Arewa: Group calls for reconciliation between Dauda, Matawalle

THE Arewa Elders Forum for Development and Peace has called on the Nigeria Governors Forum (NGF) and the Zamfara State elders to urgently convene a meeting to reconcile Governor Dauda Lawal and his immediate precedessor, Minister of State Defence, Bello Matawalle, with a view to end attacks and smear campaigns between the duo.

According to the forum, the misunderstanding between the duo has affected good governance and the peace of Zamfara State.

Deputy national secretary of the forum, Dr Aliyu Usman Rumfa, made the plea in a press release after an emergency meeting in Kaduna on Tuesday.

He stated that northern elders could not stand by and watch the misunderstanding between the two leaders, while innocent people of Zamfara were suffering daily from banditry attacks, kidnapping and other social vices including poverty and hunger.

According to him, the escalation of insecurity in Zamfara State was alarming and had inadvertently affected many areas in states bordering Zamfara, such as Sokoto, Katsina, Niger, Kaduna and Kebbi states, while the two leaders were at loggerheads.

He urged the Minister of State Defence and the state governor to unite and use their offices to improve the security situation in the state.

“Even though they are from different political parties, they ought to unite and cooperate with each other to build a formidable force that can successfully fight against insecurity challenges and bring political cohesion and progress to Zamfara State,” Rumfa stated.

“The Sultan, traditional rulers and religious leaders from Zamfara, Sokoto and the entire Northwest should offer to intervene and end this needless campaign of calumny that is destroying our sense of responsibility and political unity,” he added.

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