Leaders of the Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) have expressed disappointment with President Bola Tinubu’s administration, citing neglect and marginalization of Northern Nigeria.

Speaking on Tuesday, July 29, at an interactive session with government officials in Kaduna, Alhaji Bashir Dalhatu, Chairman of the ACF Board, listed several areas of concern, including insecurity, agriculture, transportation infrastructure, electricity power supply, education, healthcare, and oil exploration.

On insecurity, Dalhatu noted that the North is facing unprecedented levels of violence, with insurgent groups multiplying and attacks becoming more deadly.

The ACF Chairman also expressed concern about the federal government’s allocation to agriculture, which remains below 5% of the total budget, far short of the 25% target set by the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO).

Other areas of concern include the development of transportation infrastructure, electricity power supply, education, and healthcare.

Dalhatu called on the president to demonstrate a commitment to addressing the region’s challenges, including by increasing funding for critical sectors and implementing policies that promote economic development.

The ACF has been critical of President Tinubu’s administration, citing a lack of inclusivity and a failure to address the region’s specific needs.

“It has to be stated, and I hope this is self-evident, that Northern Nigeria has related to Asiwaju Bola Tinubu with enthusiasm, accommodation, and goodwill. Northerners went out en masse on the 25th of February, 2023, and cast their ballots for Bola Tinubu. In the event, 5.6 million out of the total 8.8 million votes he got (or 64%), came from the North.

“And yet, two years into the four-year tenure of President Tinubu, the feeling among the people of the North is, to put it mildly, completely mixed. To our surprise, those who did not support him, did not vote for him, and hardly wished him well, have emerged from nowhere and are trying to push a wedge between him and the North.

“Whether or not they are succeeding, we do not know. But we cannot pretend not to observe that President Tinubu’s budget priorities, his infrastructural projects, his appointments, and other executive actions, have, over the last two years, largely sidelined Northern Nigeria.

“As far as we can see, nothing or little is being done to address the major issues of concern to the North, details of which were presented to him in writing by various groups over the years.

“Mr. Chairman, due to the critical importance of this subject matter and for the benefit of our distinguished guests from Abuja, I wish to seek your indulgence to take a few moments in order to mention a few of these issues we have raised repeatedly with Mr. President over the course of our interactions.

“Insecurity: As to be expected, our biggest concern was and remains insecurity in Northern Nigeria. We stressed the fact that over the last decade, widespread violence, characterised by massacres, bombings, cattle rustling, kidnapping, and other manifestations of conflict and insecurity, has swept across Northern Nigeria, crippling almost all productive economic activities, to say nothing of social progress.

“Even as we speak, this crisis shows no signs of abating. The insurgent groups continue to multiply, their attacks becoming more deadly. With the possible exception of Kaduna and Bauchi states, the terror level everywhere in the North has continued to rise with each passing day.

“Unless the government takes decisive, strong, audacious, and sustained measures, including the ones that address its root causes, particularly joblessness among the youth and deepening poverty, the insecurity crisis in Northern Nigeria can hardly ever be contained,” Dalhatu said. (Daily Sun)