PRESIDENT Goodluck Jonathan yesterday took exception to what he called the divisive statements of the nation’s leaders, urging them to mind what they say.
Speaking at the funeral of former Kaduna State Governor Patrick Yakowa in Fadan Kagoma, the President implored the elders to emphasise those things that unite rather than divide the country.
He said: “Utterances and words of elders are just like winds and waves that move, gather momentum and cause destructive effects which end results cannot be predicted. Responses of our young men and women are reflections of what the elders talk in public and even in private”.
It was unclear those the president was referring to since he did not mention names.
A few months ago, Jonathan and former President Olusegun Obasanjo fired brickbats at each other.
Obasanjo fired the first salvo when he blasted Jonathan for being weak in handling the Boko Haram menace.
The president fired back during the last Presidential Media Chat, describing the army’s 1999 invasion of Odi in Bayelsa State on Obasanjo’s order “as a disaster”.
“Old men, women and children and not militants were killed in the invasion,” Jonathan said.
Fadan Kagoma, the home town of the late Yakowa, was a beehive yesterday as the president led members of his cabinet, governors and other eminent Nigerians to the funeral.
At the funeral service which took place at the St Paul Catholic Church, Fadan Kagoma, Jonathan described Yakowa as a “bridge builder” who loved his people irrespective of their religion and tribe.
Yakowa, former National Security Adviser Gen. Andrew Azazi, Dauda Tsoho, Warrant Officer Mohammed Kamal, Commander Muritala Daba and Lt. Adeyemi Sowole were killed in an helicopter crash last Saturday on their way to Port Harcourt, Rivers State from Bayelsa State.
Yakowa’s widow, Amina said yesterday she had come to terms with her husband’s death.
Mrs. Yakowa urged the people to immortalise her husband by being committed to his ideals of peace, unity and development.
“May the death of my husband bring unity to the people of Kaduna”, she said.
Describing December 15 is a “dark Saturday”, Jonathan said: “Yakowa was a nationalist who played his roles very well as a civil servant of the old brigade and not as the civil servants of today when a director has more houses than Dangote”.
The president said there was no ethnic or religious divide in the late Yakowa’s blood, pledging the government’s continued support for his immediate family.
Kaduna State Governor Mukthar Ramalan Yero named the new carriageway and fourth bridge, in the metropolis, after the late Yakowa. He listed the achievements of the late Yakowa to include the fourth bridge and the access road, which the government named after him.
Yero recalled the late Yakowa’s words during his inauguration in April 2010, that he would not be governor for Christians alone but for all, adding: “This singular declaration endeared him to all citizens of the state and even beyond.
“His declaration in this respect manifested in his subsequent policies and programmes, thereby, earning him the acronym: Yakowa Nakowa. His vision was anchored on three cardinal thrusts, namely the task of security, unity and developing the state.
“He pursued these broad objectives with single-minded determination. The fruits of his labour had started manifesting before the cold hands of death took his life in the most tragic manner, the reality of which I am yet to come to terms with.
“My late boss, Governor Patrick Ibrahim Yakowa, exhibited uncommon leadership qualities. He was an embodiment of patience, simplicity, patriotism, peace, commitment to duty, thoroughness, honesty, nationalism, team player, experience in public service and a host of other sterling qualities that time and space will not permit me to mention”.
Yero promised to follow the foot steps of the late Yakowa by being governor for all, irrespective of religion, ethnicity or geo-political consideration, saying: “My constituency will be Kaduna State in its entirety.
“Nobody will be discriminated against on the basis of his faith or tribe. On the contrary, each and every citizen will be treated on his or her own merit. Let me in particular; assure the Christian community in the state that my government will do everything possible to protect their rights and privileges as guaranteed by the Constitution.
“The wisdom I tapped from my predecessor with regards to his sense of fairness, justice and equity will be fully utilised in the conduct of my official and even private businesses. My doors will be open for constructive criticism and initiatives on how to move the state forward in all spheres of life.
“I have also given my full commitment to the family of our departed governor, that as long as I remain the governor of Kaduna State, I will do everything possible to enhance their personal welfare.
“Painful as the demise of my boss is, I am consoled by the fact that we had opportunity to reconcile our differences on a number of issues, some of which are personal, before he passed on”.
Preaching at the funeral service, the Catholic Bishop of Sokoto Diocese, Rev Fr. Matthew Hassan Kukah, said no one could question God, pointing out that people should not feel despondent over Yakowa’s death.
