What We Discussed At Northern Governors’ Forum – Masari
Why religious crisis occurs only in the North Surrendered arms in Kastina were from North Africa
Governor Aminu Bello Masari of Katsina State took the initiative to involve other governors in a bid to rid his state of armed banditry, cattle rustling and other forms of criminal activities, long before the 19 northern governors met and decided that a joint action was necessary to check all forms of security issues in the region. Speaking with Daily Trust on Sunday, the governor, who was part of the meeting of the Northern States Governors Forum (NSGF), gave an insight into what formed major part of their decisions. He also explained what led to the idea of forming a coalition against insecurity, how far it has worked, and what remains to be done to check crime and prevent violence and break down of law and order in the country. From Andrew Agbese & Habibu Umar Aminu, Katsina
The collaboration among the seven governors of the North-West to tackle crime and highway banditry is said to be your idea, how did you come about it, and how has it worked so far?
Well, let me start by saying that I am just part of the idea. When we came in 2015, some of the serious security problems in Katsina and other states like Zamfara, Kebbi and Kaduna were the issue of cattle rustling, armed robbery, banditry and kidnapping. They were so high in Katsina that people were being killed on a daily basis. And the Fulani were slaughtered like rams or chickens by vigilante groups while the herdsmen or Fulani men were also invading villages in hundreds, killing, maiming, kidnapping, burning and destroying properties, even on the roads, especially at night. There were pockets of suspicion with regards to the presence of Boko Haram, but it was not pronounced as much as the problem I earlier highlighted. So when we came, we remembered that we promised the people of Katsina State, especially those in the forest area, that we would restore peace in such a way that people would go back to their normal day-to-day activities, that is farming, rearing of cattle and so on. So we approached the military - the 35 battalion based in Katsina. But we realised that if whatever we do in Katsina is not done in Zamfara, Kebbi and Kaduna, and to some extent, even Niger, we will be wasting our time and resources. So after consultation with other governors, we decided to meet in Kaduna. And luckily for us, the entire military formations in this area are under one division, with headquarters in Kaduna. We agreed and started with Katsina, Zamfara, Kebbi, Kaduna and Niger. That was how we started.
After the first and second meetings, it became obvious that we had to bring in other North-West governors because Kano was having problems with the Falgore forest, and Sokoto is sandwiched between Zamfara, Kebbi and Katsina. So, even if there are serious activities here, there is the tendency that criminal herdsmen could move into Sokoto. So we decided to invite the whole governors in the North-West; and we agreed to pool resources together and face the bandits and cattle rustlers.
After that meeting we briefed Mr. President, who also directed the service chiefs, including the chief of defense staff, to sit with us. We did that with the full support of the president and the entire members of the armed forces. In fact, in Kaduna, the air force, customs, immigration civil defence, army, and other para-military outfits were involved in the Kaduna meeting. We did this for about six months and decided to concentrate at the state level. Each state concentrated on the initiative, and after three months, we realised that we had reached a certain level where we had to talk because not all the Fulani in the forest are criminals.
Luckily enough, as far back as 2015, I started discussing with the leadership of Miyetti Allah on the need for intervention to bring about peace. There was election here in the state and we were lucky that the person who became the chairman of the Katsina State chapter is a graduate and a gentleman, so, together with him we started reaching out to the leaders inside the forest. We started with three to five persons until the Fulani in the bushes who were afraid of coming out started coming out. They would go to Katsina to study the situation and go back home. When they were convinced that the government was serious and there was sincerity in what we were talking about, they started coming out. So that eventually led to peace meetings in almost all the local governments. We were able to meet the entire leadership of the Fulani who were right inside the forest. It <http://forest.it/> was from there that we began to realise that they used to come out because some of them were saying that for the last four to six years they had never been in town. Some said they had not seen a tarred road for years and that living in the forest was expensive because what is obtainable at N10 outside the forest is sold to them at N100 inside the forest. And they could not come out to dispose their cattle because of fear that the vigilante would attack, slaughter and take away their cattle.
So they took up arms to defend themselves because every Fulani man was adjudged to be a criminal; hence immediately he entered a village or town he was killed. That was the horrible situation on ground, but like I said, we cultivated them and there was confidence building, which took more than a month. We realised that what we were doing brought calm to Zamfara and the northern part of Kaduna because the Fulani are the same. If you talked to any Fulani man in Katsina, you would see some of them if you called for a meeting in Niger, Zamfara or Kaduna. They have a network.
