Elder statesman and former Vice-Chancellor of Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Prof. Ango Abdullahi, has lamented what he described as the erosion of values and leadership in Northern Nigeria, saying the region’s decline is rooted in the abandonment of the principles upheld by its founding leaders.
Speaking on Saturday at the third General Hassan Usman Katsina Memorial Conference held at Arewa House in Kaduna, Abdullahi said the North’s current challenges were the result of moral and leadership failure rather than a lack of physical development.
The conference, themed “From Sacrifice to Strategy: Rekindling Gen. Hassan Usman Katsina’s Vision for a Prosperous Northern Nigeria,” brought together political leaders, academics and other stakeholders to reflect on the region’s future.
According to Abdullahi, the North has drifted away from the values of discipline, honesty, sacrifice and selfless leadership that once defined the region.
“The North has lost its values. You may not want to hear this, but that is the case today. If we have not lost the values we inherited from our parents, from our pioneer leaders, the North will not be where it is today,” he said.
He argued that despite visible physical development in many northern cities, the region had continued to stagnate because it had abandoned the principles that once guided its leaders.
“The North is in a pathetic situation. For me, that is the only reason why the North has stagnated. Don’t worry about the buildings you see. The basic issue concerning where the North finds itself today is the loss of our values,” he added.
Abdullahi urged leaders across the region to emulate the late Gen. Hassan Usman Katsina, describing him as a symbol of integrity, accountability and selfless service.
“If we can go back to those values, particularly by remembering those who inherited them and practised them, there is no doubt in my mind that the North would have been different today,” he said.
Delivering the keynote address, former Executive Secretary of the National Board for Technical Education (NBTE), Prof. Idris Bugaje, said Northern Nigeria had suffered decades of economic decline, worsening insecurity and institutional decay because it had moved away from the leadership ideals exemplified by figures such as Gen. Hassan Katsina.
He said insecurity, poverty and weak institutions had continued to undermine agriculture, commerce, education and healthcare across the region.
“The troubles of the North are many and varied. Food production is going down daily, hundreds of thousands are being displaced from their homes, the economy has been shrinking, poverty has nearly tripled, education and healthcare have collapsed, and our human capital has been depleted,” Bugaje said.
He questioned the quality of leadership in the region, asking where leaders with the commitment and vision of Hassan Katsina could be found today.
Bugaje also criticised sections of the Northern elite for merely lamenting the region’s problems without offering practical solutions.
“It has become the pastime of the elite to sit in the comfort of their homes and say that the North is in trouble. Some even scream that the North is finished. These comments only betray the complacency or even the complicity of the northern elite,” he said.
Recalling an encounter with the late military governor, Bugaje narrated how Hassan Katsina encouraged him to continue writing after the then United States ambassador complained about one of his articles criticising Western imperialism.
According to him, the late general represented a generation of leaders who combined modern education with discipline, modesty, justice and commitment to public service.
He urged today’s leaders to embrace those values in tackling the North’s growing social, economic and security challenges.
The annual memorial conference was organised to honour the legacy of the late Gen. Hassan Usman Katsina and promote discussions on leadership, governance and sustainable development in Northern Nigeria.
(The Whistler)