Garlands on Sultan’s turban
On one windy Thursday ten years ago when Muhammadu Sa’ad Abubakar was the surprise choice for Sultan of Sokoto to succeed his elder brother who died four days earlier, I sat down in a Sokoto hotel room and wrote an article titled Needles in Sultan’s turban. By the time it appeared on this page four […]
On one windy Thursday ten years ago when Muhammadu Sa’ad Abubakar was the surprise choice for Sultan of Sokoto to succeed his elder brother who died four days earlier, I sat down in a Sokoto hotel room and wrote an article titled Needles in Sultan’s turban. By the time it appeared on this page four days later, I was safely in Abuja. It however earned me instant summons from the Sultan’s Palace. My managing director at New Nigerian Newspapers Professor Abubakar Rasheed had taught me that a royal father’s summons must be obeyed instantly, so I started the journey back to Sokoto with trepidation. An Army colleague of his had told me that Brigadier-General Sa’ad was a strict disciplinarian, so cold sweat ran down my spine during the long drive to Sokoto.
When I was ushered into his presence, the new Sultan warmly thanked me for the article and said many Army officers and his course mates at the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies phoned to draw his attention to it. He took up the issues I raised one and by one and said he had already began to see the truth in what I said. For me it was something of an anti-climax because as I entered the palace I saw some courtiers brandishing whips.
What were those so-called needles that I predicted would be embedded in the Sultan’s turban? In my usual Chinese-like obsession with numbers, I listed ten of them. One was a prediction that Sultan Sa’ad will have a tough time managing his branch of the Danfodio family which, after 50 years of Sir Abubakar and another ten years of Sultan Maccido, had developed something of an entitlement complex. “The family has at least 1,000 members. That’s smaller than the Saudi royal family which has about 3,000 princes but without similar oil royalties, the Sultan must find a way to manage all of them.” Sultan Sa’ad himself was a major departure from that norm because he went out of his way as a young man to build a career in the toughest of places, the Army. No wonder that he plucked out that needle.
“Next, Sultan Sa’ad must sort out his inner council of senior councillors. Two members of the Sultanate Council, namely the Magajin Rafi and the Alkalin Alkalai, also died in the ADC plane crash. Two of the remaining senior councillors, Magajin Gari and Galadiman Gari, are very young while two other members, former President Shehu Shagari and former minister Alhaji Ibrahim Gusau, are in their 80s.” This needle too was admirably plucked out.
“Next, there are the people of Sokoto. They love every son of Sir Abubakar but that is because Sir Abubakar was simple, accessible, open, had little protocol, had a lot of charm and a lot of wisdom. Sir Abubakar is a very tough act to follow but then, given the immense benefits that his personal character brought to the throne, it is an act worth trying to follow.” I do not think Sultan Sa’ad has been as simple as Sir Abubakar but he sure found the right combination for the modern day.
“The next needle in the Sultan’s turban is the endless stream of visitors. Almost every government, business, academic, political, social, student or trade union delegation that visits Sokoto must call on the Sultan. What should he say to all of them? Sir Abubakar used to listen patiently to whatever they had to say and then made a wise crack that people would remember for many years. On the other hand, Sultan Ibrahim Dasuki often lectured visitors at great length about their own work, drawing from his long experience in government, foreign service, business and politics. Sultan Sa’ad may have to find a middle way.”
From all indications he found it because in ten years he never made a gaffe. In May 2010 when Architect Namadi Sambo was nominated to become Vice President, people spread rumours in Kaduna that the Sultan had opposed Mr. Ibrahim Yakowa succeeding him as Governor of Kaduna State. For the first time ever I picked up my phone and placed a call to Sultan Sa’ad. He was very angry with the rumours and instead made a passionate appeal for calm. He said Yakowa’s assuming the governorship was a constitutional issue which will not in any way prevent anyone from practising his religion. Daily Trust had the Sultan’s admonishing as lead story the next day, and I heard that it completely demobilised youths that were planning to stage a riot.
“Next, the Sultan must contend with the state government, which appoints and sometimes removes sultans. As Alhaji Sa’ad will soon learn, every new government comes to office with a promise to reform and clean the society. In 1975 when the new military governor Colonel Umaru Alhaji Mohamed arrived in Sokoto, he told Sir Abubakar that he had come to clean the rot left behind by the former governor. Sir Abubakar said, “Even the other governor, that was what he said when he first came here”. Of course by then Sir Abubakar had been on the throne for nearly 40 years and was too powerful to worry about anything. Since Sultan Sa’ad is only 50, he may be on the throne for another 30 to 40 years and by the year 2036 he will be able to tell governors whatever he pleases.” I think His Eminence is running ahead of schedule because some weeks ago he delivered a sharp rebuke to this country’s politicians.
“Next, there is the Jama’atu Nasril Islam [JNI], the Nigeria Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs [NSCIA] and the Conference of Northern Emirs and Chiefs, all of which he is President General/Chairman. In all three organisations he would find emirs and chiefs who have been on their thrones for decades… And for the first time in his life, Sultan Sa’ad will find his military superiors deferring to him. The Emirs of Gwandu and Zuru were both Major Generals in the Army, but they will now greet him with deference.” After ten years many of the oldest Northern emirs and chiefs have passed on and the Sultan is no longer “new.”
“Next, there is the big needle of the problems of the larger Nigerian, especially Northern Nigerian, Muslim community. As this community’s new leader, Sultan Sa’ad, who was described by all his former military colleagues as a strict disciplinarian, cannot be proud of street begging, the modern method of almajirci, loafery, high rates of divorce, too early marriages, VVF, resistance to Western education, disorderly conduct at the hajj, polio and violent clashes between Muslim sects.” These are not problems that the Sultan can solve but in ten years he struck all the right tunes towards addressing them.
“Alhaji Muhammadu Sa’ad’s personal character traits may be a small needle in a Sultan’s turban. His old Army colleagues say he is very blunt and likes to ‘tell it as it is.’ That is normally an honourable thing to do but when presidents, governors, ministers, ambassadors and Army Generals now come to seek the Sultan’s advice, discretion may well be the better part of valour.” I am not claiming any credit that in ten years Sultan Sa’ad mellowed on his old Army character.
In the last decade too, problems arose that I could not have anticipated in 2006. The two biggest were the rise of Boko Haram in Nigeria and the rise of ISIS internationally. In speech after speech at national and international forums, Sultan Sa’ad has worked hard to distance Islam and Muslims from extremism and terrorism. It is still a work in progress. His biggest preoccupation nationally has been working for peace and mutual coexistence between Muslims and Christians. While as CAN President Cardinal Onaiyekan was a willing partner in that effort, Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor wasn’t. In the years to come, this task is unlikely to get any lighter. Here’s wishing His Eminence the Sultan many more decades of service to Allah and to humanity.