The Guardian Online - http://ngrguardiannews.com
Saturday, May 12 2001
North tops in backwardness, others, says Arewa

From Saxone Akhaine, Kaduna

UNEMPLOYMENT, backwardness in education and moral decadence are most endemic among the 19 northern states, a study group has found, according to Arewa Economic Summit.

According to the group, set up the northern state governments to find ways of improving the economic fortunes of the region, unless those in authority embark on policies to arrest the trend, the future may be bleak for the north.

Already, the summit has set up two co-ordinator sub-committees, the state co-ordinating committee and the Technical Management Committee headed by eminent personalities to look into ways of solving the myriad problems facing the region.

Speaking at the inauguration of the summit, its co-ordinator, Mallam Bashir Mohammed, said the north had suffered serious neglect, resulting in dwindling economic and commercial activities in the area.

The Arewa Economic Summit, he noted, was non-partisan and devoid of any ethnic-religious affiliation, its main objective is to examine the myriad socio-economic problems of the north.

He said: "The combined efforts of these committees that have been set up intertwined with several months of consultation by the secretariat of the summit, the summit has thus moved from conception to birth and to growth level.

Muhammed stated that the summit had budgeted N15 million for its operation, adding that a 15-member committee to be headed by Brigadier-General Buba Marwa(rtd) had been raised to work out modalities for raising the funds.

He appealed to all stakeholders in the summit to join hands to avert an otherwise impending catastrophe in the north.

The Chairman of the summit and former managing director of New Nigerian Newspapers, Dr. Tukur Othman, said the emergence of the summit was an indication that the North was becoming conscious of its problems.

Othman also said street begging in most northern states was an eyesore and a threat to the society, and urged stakeholders to come up with an appropriate strategy to address the situation.

The North is fully and squarely responsible for their under-development demise. The day their murderous/violent-prone and alm-seeking miseducated masses start asking the right questions and re-directing their murderous sharia justice against their corrupt/inept/selfish leaders, is the day the solution of their wows begins.