Bill To Establish National Council of Traditional Rulers With Sultan of Sokoto, Ooni Of Ife As Permanent Co-Chairmen: An Assault On Nigerians

The assault and violation of Nigerians with the bill meant to establish a National Council of Traditional Rulers with the Sultan of Sokoto and one other as permanent co-chairmen

1. Preamble:

The present attempt by the National Assembly to legislate a National Council of Traditional Rulers into being by mere NASS bill is the second attempt by the present regime to whimsically alter the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria without following the due process for amending that Constitution.

The creation of such Council is supposed to be legitimately done through an amendment that will include the Council in the Third Schedule Part I – Federal Executive Bodies, in the 1999 Constitution. The first such violation was on the touted financial autonomy of the Local Government Areas (LGAs) in order to enable the Federal Government to control them.

This second one of creating a National Traditional Rulers Council, with the Sultan of Sokoto and the Ooni of Ife as permanent co-chairmen challenges the 1999 Constitution the same time it provokes the ire of 376 out of 378 ethnic nationalities of the Federation.

Thus it portends much more ominous religious, security and financial dimensions than can be ordinarily perceived. Allowed to stand, this regime can arbitrarily alter every part of the 1999 Constitution by railroading bills through the National Assembly as they did with the Rivers State Emergency confirmation.

2. Explosive Religious, Security and Financial Implications

The 2014 President Jonathan’s National Conference Recommendation 6.18.1 & 2 – Constitutional and Policy Issues, proposed a role for Traditional Rulers implying that the Sultan of Sokoto would be the head of the proposed Council. The Sultan of Sokoto is the religious leader of Moslems of Nigeria, particularly of the North West and North East zones.

If the proposed Council were a religious one we would have promptly demanded that the chairmanship should rotate among Moslem and other leaders of Christianity and the indigenous faiths both of which constitute an overwhelming majority of followers throughout Nigeria.

It is however admitted that the Sultan is also the traditional ruler of only a tiny minority of about 7 million Fulanis in Nigeria’s over 200 million population.

In the later role, he also acts for his fellow Fulanis as the Chief patron of Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of  Nigeria, whose cattle herders  are presently Nigeria’s chief menace and molesters as  Fulani Islamic militants, otherwise  ranked in the Global Terrorist Index  (GTI) as the world’s 6th most vicious terrorists by number of deaths and attacks generated annually by them.

In Nigeria, the Fulani Herdsmen Terrorism is more pervasive than even Boko Haram, the world’s 3rd ranked terrorists.

On this count alone, Nigerians have every reason to be wary of any proposal for the Sultan to lead any such National Council, let alone a traditional one, if not for any other reason for the Federal Government over the past 10 years’ failure to rightfully gazette the Cattle Fulani militants as terrorists, despite the thousands of deaths, terrible disruption of lives, communities and the economy they cause nation-wide.

Instead, terror from them continue to be labeled as herdsmen/farmers clash even when they terrorise and kill Christian worshipper in the alter of churches during high mass as they did, with over 50 dead, on June 5, 2022, at St. Francis Catholic Church, Owo, Ondo State.  Rights agitators are instead labeled terrorists and get arbitrarily killed, arrested and detained.

The Igbo have an aphorism, wepu aka enwe n’ofe tupu ogholu aka madu, meaning remove the monkey’s fingers from the soup before it turns into human hand, whenever they suspect an underhand transaction.

In pages 286 to 296 of my 2017 work, TO THE RESCUE . . . I extensively made my submissions against such dangerous assignment of any such role to any group of traditional or religious leaders. I paraphrase the text hereunder:

“Traditional Rulers’ Intrusion: Islamic Fundamentalism is consuming Nigeria with Boko Haram Insurgency and the more pervasive Cattle Fulani herdsmen Islamic militancy which naturally follows Sharia proclamation in any polity. Proclamation or condonation of Sharia Law is a flagrant breach of Section 10 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) by Federal and State governments, the same time, the Federal Government arrests, detains and even extra-judicially murders rights agitators.”

By initiating the creation of a National Traditional Council under a fundamentalist religious leader, the Federal Government seems to be unmindful of Nigeria obvious descent into another Afghanistan.

There is palpable fear among those who have critically researched and watched the northern oligarchy and its expansionist politics since the 1950s, that this is a stealth strategy for realizing one of the key resolutions of the Gen. Ibrahim Babangida-inspired and funded 1989 Islam-in-Africa, Abuja Conference –  the establishment and enthronement of a Sultanate in Nigeria!

The Fulani militants are already overworking themselves on that project.

