2023: Traditional, Religious, Political Leaders Should Not Set Nigeria On Fire – Lawmaker
By: Femi Mustapha
Worried by what he described as unguarded utterances that are heating up the polity, a member of the Kaduna State House of Assembly representing the Zaria City Constituency, Honourable Suleiman Ibrahim Dabo has urged leaders to stop making inflammatory comments capable of setting Nigeria on fire.
Honourable Dabo, who is the Chairman House Committee on Education, expressed this while fielding questions from newsmen on the sidelines of a One-day Public Dialogue With The Candidates On Agenda Setting For the 2023 General Elections, organised by the Partnership to Engage, Reform, and Learn (PERL/FCDO) in Kaduna.
Honourable Suleiman Ibrahim Dabo Zaria City Constituency Kaduna State House of Assembly in an interview with newsmen said that the theme related to educationists and health is timely.
“Nigeria is at a crossroads, a critical moment to determine the future of Nigeria.
“Traditional, religious, and political leaders should mind their utterances. Whatever they say, they should remember that they have followers.
“It is our country. We don’t have where to go. We hate battling insecurity and such comments could breed more insecurity.
“But when you preach hate, it is really risky to use. I think it is an important message. We need to be careful. We must mind our utterances,” he appealed.
He said that based on the timetable by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), there is a long period still pending before the general elections after the emergence of candidates.
“In Nigeria, we have never had such a long time of campaign before the election in 2023,” he said, advising that such a period should be used for only issue-based campaigns as emphasized at the one-day dialogue.
Speaking on his committee’s impact at the Kaduna Assembly, he said that the state is a pacesetter in terms of budgetary allocation to education.
“In terms of education, Kaduna State has done a lot. Today, no State has a budgetary allocation for education up to 27 percent, even though we face some challenges with cash backing,” he said.
Also speaking in an interview, Hon. Yusuf Salihu of Kawo State Constituency said that with the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) administration at the centre, Nigerians would enjoy better dividends of democracy.
“The PDP and All Progressives Congress (APC) run govt. differently. If we get a PDP government at the centre, definitely things will be run differently.
“We can recall that the PDP government in the past favoured the masses better. We will see more dividends of democracy,” he assured.
On the pattern of voting to be expected in 2023, he said the Osun State governorship election held last weekend is an example of what should be expected.
“Just like in Osun where people confessed to having collected money from APC and voted PDP, we expect more of that in 2023” he declared.
