Remarks by Architect Barnabas Yusuf Bala (Bantex), Deputy-Governor of Kaduna State, on the occasion of Ham Day, 2016
PROTOCOLS
Let me begin by thanking the organizers of this event for inviting us to Ham Day 2016. We are delighted when we see our communities coming together to celebrate their cultures, and in togetherness chart the way forward. On this occasion, I congratulate the Ham people on behalf of the Kaduna State Government.
I salute distinguished sons of our state like General Martin Luther Agwai, our performing Commissioner of Health Professor Andrew Jonathan Nok and the Deputy Speaker, Honorable John Audu Kwaturu.
Kaduna State has been blessed by the immense talents and services of several personalities whose cultural backgrounds we celebrate today. General Martin Luther has shone in every assignment, distinguishing himself as the best cadet in his set at the Nigerian Defence Academy. He rose to four-star General and went on to an equally outstanding period of service at the United Nations. General Agwai kindly consented to lead the committee our government assigned to tackle violence and insecurity in Southern Kaduna. We cannot thank him enough for the success his committee made of the assignment.
Professor Nok has led our state health team to two consecutive first prizes in the Maternal, Newborn and Child Health (MNCH) Week. John Audu Kwaturu is displaying uncommon leadership as Deputy Speaker, and energetically galvanizing people to the platform of change.
Ladies and Gentlemen, I make a clarion call to all our communities to embrace peace, and help to foster security. As already noted, the efforts of the Agwai Committee have helped to resolve the problem of violent clashes and inter-communal attacks in southern Kaduna communities. Security is a priority for this government. We are supporting the security agencies to better safeguard all of us. But we must each make our contribution to maintain harmony, shun prejudice and report all suspicious activities to the security agencies. We were especially delighted by the Kafanchan Peace Declaration signed on Wednesday, 23 March 2016 by 29 communities from five local government areas in southern Kaduna.
Key to these peace initiatives is that as individuals and communities, we must not allow ourselves, our thinking and our actions to be guided by the victim mentality. We need to break out of the prison house of the mind that holds some of us back from broad-minded engagement with other communities across the state. We cannot reduce the analysis of all the important issues in life and governance to the ethnic or religious sphere. I am aware for instance of the spread of a ridiculous rumour seeking to paint me as the victim of a fictitious fight. This sort of lies are being spread by certain journalists of southern Kaduna origin. For what reason? It seems they cannot believe the strength and vitality of the relationship that Malam Nasir El-Rufai and I have built in the service of Kaduna State. Together we shall deliver the promise of the Restoration Programme, our party’s manifesto, for the benefit of all our people.
We should reject shrill cries that often betray prejudice and be firm that we must be guided by logic and history. For all that Kaduna State has suffered from religious violence, the many lives lost and the divided neighborhoods that have sprung up as a result, it seems that some people have forgotten.
As leaders, we cannot ignore the fact that the threat of religious violence has not disappeared, and that we have a duty to confine such things to the past. That is what the Religious Preaching Bill seeks to do, to remove the possibility that irresponsible preachers and zealots of religion wilł wreak havoc in our communities, or put at risk the wellbeing of others. The bill does not in any way prevent anybody from practicing their faith. It is firmly intended to disallow any attempt to use religion to diminish, disturb or destroy others or to threaten their lives.
The circumstances that necessitated the enactment of the law in 1984 are still with us. We can all recall the horrors caused by Maitatsine, a foreigner whose intolerant preaching and activities led to violence in Kano and other parts of northern Nigeria. The 1987 religious violence which started in Kafanchan spread to Kaduna and Zaria. More recent eruptions include the Sharia riots, Miss World, Danish cartoons and some of the upheaval after the 2011 elections.
This is the first time the Religious Preaching Bill is being subjected to democratic scrutiny. It is undergoing legislative processes at the Kaduna State House of Assembly. It is time to stop the scaremongering. Everyone with a view on the bill should vigorously argue it during the public hearings the legislature will organize. This government supports faith, and will enable its practice in secure conditions.
State-wide, the government is engaged in the final phase of the payroll verification exercise. Verification has already reduced the monthly wage by N500m. This saving has been crucial in helping the state to adjust to the significantly lower allocations it is receiving from the Federation Account. The government is reducing the cost of governance, improving security and seeking the investments required to create jobs for our people. Just this week, the Executive Council approved the establishment of the Kaduna Artisan Training Programme (KADAT) to train our teeming youths in the construction trades such as plumbing, tiling, painting and electrical work, skills that would be needed as the mass housing agenda of the federal and state governments unfold.
Once again, I wish you all a happy celebration of Ham Day.
Thank you for listening.
Arc Barnabas Yusuf Bala Bantex
Deputy Governor of Kaduna State
March 25, 2016
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