Northern Leaders Must Heed Lessons from Recent Violence, Says Shehu Sani

Statement via his official X account, former Senator Shehu Sani has spoken out about the violence in Northern Nigeria as a result of ongoing protests against the Tinubu administration. Sani emphasized that Northern leaders need to learn from the recent turmoil.

Sani stated that while President Tinubu should be held accountable, he is neither the root cause of the problems nor the sole solution.

“Northern leaders must take lessons from the recent violent uprising in the region. The President must be held to account, but he is not the Problem or the Solution to the Problem. The Governors, political, business, religious, traditional leaders and the intellectuals of the region must converge and urgently come out with an implementable master plan to tackle the decades of endemic poverty and destitution, illiteracy, chronic underdevelopment, abject neglect, religious extremism, and terrorism that has demonized the region and impoverished its people. Guns and tanks can suppress the flame but not extinguish the fire. The monster in our homes was not created in a day. The North should look at the mirror and not the telescope. We have the cattle to build our wealth; we shouldn’t be looking for a scapegoat,” Shehu Sani wrote.

Sani emphasized that the responsibility also lies with governors, political figures, business leaders, religious and traditional leaders, and intellectuals of the region. He urged these groups to come together and create a comprehensive plan to address longstanding issues such as poverty, illiteracy, underdevelopment, neglect, religious extremism, and terrorism.

According to Sani, these problems have plagued the region for decades, resulting in widespread impoverishment. He noted that while military force might suppress the unrest temporarily, it would not eliminate the underlying issues. Instead, a collaborative and proactive approach is needed to bring lasting change to Northern Nigeria.