The Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) has raised concern over the planned relocation of Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) units and headquarters of the Federal Airport Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) to Lagos, describing it as a ploy to further under-develop Northern Nigeria.
The CBN management recently announced plans to relocate some of its key departments from Abuja to Lagos, sparking a wave of anxiety and outcry from many Nigerians, especially northerners who would be most adversely affected by the exercise.
This was followed by yet another plan by the FAAN to relocate to Lagos, due to what it called shortage of office space and high volume of air traffic handled by Lagos.
ACF kicks
But in a statement signed by its National Publicity Secretary, Professor Tukur Muhammad-Baba, the ACF claimed the two announcements were aimed at serving the same purpose which is the underdevelopment of the Northern region of the country.
The statement said: “The CBN’s decision is by no means isolated or normal administrative action to fix some logistics problem. Rather, it fits into a disturbing pattern of antagonistic actions often taken by certain federal administrations against the interests of Northern and other parts of Nigeria.
“The proposed actions of the two agencies, i.e. CBN and FAAN are precipitous and mala fide. Still on the Ministry of Aviation, only 8 of 40 directors recently appointed are from the North! A leaked letter to the Minister of Aviation from a contractor, AVSATEL, became public, wherein the company sought permission to relocate the project for refurbishing Airport Rescue and Fire Fighting Vehicles (ARFF) from Katsina to “the south” or Abuja, but sneakily mentioning Lagos, Ibadan or Enugu.
“AVSATEL sought to rationalise its suggestion on issues that should have been in the scope of the works when the company bided for the job but which it clearly ignored then. It is easy to ignore such planned actions by the CBN and FAAN (and AVSATEL), but it is impossible to fail to see in them a clear pattern of thinly disguised marginalisation of the North. Nor is the grand strategy entirely new. President Obasanjo’s first action in office in 1999 was to order the relocation of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) and the Nigerian Institute of International Affairs (NIIA), from Abuja to Lagos.
“Today almost all agencies and institutions responsible for the marine economy and especially the sea ports, are concentrated at Lagos, which retains undisturbed monopoly over port operations and sea traffic in and out of Nigeria, even as Calabar, Uyo and Port Harcourt offer as much if not better facilities.
“When the public condemns such obsession with relocation to Lagos, it is clearly reacting against a disturbing pattern of swindle perpetrated by some federal government officials against sections of the country. Northern Nigeria in particular has long lived under the shadow of these threats and has endured a series of calamities as a result. It was only the successful discovery and exploration of oil along the Kolmani River, in Gombe state, that discredited the propaganda that oil does not exist in the North. The vile propaganda was to discourage the investment of resources looking for oil up North.
“Sadly, such has also been the case with a number of other federal projects meant to be located anywhere in the North, such as dredging of rivers Niger and Benue (so that the North remains landlocked), Mambilla Hydroelectric Dam (Kainji and Shiroro are dams too, many dams will be up North!), grazing reserves for the development of the livestock sub-sector, to list but a few. For decades, certain powerful interests within the Federal Government, who seem scared of the North, have refused to allow the projects to be undertaken.
“Given all of the above and more, the Arewa Consultative Forum remains unconvinced that the government agencies trying to relocate to Lagos will be doing so on any noble grounds. ACF calls on the Federal Government of Nigeria, and the National Assembly, to call on those agencies to retrace their steps and apply other honest means of addressing the alleged over-crowding in offices. Against the situation in Lagos, there is plenty of land in the Federal Capital Territory for expansion of office and other infrastructural facilities and such factors should not be used to obfuscate sinister motives.
“Katsina remains the location of the ARFF, as in the original scope of works. AVSATEL should not try to hoodwink the FG with untenable drivels designed to shortchange the North. ACF wishes to remind all concerned that decades ago, the seat of the capital of the Federal Republic was moved from Lagos to Abuja for reasons that remain valid, it is constitutional even more so today, constitutionally so, although, of course, a section of the country never liked the decision,” the ACF said.
…Arewa youths too
Expressing similar worry, the Arewa Youth Consultative Forum (AYCF) said the planned relocations posed a significant threat to Abuja’s status as the capital city and could have negative implications for the nation as a whole.
AYCF President General Yerima Shettima raised the concerns in a statement, a copy of which was obtained by one of Blueprint reporters in Abuja.
He emphasised that this move risks undermining national unity, disrupting operations, causing economic setbacks, and perpetuating regional imbalances.
“Abuja was deliberately chosen as the capital to promote national unity and decentralise power. Any agenda that seeks to tamper with this arrangement will be fiercely resisted by AYCF and its supporters,” the statement said.
Shettima further expressed disappointment at the complicit silence of the Northern elite regarding the latest moves.
He said “the Northern elite must not be silent when the political and economic viability of Northern Nigeria is at stake, and that well-meaning Nigerians should speak out against this emerging arbitrariness.”
The AYCF then called on the relevant authorities “to reconsider these proposed relocations in light of the potential harm they may cause to Abuja’s status as the capital city and the nation as a whole. The organisation urges decision-makers to prioritise national unity and ensure that any actions taken do not perpetuate regional imbalances or compromise the political and economic viability of Northern Nigeria.”
AYCF, he said, “remains committed to its mission of promoting unity and development in Northern Nigeria and the nation as a whole.”
It vowed to continue advocating for the preservation of Abuja’s status as the capital city and to resist any attempts to undermine national unity.