To cut a long story short, we agreed with them on four or five major issues. One, that the vigilantes should be brought under control, which we did; that earth dams inside the forest should be rehabilitated to provide water for their animals. We also agreed to provide boreholes and build schools for them. The fifth is the restoration of cattle routes so that there would be easy access for cattle passing from one area to another. These cattle routes were there, with veterinary clinics.
We demanded that they surrender their arms and they agreed. They also demanded that government should look into the cases of their people in detention and release those who are not criminals, alongside their motorcycles and they will return all stolen cattle. This was what led to our meeting in Kankara three weeks ago, where they handed over 300 guns. You will be shocked that even today, a machine gun was delivered, the type that one person cannot carry. They also delivered what they called pump action gun, the type that will continue shooting even if it falls down. And they handed it over with a brand new revolver, which only the president can give licence to. Even the army generals who were present during the handover were surprised. One of them told me that these were military hardware, but they were certainly not from the Nigerian
Army because some of them were with Arabic inscriptions. The suspicion was that they came from North Africa, particularly Libya after the fall of Gaddafi. Our main concern was to make sure that we rout them out before Boko Haram and other criminal elements would seize the opportunity to find another safe haven here at the Rugu forest, which stretches from here to Mali.
This is what we did; and for the past five months we have not had any serious attack. We hope we have drawn the line. Our people are documenting those earth dams that have broken down, as well as cattle routes across the forests. We are also taking census of the number of Fulani children who want to go to school. We started in one local government and got 469 in just one community. These are Nigerians; you either educate them and save the future or you leave them in that situation, which portends danger for the future because these are people who lack religious or western education and are living in the forest. If they are left to unleash their anger on the society in the future, only God knows what would happen.
We are happy to say that Zamfara is taking a cue and Kaduna is doing the same. Actually, it would be better if all the concerned states could take a cue because these herdsmen are Nigerians who live in Nigeria, so we better find accommodation for them so that we can co-habit.
It is true that there are always some clashes between the herdsmen and farmers at the end of the rainy season and the beginning of harvest, but it is natural. However, it has never gone the way of guns, machetes and other dangerous weapons as it is now. We were used to having a common vigilante group that patrolled the villages, especially in the night to drive away small criminals breaking into people’s houses. We did not see a situation where vigilantes became hunters of human beings, carrying deadly weapons and slaughtering people like animals. This was what obtained in 2015 when we came. You could remember that the former president was here in 2014 when over 117 people were killed in Faskari Local Government Area. There was a time in Yar Tsamiya, where 17 people were slaughtered and their bodies dumped in front of the village head’s house, and the village head had to relocate. In the early days of our administration, they sacked a whole village, the village head ran for his life and I had to go there. We are now constructing a road leading to that village, which has reached an advanced stage. The Fulani have even offered to be paying cattle tax.
Even in times of war, whoever wins comes to the table for peace. We met their overall leader of Katsina, Sokoto, Zamfara and Kaduna, and he came to Kankara and handed over a gun. Now, there is relative peace in Zamfara and Katsina. I also understand that a lot of work is being done in Niger. The General Officer Commanding (GOC) One Division of the Nigerian Army, who was there, told me that he attended a meeting to see how what is happening in Katsina could be replicated in other states.
You gave a period of grace for the rustlers to key in or face the wrath of the law; how do you hope to achieve that?
A period was given for them to hand over their arms and ammunitions, after which anybody caught with weapons other than what the law specified would be considered a rustler. That was what we said.
So it was more of diplomacy that brought about peace in your state?
Yes. But one of the problems identified at the meeting of the northern governors is that the crisis has lingered in parts of the region because nobody has been brought to book. When is the use of force necessary?
Look, you can use force only up to a level. If you use force in a given situation for an hour, then you are going to be prepared to maintain the military, police, vigilante, civil defence, everybody permanently in the area. It is impossible. But because of what we have done, you will see that businesses have changed in these affected areas. The economy of the area has changed already. Go there and see things for yourself. The Fulani now come into town and the people can now go to the forest to get firewood or for hunting. It had not been like that for the last six years. The pure milk coming from the forest stopped because Fulani women were afraid of coming into town.
