By Dahiru Hassan Kera
All over the world, the institution of royalty has assumed its rightful place in the public domain to the extent that, the personalities that occupy those positions are regarded as repositories of the people’s trust and goodwill and have many a times acted as intermediaries between the people and government during crisis or loss of confidence. State constitutions usually solicit the assistance of royal fathers to convey ideas and policies to their subjects.
The intervention of the royal institutions is usually pivotal in bringing much needed peace, stability, coherence and cohesion to the community in particular and the society at large thus ensuring the smooth and seamless execution of governmental programs and policies.
An example of this interplay of traditional authority and modern institutions of governance can be seen in the implementation of the indirect rule system by the colonial authorities in Nigeria, particularly Northern and Western Nigeria in the 1920-1950 when instead of directly governing the diverse people, cultures and religions of the country, Lord Frederick Lugard administration utilized the prevailing traditional institutions of authority e.g. the etsu Nupes, the obas, the tor Tivs, etc. as an interposing level of government, meaning that the colonial authority ruled the people indirectly through their kings and chiefs.
A shining example of a first class Nigerian traditional ruler that embodies the foregoing qualities and even more is the Emir of Gombe, Abubakar Shehu Abubakar III, who has shown unusual foresight, dexterity, courage, benevolence and broadmindedness in governing his vast emirate which unarguably remains one of the most sophisticated, enlightened and industrious kingdoms in the north-eastern Nigeria.
The young emir has ever since his ascension to the prestigious throne a year ago dedicated himself primarily to the betterment of the welfare and wellbeing of his subjects and not the trappings and grandeur of royalty as is the case with some emirs.
Instead of remaining in the palace reluctantly and lie dormant, the emir has assumed the mission of lifting his people from the shackles of poverty, hunger, disease, homelessness, despair and despondency.
Abubakar Shehu Abubakar III is of the view that the privileged few cannot be safe while the downtrodden majority are hungry and disenfranchised, so he has continually advocated the implementation of government policies and programs that would impact positively on his subjects as well as those in other emirates of Gombe and beyond recognizing that the world is a global village.
The ‘Mai Gombe’ believes in leadership by example and not by perception. He has taken sure-footed steps towards assisting his people rather than waiting for government. He has, among many other strides, paid an epoch visit to the Gombe State Prison to assess the living conditions of the inmates while advising the prison authorities on improving the inmates’ welfare. After praying with the astounded inmates, he took the extra-ordinary step of paying the fines of 30 inmates thus securing their release. This is an unprecedented feat in the annals of our history.
His royal highness identified the poorest of the widows and provided them with a bag of maize and N5,000 each while others got N3,000 with a bag of maize in all the wards of Gombe local government.
Believing that education is the bedrock for societal development and economic growth, the emir of Gombe has boosted the education fortunes of orphans and other promising children, sponsoring those in outstanding performance to further their education both within and outside Nigeria.
The broad-minded emir has also ensured the enrolment of 1,500 primary school pupils under the Abubakar Shehu Abubakar III Foundation where they were provided with 2 sets of uniforms, a pair of plastic and leather sandals, a pair of socks, school bags and writing materials including exercise books, pencils, eraser, sharpener and colour pencils. He promised to help them in their educational pursuit to higher level.
Apart from the emir of Gombe’s commitment to the academic excellence of his subjects, his determination to better the welfare of the countless internally displace persons (IDPs) occasioned by the dastardly activities of Boko Haram terrorists is unwavering. His royal highness distributed thousands of bags of rice and cooking oil to IDPs in Gombe state during the end of the last Ramadan season.
During Ramada, his highness had unprecedentedly visited all the major ‘Tafsir’ locations, leaving the people perplexed as they were seeing it for the first time. To harmonize the relationship and peaceful coexistence among the diverse religious organizations in the state, the emir also visited all the Islamic groups including Izala 1 & 2 and Fityanul Islam, among others. During the closing of Tasfir at Modibbo Bubayero Mosque, a special prayer was conducted for peace and economic stability of Gombe state and Nigeria as a whole.
Enthusiastically, the compassionate emir contributed either food or textile materials for orphans or money “fisabilillah”. Abubakar Shehu Abubakar (III) is no doubt a wise, caring philosopher king who has been divinely bestowed on the people of Gombe State Emirate, and Gombe state in general to wipe away the tears of the people and bring spiritual and materials succour to them, their children and generations yet unborn-may he grow from strength to strength in the service of Almighty Allah.
The people of Gombe State were surprised when they discovered that the young and widely admired emir was on a horse-riding tour within the state. The level of cheers and applauds significantly symbolize how the good people of Gombe State are connected and endeared to their emir. During the unprecedented state tour by the emir of Gombe, people had abandoned their businesses, children had abandoned their plays, and housewives had abandoned their chores just to have a glimpse of Abubakar Shehu Abubakar (III). As we wait for you to unfold more of these, our prayer is for his royal highness to be guided and protected.
Kera is a member of the Gombe Emirate Media Team
