THE Southern Leaders Forum (SLF) has expressed shock at the revelation of the World Bank Group President, Jim Yong Kim, that the bank had concentrated on the northern region of Nigeria based on request from President Muhammadu Buhari, saying giving such instructions to the bank to concentrate on a section of the country where he hails from threw a knife at the heart of the country’s nationhood.
Besides, the SLF said the directive also challenged the “hackneyed expression that the ‘unity of Nigeria is settled”‘
SLF expressed this concern on Sunday in a statement issued by Chief Guy Ikokwu for the South East,   Senator Bassey Henshaw (South South) and Mr Yinka Odumakin representing South West, copy of which was made available to Tribune Online.
It would be recalled that the World Bank Group, Yong Kim, said in their first meeting, President Buhari had specifically told him that he would like body to shift our focus to the northern region, a directive he said had since been complied with.
SLF described the directive as sectional, discriminatory, divisive and against the laudable promise of President Buhari at his inauguration that he would not be beholden to anyone as he was elected to be the President of all Nigerians.
The group said the situation became more shocking amidst provocative deployment of “Operation Python Dance” and “Crocodile Smile” to a section of the country while the World Bank was being dispatched to another.
“This directive without mincing words is sectional, discriminatory, divisive and against the laudable promise of Mr President at his inauguration that he would not be beholden to anyone as he was elected to be the President of everybody.
“It riles the more when we have a situation of provocative deployment of ‘Operation Python Dance’ and ‘Crocodile Smile’ to a section of the country while the World Bank is being dispatched to another,” SLF said.
“There can never be any rational explanation for why such a request should be made by a president with a pan-Nigerian mandate. The only explanation that would have convinced was if we were told that such a discussion did not take place at all,” the group added.
Speaking further, SLF described the Presidency response to the revelation as “very rude, bellicose, insensitive and knee-jerk response,” saying the unfortunate tirade from the Presidency showed a very deep contempt and palpable impunity as 90 per cent of its content was devoted to abusing those who had shown rightful indignation at such a development.
“We have also studied the very rude, bellicose, insensitive and knee-jerk response from the Presidency on the matter. The unfortunate tirade from the office of the President showed a very deep contempt and palpable impunity as 90% of its content was devoted to abusing those who have shown rightful indignation at such a development. It is not on record that even the British colonial masters addressed Nigerians in such scornful and brash language.
“The only tepid explanation in the spiteful statement was that the President’s request was for the reconstruction of the North East. But Kim was emphatic about ‘northern region’ and not North East.
“Matter-of-factly, Kim statement and the reality on ground in terms of ethnic balancing in the last two years in the country is like the story of a warrior who drank six bottles of water as he was boasting of killing six men at the war front. If his listeners did not see the six he killed, the six empty bottles are before them.
“We would not have raised an alarm if the Word Bank Chief had stated that the request was to pay special attention to the North East as we are sympathetic to the devastation caused there by their children who embraced a destructive ideology. Even at that, we expected that the Federal Government would be apologetic and seek the understanding of Nigerians instead of resulting to insults and needless abuses.
“We have since seen figures from projects done in the country by the World Bank within the tenure of the administration which show that about $1b worth projects are specifically for the North-East, while about $2.9bn worth of projects is for the whole of the country, including the northern states.
“Just as the North-East deserves special attention, so also is the South-South, South East and South-West, especially as the repayment of these facilities will mostly come from these parts.
The Presidency should be more nuanced, speak the language of persuasion and not behave as if it is at war with Nigerians.
“This gaffe has again raised the urgent need for the restructuring of Nigeria so that the constituents units of Nigeria do not have to struggle to control or pray for the mind of whoever is at the centre before they can witness development,” SLF said.
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