A chieftain of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) and former Kano State Commissioner for Works and Infrastructure Muazu Magaji has said that citizens in the northern part of the country invested so much money and energy into ensuring that Muhammadu Buhari became president.
Magaji said this when he featured on Channels Tv programme, Sunrise Daily, on Thursday, to discuss the rising state of insecurity in Nigeria and the government’s response.
He said for more than a decade, the North rooted so much for Buhari and invested so much money, energy and time to make him president, which allowed him to enjoy public support.
However, he noted that the nation was facing several challenges under the president seen as a retired general and a credible anti-corruption crusader.
“Today, we are discussing all these issues in this country under the same President Muhamadu Buhari. So, we are coming to the realisation that it’s not about individuals, it’s about the systems,” Magaji said.
He noted that apart from the leakage of the system which allowed some ‘marauders to wreak havoc’ in the country, some Nigerians were aggrieved due to regional dynamics.
The former Kano commissioner said there were also forces working counter-productively against the progress of the country because they felt they were being marginalised and dominated by some other groups in the country.
Magaji noted that the sense of marginalisation felt by some parts of the country transformed into reality, stressing that there were examples to show for it.
An analysis of the top management of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) conducted by The ICIR showed an uneven geographical spread of senior appointments and reflects a less gender-friendly national corporation.
According to the report, of 40 senior management positions within the NNPC, 24 are occupied by Nigerians from the North while 16 are headed by those from the South.
A week ago, the governor of Benue State Samuel Ortom had accused Buhari of ‘working for’ the Fulani ethnic group to take over the country.
Ortom said this following an attack on IDP camps in Benue State, noting that the ‘body language’ of the president showed that he was only the president of the Fulani people.
“His body language is what is being played out. The body language, the action and inaction of Mr. President shows that he is only the President of Fulani people; I have known this,” Ortom said on April 27, after visiting the scene of the attack.
In many parts of the country, there have been several crises between the Fulani herders and farmers which have led to deaths and displacement of several Nigerians, especially those in the south-western part of the country.
Lukman Abolade is an Investigative reporter with The ICIR. Reach out to him via [email protected], on twitter @AboladeLAA and FB @Correction94