Provide solutions to end banditry, kidnapping in North, Kwankwaso tells ACF

A Chieftain of All Progressive Congress (APC) in Kano, Ilyasu Kwankwaso, has challenged the Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF), to prefer workable solutions to end the myriad of security threats bedeviling the Northern region.

Kwankwaso insisted that rather than threatening President Bola Tinubu’s administration with change in 2027, the ACF would have come up with pragmatic solutions to kidnapping, banditry, and terrorist attacks in the region.

The APC stalwart insisted the present social-economic distinction in the country and its extreme impact in the North outdated the administration of President Tinubu who had rather inherited a badly managed government by successive administrations.

Besides, the former Commissioner of Rural Development during Dr. Abdullahi Umar Ganduje’s administration urged the regional forum to initiate a roundtable discussion, that would involve religious, traditional, and political leaders to chat a new cause for the North.

Ostensibly reacting to the recent outcome of the ACF meeting held in Kaduna, accusing the Federal government of neglecting the region while submitting that only a Northern president can manage the challenges of the North.

The communiqué signed by ACF National Publicity Security, Prof. Tukur Muhammad-Baba, expressed dissatisfaction with the economic policies of President Tinubu which they claimed have worsened the hardship faced by the average Nigerian.

The forum also highlighted the unique vulnerabilities of the Northern region, noting that its people are disproportionately affected by food insecurity, limited access to education and skills training, and reliance on microeconomic activities for survival.

Reacting to various allegations against the present administration, Kwankwaso said “We the north should look inward on how to solve pressing menaces facing us and stop a ball game attitude of transfer of aggression on President Tinubu.”

He also said that though it is normal for the ACF to speak on issues threatening the northern states, they should also try to look for a true panacea for confronting the challenges of the region.

Kwankwaso added that whatever might be discussed at the roundtable with sincerity and one mind, if tabled before Tinubu, he would give it utmost consideration and attention.

“We in the North should listen and act on what the former Sokoto state governor, Attahiru Bafarawa said, that we do not like ourselves. This is more of the reason why we have not been able to unite and face the challenges bedeviling the region,” he said.