. They said the parties could use it.
That was how it was incorporated into
the constitution of the Peoples’
Democratic Party (PDP). It was a major attraction to all parts of Nigeria. That was why the PDP was generally
accepted by many Nigerians. The
argument was where the rotation would start. That was how Obasanjo emerged. It was agreed that after 8 years, the presidency will come back to north.
LINK:
www.sunnewsonline.com/new/politics/obasanjo-under-developed-the-north-prof-ango-abdullahi/

yeah right everybody else underdeveloped the north except the northern leaders themselves.

This Abdullahi guy should be checked into a mental health facility or a clown college. He's not fit for regular society.

PhysicsQED: This Abdullahi guy should be checked into a mental health facility or a clown college. He's not fit for regular society.

Wish there is a rehabilitation center for clowns,that would have been the best place to keep him till he regains his senses.

too much cow milk intoxicates nowadays

asha 80: yeah right everybody else underdeveloped the north except the northern leaders themselves.

+100

There is no way the country can develop with the current disparity. Even the allocations northern states get are insufficient in tackling the huge gap. We must review current revenue sharing formula Revenue sharing is only one aspect.

That is always the argument.....sharing! sharing! sharing!. That is the only love they have for Nigeria. Never for once talk about improving on the generation...or diversifying. Bastards!!. These people no get shame...and if the Niger Delta people call them parasites..dem go dey vex on top nothing.

Northern states get more money than eastern states so i don't want to hear that 'sharing' is the reason BS. On top of that Federal Government seldom chooses the east as a location for projects and investments despite population density and the education level of the locals.

The eastern states are doing well compared to everywhere but Lagos and Abuja. I've read recent statistics that give Eastern states the highest per capitas of all states in Nigeria. The reason is because the people are industrious and EDUCATED.

Igbo's aren't asking for more federal money, they actually asking for less federal government so they'll have the power and leverage they need to develop their states on their own. These aren't lazy people and it shows, the North needs to take notes because blaming things on federal allocations and waiting for government, state or federal is foolish. A great portion of clinics, schools, boreholes, commercial farms and even roads in the east are built by private hands, in cities and villages.

I find it difficult to understand why stu.pity (no insult meant) is rampant among Northern leaders. Why is it that when ever they are opportune to profer solutions to the numerous problems bedevilling the country they always come up with ridiculous demands and explanations.

Its becomes more annoying when those spitting trash happens to be in position to know better. If its not Lamido Sanusi blaming the revenue allocated to Niger Delta as the cause of North's problems, it will be Prof. Ango Abdullahi coming up with bogus statistics just to deceive people. Its a known fact that Northerners dominates the Federal Civil Service, but the prof. wants us to believe they are only 18% in FG employ.

Since the they have subjected themselves to self induced amnesia for whatever reason, time will come when the disparity between Northern Nigeria and Southern Nigeria will be akin to that of the Korea's.

Obasanjo under-developed , the North.

Obasanjo under-developed , the South.

Obasanjo under-developed , the South East.

Obasanjo under-developed , the South West.

Obasanjo under-developed , the Middle Belt states.


What did the professor do whilst Obasanjo was busy ruining Nigeria for 8 years?

This professor dude is so funny. Does He even know that Obasanjo under-developed his own state, Ogun State? Yeye man!

PhysicsQED: This Abdullahi guy should be checked into a mental health facility or a clown college. He's not fit for regular society.

Are you saying he is mentally unbalanced? Just asking o.

Since independence,the North has ruled Nigeria for almost 40 years.what did they do for the south ?

mjconcept:
Are you saying he is mentally unbalanced? Just asking o.

In one word, yes.

Some of these so called elders no get shame So obasanjo caused for 24 out of the 25 banks to be invested in and owned by southerners? When southerners were investing in and taking over banks who say make dem no invest too. They were busy using billions from their outsourced OPL's to build refineries outside the blinking country!!

2012 makes 52 years that Nigeria has been independent. Out of those 52 years, I think one can say the North has been in power for maybe 70 percent of the time.

The Northern leaders has had the opportunity and unlimited political power to develop their region and educate its people more than any other tribe in Nigeria. But they instead chose to keep their people improverished, ignorant and uneducated so that they can easily manipulate and reign as demigods amongst their kinsmen.

The case of the Northern elites is best expressed by this biblical proverb: "He who sows the wind will reap the whirlwind".

The man should shut and go and sit down for toilet.

The day Northern elites can collectively own up that they have done their kinsmen a GREAT EVIL, that day, healing will start.

All this Bokoharam and other so many socio-politcal disavantaged position of the North are results of the evil deeds of their elites coming back to haunt them.

For instance, muslim youth for decades have been murdering christians and southerners without any strong condemnation or reprisal from the authorities, the elders, the elites and the people in general. It was such a religious, social and political atmosphere which created the a fertile ground for Islamic extremism, suecide-boming mentalty, religious and tribal intolerance to thrive. Do you see semblance of such, even to a minute degree in any place in the South or East.

Now that the extremists they created are killing even Northerners and muslims, they are blaming everyone except themselves.

I'm telling you, if Bokoharam activities were limited to only bombing churches and selectivly lynching southerners and ibo traders, you won't hear anything from these so called Northern elites. They will keep mute like they have done for decades.

They are talking now because they don,t feel safe anymore. The hydra-headed monster they created is coming back to harm them and they have lost every means of controlling it.

Thank God they are out of power,they would have kept sharing for ever without creating alternative ways to generate ideas and contribute to employment and National purse.They created so many states just because they want to share money.

Naugthy Professor put the blame on your Kinsmen that rule for 38years without any vivid achievement in your domain.

Professor forgot history so easy,do you need us to remember you.

PhysicsQED: This Abdullahi guy should be checked into a mental health facility or a clown college. He's not fit for regular society.

You can you ever dream of being a professor, talk much less of a vice chancellor?

So what? Does professorship give you the right to misfire with the mouth?
Did OBJ impose "unjust" Sharia on the north too?
Did OBJ seize any northern allocations like he did in Lagos?
When the fools were hiding under their women wrapper the same OBJ risked life and limb to try to settle the BH issue early.
OBJ may have his "many faults", but "under-developing" the north is not one of them.
In fact, if anything OBJ cheated the SW because he was not popular there. The man filled his cabinet with Northerners and Easterners to show the SW.
The chicken is coming home to roost for Nigeria from their decades of misrule, and the only thing they can do is point fingers.
Not that I expected anything more though.

Balyz: You can you ever dream of being a professor, talk much less of a vice chancellor?

I wonder how obj single handedly underdeveloped the North.

Balyz: You can you ever dream of being a professor, talk much less of a vice chancellor?

lmao @ this

Yeah, actually I can. Maybe for you it's impossible, but then again, you and me are not peers.

It was very easy for Obasanjo he simply did nothing but loot us dry and under-devloped the whole country including the North

sheyguy: I wonder how obj single handedly underdeveloped the North.

sometimes i wonder or thought that been a proffessor will makes a person reason wisely but this man i wonder if he finish secondary school 24 banks own by southerners is't not those peoples hard work when governor of western region awolowo gives west free education where is northern legion gorvernor then nigeria are in this mess because this animal in babaliga that rules for years and gives nigerian nothing look at what is happen in kano aminu dandata is busy buying comapny and closing it up instead of upgrading the company employing in masses, creating work and business that idiot billionare is busy creating unployment why on earth can a human being will buy working company and fold it is it not wickedness in highest order what do he want the workers with family to do after he fold the comapany are working when ever southerners makes one step forward for progrss of this contry northerners are busy makeing it two to step backward

It's a beauty!