Ahmed Yahaya – Joe
“If a native chief has lost prestige and influence to such a degree that he has to appeal to government to enforce his orders, he becomes not merely useless but a source of weakness to the administration.”
– Sir John Dealtry Lugard in; Political Memoranda, Revision of Instructions to Political Officers on Subjects Chiefly Political and Administrative, 1913-1918
The attached picture was taken in August, 2019 after a closed-door meeting at the Aso Rock Villa. Neither the host nor visitors availed the public with the details of what had transpired. Wise men.
All one can recall is that a few months after in February, 2020 the Emir of Ningi in Bauchi State, Yunusa Danyaya, implored President Muhammadu Buhari to intervene in the raging dispute between Kano State Governor Abdullahi Ganduje and Kano Emir, Muhammadu Sanusi II, “
By March, 2020 Sanusi II was dethroned by Ganduje despite Emir Nayaya pleading, “Your Excellency, Mr President, we are begging you to intervene in this matter. The Emir will have his dignity, the government should also have its dignity, that is my plea.”
I cannot say with certainty if the Emir of Muri, Abbas Njidda Tafida was part of the delegation of Northern emirs and chiefs that visited Mr. President back then.
While history would be kind to him as a Lugardian ideal of a no-nonsense monarch that did not rely on the government to rid his emirate of bandits, Flora Shaw’s husband would have been appalled at Emir of Ningi.
The Allegory of Long Spoons is a Jewish parable attributed to a certain Reb Haim who;
“who had the opportunity to be taken to see hell. There, he observed banquet tables laden with food, surrounded by people clearly suffering from hunger. On closer inspection he could see that the people held very long spoons in their hands, so they could not reach their mouths.
Next, Reb Haim was taken to heaven. Here, too, were banquet tables laden with food, surrounded by people. But these people were satisfied, happily engaged in conversation. He saw that these people, also had long spoons but as he watched, one person filled a spoon and brought it to the mouth of the person across the table. That person thanked the first and returned the favor.
Seeing this, Reb Haim went back to hell, to share the secret of how to eat and end the suffering. The inhabitants of hell, however, replied that they would rather starve than feed people whom they held in such great contempt.”
When the Northern emirs and chiefs dined at the Villa back in 209 equitably feeding themselves across the table in PMB’s council chambers reminiscent of Reb Haim’s heaven, no communiqué was deemed necessary.
But when these same wise men recently met with Northern governors, they were ambushed in a political crossfire in the Kaduna communiqué.
While monarchs have no particular role in the 1999 Constitution as the Emir of Muri has shown by practical example, a monarch does not need any politician to be relevant.
The haunting images of the assault on Idu Idunganran, seat of the Oba of Lagos, Rilwan Akiolu during the EndSARS protests have since entered into Internet history.
In his own words the Eleko of Eko admitted that monies, food items and artefacts were looted from his palace. That the revered staff office of the Eleko of Eko was with reckless abandon paraded along the streets by fearless urchins should be instructive to other monarchs across Nigeria.
His Majesty Akiolu, a retired AIG had to rely on an armed contingent of soldiers to ferry him to safety away from his attackers, his neighbors, his subjects.
Based on the contents of the “Political Memoranda”, Lugard would have abandoned him to angry Lagosians.
The fallout of the recent Kaduna meeting has predictably triggered some angry reactions.
First, by the Middle Belt Forum;
“We are shocked that instead of harping on the bloodshed ripping across the country, the governors and traditional rulers are concerned with which of the zones takes over power in 2023. The northern governors and traditional rulers are simply being clever by half as they are only attempting to hide behind a finger.”
Second, by Miyetti Allah Kautal Hore;
“We condemn in totality the Northern Governors Forum meeting with Emirs in attendance. They sit to discuss their self-aggrandize motives leveraging ways and means to enrich themselves to the detriment of the wellbeing of their people.”
Our monarchs are supposed to be arbiters for the people and not collaborators wirh the political class. The way and manner these nobles have been promptly talked back to after their recent Kaduna meeting with Northern governors should be an early warning of sorts.
Lest we forget, MBF and Miyetti Allah don’t ever agree on any issue. That is why this recent benign convergence of strange bed fellows is poignantly instructive for anybody that is politically discernible in our nation.
The ability to carefully read and properly interpret criticism is supremely important. Disregard the messenger but evaluate the message.
Verisk Maplecroft, is a global risk and strategic consulting firm in the UK. In July 2020, they listed 37 countries at risk of “grassroot anger as mass protests driven by economic fallout of the Covid-19 lockdown would aggravate unrest over preexisting grievances,”
Our nation was number one on that list. The Armed Conflict Location & Event Data (ACLED) template was used to arrive at Nigeria’s rating that gave “2-3 months” for the “perfect storm” to happen.
As EndSARS played in October, 2020, many Nigerians pretended not to remember the early warning in; “Emerging markets face wave of unrest as lockdowns ease” by Tom Arnold posted on July 16, 2020 on Reuters.com
The Northern emirs and chiefs ought to have known better that they were hosted in Kaduna by someone who in February, 2020 declared, “We will have to sit down and endorse someone, most likely someone from the south, because after eight years of Buhari, I don’t think the presidency should remain in the north,” but by September, 2021 proclaimed, “No one has the right to sit in Lagos or Port Harcourt and say northerners must relinquish power to the south.”
“Despise the free lunch. What is offered free is dangerous – it usually involves either a trick or a hidden obligation. By paying your own way you stay clear of deceit.”
– page 333 of, 48 Laws of Power
