Tasks before northern legislators

Members of the National Assembly from the North are diametrically different from their counterparts from the South. This is in both Senate and House of Representatives. Legislators from the South are always keen, eager to serve the electorate. They try to make their people feel their effect and efficiency. They execute development projects in their various states, e.g. schools, clinics, roads. They find jobs for their people. They award scholarships; they attend religious rituals and other rites. They draw their people nearer to them. They visit their constituencies and their villages frequently. They do not hide themselves from their people when they visit their areas as northerners do. According to my observation, our National Assembly members do nothing for their people, as do their counterparts from the south. In my state, one cannot see any development project erected by some of them. They do not visit their constituencies until after four years when they go canvassing and soliciting for votes from the masses. They only use the paupers as their ladder. Their aim and objective is to rise to eminence and accumulate wealth. They are only perfect in building mammoth mansions and parking elegant cars and jeeps. Many of them have three or more houses or hideouts where the destitute cannot locate them.

This does not necessarily mean that all of them are of this behaviour. Definitely, we have very few of them who are patriotic, sympathetic and compassionate. What we need in the North is not sharing of money during electioneering campaigns. We don’t need persuasion by flattery or empty promises. What we desire from the northern legislators are: They should work earnestly to eradicate poverty, objection and privation. We have people who cannot afford to secure three meals a day. Illiteracy is one of the problems they should address. Beggary and street begging are some of the things tarnishing the image of the North. It is not incongruent or out of place to mention that Islam does not encourage begging. Pertinacious and importunate solicitation of alms or charity from people is repugnant and odious to Islam. It is a religion of dignity, decency and prestige. Muslims are not allowed to put themselves in humiliation and debasement. The Almajiri system is not the handwork of Islam nor is it an instruction of the religion. Unemployment and idleness are also some of our problems. Taking hard drugs by both male and female youth is a great threat to our future. It is on increase daily. Something ought be done urgently to curtail this.

Out of school children are more than those in schools. This is why the rate of illiteracy in the region is very high. The members should contrive ways to address this as such more schools should be built. Educational projects should be encouraged. Farming should be boosted and expanded. Advanced methods and forms of farming and irrigation should be stepped up. We all know most of our people are farmers, therefore such action will increase their livelihood and raise their morale. At the same time, the problem of poverty and unemployment will be addressed squarely and begging may be eliminated. Grazing and pasturing areas must be available for our herdsmen too. The way electioneering campaigns are being conducted is very humiliating and debasing. How can someone who has human respect in his heart distribute vegetables, tomatoes, Maggi cubes, slippers and other mean things to be elected. It is my personal strong feeling that all political parties should make all their elections to be direct ones. The system of delegation or consensus by party stalwarts or strongmen deprives the masses of their free choice. Governors, legislators and other rich people always maneuver and manipulate the elections, especially the primaries. If we are operating a real democracy we must stop these two systems, otherwise we are deceiving ourselves. This is the reason why we have a lot of problems, petitions, and complaints against the recent primary elections. Governors put in place their surrogates and proxies who will cover their awful and disgusting deeds. Delegates are being bought by rich politicians and consensus is usurped by the strong ones. One can see this time around many National Assembly members failed to retain their positions, as they lost the primaries. One of the main reasons is that they are no more attached to Buhari, so they can be carried along with him. This time Buhari’s whirlwind will carry only those who are germane, apt and patriotic, or on the other hand the masses rejected. Please let our elections at all levels be free and fair. We should carry all along with us.

As I mentioned above that, the problem of hard drugs must be addressed, most politicians in the North have special thugs, following them wherever they go during elections or campaigns. By and large these kinds of politicians are part of our misfortune and debacle in the North. Our legislators, please, use your positions to lobby the government to bring projects to the North, and use your constituency funds to develop your states, instead of for just your personal use.