Traditional rulers’ role in the Constitution should be left at the state or preferably regional level (in a confederation)  where the founding fathers of Nigeria, in their wisdom, left it in the 1960/63 Constitution.  Nigeria should leave this genie of national traditional rulers’ role in the bottle in which it was caged in 1960.

To release it would be tantamount to inviting a Frankenstein monster to an already smoldering controversy. Nigeria cannot afford this experiment which might help to drive Nigeria into a State permanently turn apart by religious fundamentalism.

Nigeria’s cost of governance is already too high.  National promotion of aspects of feudalism, which today is ravaging the Upper North with poverty and terrorism, as the Military did before they handed over in 1979/1999, is a negative path which is wise not to tread. In addition, nothing positive will come out of that. Instead, it will balloon the cost of governance in addition to heightening Nigeria’s instability.

Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe, Chief Obafemi Awolowo and Sir Ahmadu Bello, Nigeria’s founding fathers, understood Nigeria’s diversity better and left traditional rulers’ advisory role at regional level in the 1959 and the 1963 Constitutions. Even then, the traditional rulers need to be watched by the security agencies.

The roles which the traditional/religious palaces in the Upper North, now play in facilitating forced conversion to Islam, marriage, rape and impregnation of kidnapped Christian under-aged girls and women in Kano, Katsina, Sokoto and Niger State, is a horrifying cause for worry.

For example, the abduction, forced conversion and marriage of 14-year old Habiba Isa, a Christian from Warkaza community of the Kudun Kankara Local Government Area of Katsina State, by the Emir of Katsina, Alhaji Abdulmumin Usman, and the ruling of the Katsina Emirate Council, that the abduction, marriage and rape of the minor, in spite of parental objections, is final, as reported in the Punch Nigerian newspaper of 13th October 2016 and other mass media, is like a horror movie to all Nigerian non-Moslems.

The Emirate Council made their declarations, in flagrant violation of the provisions of the Criminal Code Act Chapter 77, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 1990 – Sections 362, 363 and 365. . .

To a less degree, the disruptive role played by the intervention of the then Emir of Kano, delayed the liberation of 13-year-old Ese Rita Oruru, abducted in March 2015 from Yenagoa, Bayelsa State to Kano, before the Police could conclude investigation and release her to her parents  on May 26, 2016, with an unwanted pregnancy from rape in captivity.

If Nigeria must remain one country, Common Law must be the overriding Law of the land and Traditional rulers must be regulated. If  given more exposure, that would boost their stature which they are bound to abuse in more repression on their subjects which is common, particularly in the North West and North East under Sharia.

Sharia Law is incompatible with Common Law and therefore throws such societies said to be under Rule of Law back to the 7th Century AD – Devine Right of Kings! . .  That Nigeria went to war against Eastern Nigeria’s rebellion, but pulled no punches against the Sharia rebellion in 12 States of Northern Nigeria is overt proclamation that “there are, indeed two countries in Nigeria.”

3. The Sultan of Sokoto and Ooni of Ife as Co-Chairmen of the National Traditional Rulers’ Council, if the Council is created

This is self-serving and a very direct insult on the over 376 ethnic nationalities of Nigeria, excluding the Fulani and Yoruba. If that bill sees the light of day, it would mean that the 376 ethnic nationalities, who represent over 80% of Nigeria in the National Assembly, must have traded their ethnic identities to these two monarchs and at the end of the day; and perhaps ultimately to the Sultan.

The President of Nigeria, the Senate President, Legislators, Governors and others, must remember that their positions are tenured. After now, what legacies or burdens of life are they bestowing to their children.

They should remember Pope John Paul II’s advice to General Sanni Abacha during the Pontiff’s 21st to 23rd March 1998 visit to Nigeria: Respect Nigerians’ fundamental human rights for after you are gone, your own children will live and rely on the very same  Human Rights Law you now trample on and violate. Abacha died 8th June 1998 – 2 months and 16 days, thereafter!

4. What Will Save Nigeria from Present Destruction

Return to Parliamentary Democracy in a confederation of existing six zones, each responsible for its security and economy with a provision for the right to secede.

Let me ask: what common values are there between those who sacrifice  newly born babies of their kidnap victims to their dogs and those who up-hold the sanctity of life and the dignity of the human person?  None at all !!!

Chukwuemeka I. Onyesoh (Prince), an author, writer and rights advocate, writes from Enugu.

For Diaspora Digital Media Updates click on Whatsapp, or Telegram. For eyewitness accounts/ reports/ articles, write to: citizenreports@diasporadigitalmedia.com. Follow us on X (Fomerly Twitter) or Facebook