Sanusi seeks ban of CAN, JNI, Afenifere, ACF, Ohanaeze, others

CENTRAL Bank Governor Mallam Sanusi Lamido Sanusi has recommended the ban of religious and socio-cultural groups.

Sanusi, who spoke yesterday at a dinner organised by the Northern Reawakening Forum (NRF) in Abuja, listed such associations to include; the Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF), Afenifere, Ohaneze Ndigbo, Ja’amatu Nasril Islam (JNI) and the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN).

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) chief said such bodies were self-seeking groups jostling for political space and relevance.

He described the groups as political associations in religion and regional garbs.

Sanusi said: “When I was approached to speak on the economy at the forum called the Northern Reawakening Forum, my initial reaction was that I don’t go to these regional and ethnic groups because I have a very strong views against Arewa, Afenifere, Ohaneze and other regional and ethnic groups.

“And I think these regional and ethnic groups should be banned; including, by the way, Ja’amatu Nasril Islam (JNI), and Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN).

“They should be banned because they are not religious organizations; they are not cultural organisations; they are political associations in disguise of religion and region.”

He noted that forming a regional group had been the style of those seeking political relevance.

Sanusi said: “If I want, when I leave office, I could do the same by setting up an Association of Cattle Fulani Muslims and create a group.

“I find a series of old grievance between Fulanis and their Hausa neighbours and that is it. I become a nuisance and people have to deal with me.”

He lamented that people now cash in on their headship of such organisations to gain access to the seat of governance.

Sanusi said: “You go to the Aso Rock Villa; you go the Presidency and see somebody walk in freely.

“The only reason he is there is because such person is the leader of a group that is threatening the security of this country. He hasn’t got anything to contribute.

“But he has to be called because if you don’t talk to him, there will be no peace; meanwhile, the Constitution says the Federal Government must promote associations that cut across ethnic and religious divides.

“What do we have, we have a religious organisation or regional organisation that invites government officials to come and speak and they invite them and honour them. And what you get is glorifying these regions and religions.

“The difference between a Muslim and a Christian in the North is nothing compared to the wide gulf between a rich Muslim and a poor Muslim or a rich Christian and a poor Christian.

“We created differences through the kind of societies we have created. Societies that exclude people vertically and horizontally and let us understand that the insecurity that we have can only be resolved by addressing these marginalisation.”

Sanusi had earlier noted that his study of Bible Knowledge up to school certificate level as a student in Kings Colleges opened his eyes to the wide internal gulf and divisions both in Christianity and Islam.

He said: “By the way, at the age of eight, my parents took me to a Catholic boarding school.

“In Kings College, I voluntarily took Bible Knowledge up to West African School Certificate level and what I discovered in my relationships with both Christians and Muslims is that on the face of it, you can’t get into any religion and have so many sects and get close enough.

“At the end of the day it’s about human beings accepting a fundamental fact that faith is a personal thing.

“What I believe cannot be imposed on the next person. I think that we all believe but unfortunately I think the elites in Northern Nigeria find religion to be a very good instrument in the contestation of space for political power and for distribution of resources.

“This is not about taking the debate to the area of understanding the Koran or the Bible. It is about moving that entire conversation to those things that we need as human beings.

“Do we have education? Do we have electricity? And do we have health? Whether you are a Muslim or Christian, a hungry man is a hungry man. A hungry Christian is a hungry man and a hungry Muslim is a hungry man. Economy is the major cause and answer to these problems.”

Speaking on the agricultural potentials of the North, the former National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Chief Audu Ogbe, urged the leaders in the North to invest massively in agriculture if they hope to salvage the land.

Chairman of the event and Deputy Governor of Kaduna State, Ambassador Nuhu Bajoga, noted that the task of reawakening the North was herculean.