Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Muhammadu Sa’ad Abubakar, has told the Federal Government that Nigerians were increasingly being frustrated by poverty and hunger, thus challenging the political officeholders to rise to their responsibilities of protecting Nigerians and uplifting their living standards.
The Sultan also told the government that Nigerians were living in challenging times, warning that nobody should think or say otherwise, including the political office holders, some of whom have acknowledged the fact.
In his remarks at the first quarterly meeting of the Nigeria Inter-Religious Council (NIREC) in Abuja, yesterday, the Sultan said poverty and hunger in Nigeria had got to a point where some people could commit any kind of crime, including murder for as little as N500.
He, therefore, appealed to the government at all levels to rise to the occasion and improve the living standard of the people.
Sultan, co-chair of the NIREC, said: “The issue of corruption in Nigeria has been constantly discussed at every public and private fora, but unfortunately, it has refused to leave us. It’s important we commission research to find out why it’s difficult to defeat corruption.
“It’s now normal for politicians to come to office and target the commonwealth of the people. They get richer overnight, and no one can question them. Some even become richer than the state. That’s sad.
“Unfortunately, this will continue to happen as long as we have political officeholders, who come to office and do whatever they want with the resources of the people unchecked. After four or eight years, depending on their ability to manipulate the office, the rots continue in the system.
“We are living in very difficult and challenging times in this country, and nobody should think or say otherwise. Even our leaders acknowledged that fact. Now, to know you have a problem means you have half of the solution.”
