Atiku Frowns At State Govts’ Interference In Traditional Rulers’ Affairs Amid Alleged Plot To Dethrone Sultan Of Sokoto

By Onota Oghenevwede

Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has spoken out against the growing trend of state governments interfering in the affairs of traditional rulers, calling for constitutional reform to recognize and protect these institutions.

BIGPEN NIGERIA (https://bigpenngr.com) gathers that this is coming amidst allegation that the government is plotting to dethrone the President of Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs (NSCIA) and Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Muhammad Sa’ad Abubakar III.

In a statement on his social media handle, Atiku emphasized the importance of traditional institutions in maintaining peace and orderliness in communities, and urged state governors to accord them the necessary respect.

The former vice president stated that,the recent developments in the country has seen a growing tendency of state governments exerting influence in distorting the modalities of enthroning traditional stools.

“It is a reality that stares us in the face from every corner of the country”, he asserted.

Saying that it is understandable that the institutions of traditional rulership is in the exclusive purview of the state government, although through the local government authorities, Atiku maintained that it must be established that traditional institutions constitute a component of our governance structure.

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According to him, traditional institutions must be protected from the arbitrariness of state governments that threaten their stability.

He that when the structure of ascension of traditional rulers is unstable, it will become equally difficult to maintain peace and orderliness in communities.

Continuing, he said; “Although our constitution, in its current format, does not ascribe any recognition to traditional institutions, yet our experiences show clearly that they perform enormous roles in the economic life of their domains, as well as maintenance of peace and security in communities.

“I wish to remind that the traditional institutions formed the governance structures before the advent of the colonialists. And they governed well. Consequently, they are institutions we must protect and preserve and not destroy”.

“Moreover, on this basis that I lean towards the advocacy that calls for constitutional reform that will not just recognize traditional institutions in our body of laws but also define the responsibilities of their offices.

“This reform is even more important in view of the collective drive to stem the ugly tide of terrorism and sundry security challenges at the local levels.

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$Therefore, I must also appeal to state governors to accord the necessary respect to the offices of traditional institutions. The customs that our traditional rulers represent is the totality of our heritage as a people”, he said.