Can the problem in Southern Kaduna also be resolved through the same process?
The issue of Southern Kaduna has so many dimensions, part of which is historical. I think there is the need to look deeper than what is on the surface and see how we can put the case of Southern Kaduna behind us once and for all. Plateau and Southern Kaduna are related in so many ways, so I think the governor of Plateau State would help. There are similarities in the crises in both states. I believe he has the capacity and political will to bring about peace in Plateau.
You have some herdsmen who are not Nigerians, but there are indigenous herdsmen who have lived in Southern Kaduna for over 100 years. The fundamental issue is that we have to live and treat one another as Nigerians. It is unconstitutional to call any Nigerian a settler in his or her country. You see, the fact of the matter is that after living in a place for 100 years, you won’t even know where your father or grandfather came from. I think it offends common sense to call somebody a stranger in such land. If you want to drive such person out of the place, where do you want him to go? He will fight. That is why I said the problem in Southern Kaduna has similarities with that of Plateau, and they are multifaceted.
Along the line, religion also came in. But the question is: if my cattle entered your farm and destroyed your crops, would you say the cattle are Muslim or Christian? Again, would you differentiate a Christian corn from that of the Muslim? So you can see that we are misusing religion. I always say that if God had wanted, he would have made us one people - same colour, language, everything - but he decided not to. So we should understand one another.
Part of your resolutions at the last meeting is to tackle crime and insecurity as one. How will this work?
You see, all conflicts have the tendency to spill over. The crisis in Benue has the tendency of spilling over to Kogi, Nasarawa and Taraba. This issue of herdsmen cuts across Senegal, up to Central Africa. They are everywhere, and they have certain peculiarities, such that if one of them cries in one place, all of them will come. That is their culture and tradition. We saw it here some of the guns that were recovered came all the way from Adamawa, Kaduna and Niger. That means they were transporting them along state borders. And these are dangerous weapons. So you can see that it is interwoven. Also, the crisis in Plateau has similarities with what is happening in Taraba, Adamawa, southern part of Borno and Yobe. It involves religion, suspicion and fear of domination by majority tribes against the minority. In a situation where you have dwindling resources, the competition for resources can be fierce. Unfortunately, the economic gap between the ordinary people and the rich is so wide that they can neither see nor feel one another. That also creates certain enmity within the society. There is also a collapse of education and other social services.
The bottom-line is that we have to rethink our investment in education in the entire northern part of this country. Here in the northern part of the country, some use religion to divide the people. But you can’t divide the people along religious lines in the South-West, you can’t do that in Edo, you’ll be wasting your time. This happens only in the northern part of the country. The leaders and clergies on both sides - Muslims and Christians - are not sincere. If they preach what their religions say, we won’t be fighting one another. There is no religion that preaches hatred. What did Jesus say when they crucified him? He said, “Forgive them for they know not what they do.’’ I really think some people are using religion for their own benefits - power and resources. That’s all. We should use religion to foster unity.
Your government has accepted to retrace grazing routes; don’t you see any problem there?
Actually, it would be better if all the concerned states could take a cue because these herdsmen are Nigerians who live in Nigeria, so we better find accommodation for them so that we can co-habit
There were grazing routes in northern Nigeria. The problem is that cattle invade farms when they are moved from one location to another. But this shouldn’t be a problem because after the harvest, the land becomes hollow and there is nothing left, so people prefer the cattle to go there and eat whatsoever is there so that by the time the rainy season comes, the farm is clean. It becomes an issue when a Fulani or herdsman tries to enter a farm before the completion of harvest. Like I said, these Fulani herdsmen are Nigerians; if you cannot find accommodation for them peacefully, what do you expect?
In the northern part of this country, forest reserve is the exclusive right of the government, not individuals. We are not talking about community forests. In community forests, local authorities or the government can allocate reserves, but in the case where the forest is gazetted, it is only the governor that can do that. In the whole of Katsina, for instance, we are not occupying or cultivating more than 40 per cent of the land. The land is there, what we need to do is to plan how to use it for the benefit of all. If you say you will not allow grazing, are you going to kill all the cattle, goats and sheep? In any case, most of the cattle are mainly owned by people in the city, so many of the Fulani are just labourers.
