Tension in North East, ticking bomb - Lamido

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‘No regret for supporting Jonathan in 2011 but…’

By Soni Daniel, Regional Editor, North

DUTSE—Jigawa State Governor, Dr. Sule Lamido, yesterday described the rising tension in the Northern part of the country as a ticking bomb, which must be addressed urgently if Nigeria must survive as a nation.

Sule Lamido

According to him, the tension was so palpable that many concerned northerners have opted to relocate from their homes until after the next general election.

He regretted that neither the president nor his opponent has reined in their supporters, who appear to be on the prowl while the north was on fire because of their selfish political interests.

Asked why he went to see Babangida instead of reporting to the Villa in Abuja, Lamido told Vanguard that the Minna meeting was aimed at briefing the former leader, who had been away for sometime on the fast deteriorating security situation in the North East occasioned by incendiary claims by supporters of top politicians seeking to rule Nigeria and the failure by the leadership to curb worsening insurgency.

He said he hoped that by so doing, it would be possible to help mobilise all Nigerians of good conscience to work together to nip in the bud rising ethno religious tensions currently creating fear among Nigerians, particularly those in the Northern part of the country, and to create a sense of belonging, unity and peace.

Lamido maintained that despite his fac-off with President Goodluck Jonathan over his failure to honour the promises he made to the people of the state four years ago, he would not dump the party, which he helped to set up along with eight others, who are now referred to as the G9.

He said that rather than dump the party, he would continue to seek the best possible way to help it to solve the myriads of challenges facing Nigeria as a country.

No regret supporting Jonathan in 2011

Lamido stated also that he did not regret supporting Jonathan in 2011 even though the support had not attracted any meaningful dividends to the state.

He warned however that the neglect of his people must be urgently addressed if the same support must be extended to the president in the next presidential poll.

“My position must be made very clear. I am not asking for anything for myself because I have made it abundantly clear that I am not seeking any office as some of my colleagues have done but the promises made to Jigawa people must be fulfilled so as to give them a sense of belonging like others.

“What we are saying is that our own people, who toiled for the president through my intervention in 2011, must be given a fair share of the national cake for their support before we vote again.”

The position of Lamido on President Jonathan, which was aired live on Saturday from Dutse, the state capital, is said to have jolted the Presidency, which appears afraid to confront him so as not to worsen the already bad situation as the election approaches.

“This explains why the Presidency and die-hard supporters of Jonathan like Clark and Dokubo have been reluctant to join issues with the governor since he decided to take on the President last weekend,” a source close to the Villa said on Tuesday.

“What has happened is entirely unexpected and it will be sorted out amicably and we believe the governor will give his total support to President Jonathan and not Buhari as some people have rushed to claim,” the source added.

It was learnt that the Presidency was however planning a peace deal with Lamido to enable him to give maximum support to Jonathan in the February 14 presidential poll.

 

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Tension in North East, ticking bomb - Lamido