Sylvanus Viashima, Jalingo
Governor Darius Ishaku of Taraba State has urged the Emir of Kano Muhammad Sanusi to use his exalted office as a respected traditional ruler to foster peace and unity rather than fan the embers of discord.
In a press statement issued, in Jalingo, on Sunday, and signed by the Senior Special Assistant, Media to the governor, Mr. Bala Dan Abu, Governor Ishaku said that the state government was already working assiduously to ensure lasting peace in the state.
The governor was reacting to statement credited to Emir Sanusi, accusing the governor of training and arming militia men in the state.
The governor said the accusation were not only unfounded, but also very misleading and unfair to the governor.
“The attention of the Taraba State Government has been drawn to a statement credited to the Emir of Kano, Muhammad Sanusi II to the effect that the state government is training and arming militia men in the state. The Emir’s allegation is unfounded, misleading and unfair”.
Governor Ishaku insisted that the administration has remained very committed to ensuring peaceful coexistence among the various sections of the state and one would have expected the Emir to use his position to complement the efforts of the governor in promoting peace in the region rather than fane the flames of discord and disunity.
“The administration of Governor Darius Dickson Ishaku has done a lot since inception to promote peaceful relationship among the ethnic groups and communities in the state. Even in the case of herdsmen/farmers conflicts, the administration has ensured that the issues involved are promptly and amicably resolved and security provided so that no party to the crisis suffers undue and unnecessary hardship. The law on Anti-Open Grazing and the establishment of ranches is in furtherance of government’s peace efforts”, he said.
Ishaku insisted that the “government has not recruited militia men and is not involved in the training of such people anywhere in or outside of the state”, and advised the Emir to rather “use his vantage position as a traditional and religious leader to complement the peace efforts of the government rather than raise unnecessary alarm capable of causing disaffection among the peace-loving people of the state”.
Daily Sun recalls that the state’s Anti-Open Grazing and Ranch Establishment law signed, in July, last year, came into effect early this year with a stream of activities aimed at ensuring smooth implementation of the law, including series of workshops across the state to sensitise the stakeholders on the mutually beneficial relationship and other advantages that could be harnessed with the law coming into being.