We had all the grazing facilities along the forests, put there by the colonialists, but we abandoned them when the oil money came. We have a dairy here in Katsina, which was built by the then Northern Nigerian Government. But it was abandoned. Ants have destroyed some of the things that were imported in the early 1960s. The machines were never installed. This shows that our first generation of leaders had vision and a better plan.
You agreed to set up a financial institution for northern states. This is coming shortly after the failure of the Bank of the North; what makes you and your colleagues think it would work this time around?
We agreed to do two things. You know the Northern Nigeria Development Company (NNDC) is undergoing reform, so we agreed that there is no financial institution that supports investment in the North. Now, the economic policy of the current government is diversification, and in diversification, agriculture comes first in all its ramifications. There is no way you can invest in agriculture without finance, and you cannot do it with financial loan. The farmers are having a boom now, and if the situation continues, in the next five years there would be sufficient food for consumption and even for export. You cannot export without capital because you have to reach a certain international standard for your commodity to be accepted in the world market. It requires money. We don’t have institutions in northern Nigeria that support wholesome agriculture and industrialisation.
The Bank of Agriculture (BOA) and Bank of Industry (BOI) belong to the whole of Nigeria, so they have their limitations. We believe that with the capital asset of the NNDC, if we are honest with ourselves, we can float a financial institution that would support production and manufacturing in the northern part of the country. Some of these other banks are used to buying and selling, oil and gas. So the North has to help itself. That is why we in the North-West are coming up with an economic commission and everything has been concluded.
If we don’t do that, some people will come, either from China or any part of the country, and put money, develop the infrastructure, make more money and the people will remain labourers. And that portends danger because it will get to a point when the people will resist. But if you start a financial institution that is all encompassing, it would develop the ordinary farmer to be in a position to sustain himself and his family. It is then that you will have peace. So, definitely, we will come up with a financial institution that will do that.
Did the briefing you received from the NNDC on the exploration of oil in the Chad basin confirm the presence of hydro carbon?
The oil is available. If you can get it in Niger, which has the same basin with us, then automatically, it is here. All the indicators for the availability of oil have shown that it is here.
When do you exploration?
expect No, I will not tell you that one. to start
Won’t this divert your attention from agriculture?
No, we still need the oil for many things. It depends on how you manage it. But we have learnt our lessons. Even if oil is sold at $100 per barrel, we won’t go back to what happened before; we will not.
It was also decided at the meeting that herdsmen coming into the country should be registered. How will that work?
Well, the ECOWAS treaty does not say you can just walk into a country. It says you should have a travelling document, which means that at the point of crossing into another country, you will be registered and your duration of stay mentioned. This is the rule which is not being obeyed. Again, we have abandoned the village head system because every herdsman passes through a community, and the community has a leader. And one way or another he will spend a night in one of the communities. We cannot control the border because of their nature, but we can reintroduce the functions of ward, village and district heads so that they will have record. What we did in Kastina was to ask the Nigerien government in Maradun and Zinder to form a similar committee, which they did. So we are working with the Nigerien government to make sure we close the border to criminals.
With the decline in federal allocation, how is your state coping?
It is extremely difficult. The problem is not about managing the dwindling revenue but managing the people to understand it. In the past, there were big names, politicians and top civil servants who were collecting money for doing nothing. When you tell them that the money is no longer there, they don’t want to believe. Some of them know, but they don’t want to believe. Some don’t know, and because they don’t know, they don’t want to appreciate when you tell them that there is no money. The problem is the elite who know the truth and were part of the plundering that took place, but are denying the truth and joining to spread falsehood.
We never experienced any good time. Let the people understand that it’s not our fault. It is partly because the price of oil has crashed, and when the going was good, the resources were not properly managed. There should have been investments in the right projects and places so that when the revenue went down, it would cushion the effects, or alternatively, the state should have saved for the rainy days.
When everybody depends on the federation account, the function of the internally generated revenue is that of salaries and contracts. We have now employed a consultant to identify revenue points. Today, we have over 4,000 revenue points, so in the next two or three months, the internally generated revenue will triple. Before 2015 nobody cared about revenue because what was coming from Abuja was much. They didn’t care if people paid tax or not. We inherited a government that had the best of times for 16 years in terms of resources, but they were so proud of themselves that they did not do anything with it.