“This is not the time to feel despondent, because the time has come for you to stop sleeping and wake up, because our salvation is nearer now come than when we first believe. The night is nearly over, daylight is on its way, so let us throw away everything that has got to do with darkness and embrace light (Romans 13, 11-12).
“Mr Yakowa ascended the exalted position of Kaduna State with a climax that is at best, the most fascination and exceptional career. He stood out as an exceptional child in the whole of Kaduna and especially the whole of Southern part of the state where he comes from.
“It is even tempting to assert that very few people can beat the track record he has set. He was the first person in Southern Kaduna to become a federal Minister, also the first person to become a Permanent Secretary, and the first to become the Secretary to the Government of Kaduna State. Mr Yakowa holds the record of being the only Nigerian that has served two governors as deputy and later attained the position of a governor without break at all.
“It was historic at his swearing in as the governor of Kaduna State at an event that was quite spectacular. From the creation of the state in 1987, the northern ruling class, by a policy seems to have applied an invisible sign that reads, ‘no vacancy, Christians need not apply in what later came to be known as Sir Ibrahim Kashim House’ to represent the state at the highest level.
“Despite that fact that all states were open to Christian military officers, it was only Kaduna and perhaps Sokoto that were never governed by non-Muslims. This policy of non-inclusion against non-Muslims, turn Kaduna into a political Mecca and laid the foundation for unnecessary and sad religious tension that has continued to bog the state.
“Yakowa’s death has robbed this state of one human being who brought respectability and nobility to politics. A man who demonstrated that faith can influence politics. A man who demonstrated that politics can be played by the rules. He showed that politics can serve as a means of building bridges, and he built bridges across the country.
“He made Muslims respect and appreciate the Christian faith, and he showed the kind of human life that few in public service have demonstrated. Where he died and why he died was a true reflection of who the man was.
“Some are even asking, ‘why did the Governor not send a representative to the burial of the father of Mr Oronto Douglas, a young man who was of no immediate political benefit to Mr Yakowa’. Those of us, who know Yakowa very well, will testify and can testify that this is exactly what the man was.
“He was selfless; he took friendship rather too seriously. He never counted the cost of sacrifice he made to his friends. By befriending Oronto Douglas, he saw a chance to place a building block somewhere in the creeks of Niger Delta so that one day someone may walk across that bridge.
“He was a man whose life was marked by simplicity, honesty, rectitude, character, integrity, probity, dedication to duty, sacrifice and almost an absolute faith and dedication to friendship…to my dear brothers and sisters of Southern Kaduna, despite the cloud of fear, doubts and uncertainty, we must not surrender to self doubt and prejudices.
“We have lost a dear son, but we have not lost our future.
“Those who project Islam as the basis for power, have now created crisis that has threatened the foundation of our society, especially in Northern Nigeria. Those who use religion, have used the North, and left it poorer than they met it, more divided than when they started.
“But Mr Yakowa has managed to build bridge to a unite a people who have started to believe in one another as brothers and sisters despite the difficulties. He was relentless in the pursuit of peace. The result is that, he has rather, successfully, blunted the sharp cutting edge of religion in our public lives…”
He said the Sultan of Sokoto Alhaji Sa’ad Abubakar (II), Gen. Muhammadu Buhari, presidential candidate of the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) and a wide array of leading Muslims “deeply mourned” Yakowa.
He said he saw ordinary Muslims, young and old mourn Yakowa.
“But It was reported that some people had rejoiced at the death of Yakowa. These people do not represent the average Muslims”, he said
“These scoundrels are the toxic waste of our humanity who will dance and rejoice at the nakedness of fathers and mothers in the market place. They should not distract us Christians and Muslims as we hold hands together across the country”, he said.
Cardinal John Onaiyekan conducted the Requiem and the Eucharist Mass.
Among those in the attendance were former Head of State, Gen. Abdusalami Abubakar, Senate President, David Mark, Speaker Aminu Tambuwal, Chairman of Governors’ Forum, Rotimi Amaechi of Rivers State and his wife, Judith, Governors Babangida Aliyu (Niger), Gabriel Suswam (Benue) and Olusegun Mimiko (Ondo). Others are Deputy Governors James Ngilari (Adamawa), Peter Kishira (Kwara), Abubakar Aliyu (Yobe), Umar Mustapha (Borno) and Damishi Lucas (Nasarawa). Peoples Democratice Party National Chairman, Alhaji Bamanga Tukur, his predecessors, Chief Solomon Lar, Chief Audu Ogbe and Alhaji Amadu Ali as well as Prof Jerry Gana, were also there.
