Lamido, PRP criticise northern govs over US symposium on security

A former governor of Jigawa State, Sule Lamido and the national leadership of the People’s Redemption Party (PRP) have described the recent security trip by three northern governors abroad as a waste of resources and advancement of shame and embarrassment beyond the country’s frontier.

Recall that three northern governors had jetted out of the country to receive a lecture at the American Institute for Peace, titled, “Advancing Stability in Northern Nigeria.”

But Lamido, a former minister of foreign affairs, on his verified Facebook page yesterday said, “If the governors had travelled to the US to engage on how to boost agriculture, health issues, or any other pressing local problems listed on the concurrent list of our constitution, this could be quite understandable.

“But to engage on issues that are on the exclusive legislative list, such as security, says a lot about the substance they are made of. Security is a very wide subject, which their excellences must have the capacity to grasp.

“If the governors were serious and wanted to have a lecture on security, they need not have embarked on such a wasteful journey with the accompanying expenditure of flight tickets, hotels with all their aides, and above all, the valuable time wasted at the expense of running their states.

“Certainly, they could have gotten more than they wanted from our resourceful institutions, such as NIPSS in Kuru Jos, ASCON in Badagry, or even NIA.”

Similarly, the People’s Redemption Party (PRP), in a statement yesterday, by its acting national publicity secretary, Muhammed Ishaq, said, “We find it appalling that these governors chose to discuss the pressing matter of insecurity in a foreign country, while the very people they govern continue to face the consequences of this issue daily.

“We call upon these governors and government officials to prioritise addressing the issues within their own jurisdictions and to demonstrate their commitment to the welfare of their people.

“PRP urges them to focus on finding practical solutions to the problems faced by their constituents, rather than engaging in extravagant and seemingly resource-embezzling events abroad.

“In conclusion, the PRP demands that the Northern governors and the involved government officials take immediate action to rectify their misplaced priorities and channel their efforts towards improving the lives of their citizens.”