When royalties talk national peace, harmony

A one-day meeting of the National Council of Traditional Rulers in Owerri, Imo State, elicits cultural and political alignments. A one-day meeting of the National Council of Traditional Rulers was indeed a blend of culture and royalty. They all came, adorned in different attires, signifying the importance of their culture and tradition. The traditional rulers were […]

A one-day meeting of the National Council of Traditional Rulers in Owerri, Imo State, elicits cultural and political alignments.

A one-day meeting of the National Council of Traditional Rulers was indeed a blend of culture and royalty. They all came, adorned in different attires, signifying the importance of their culture and tradition. The traditional rulers were in Owerri, Imo State to appraise the peace process in Nigeria in the aftermath of the 2019 general election and to chart a way forward.

The roll call of traditional rulers at the summit included the Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Muhammadu Sa’ad Abubakar III, who is the chairman of the council, Oni of Ife, His Imperial Majesty, Oba Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi, who is the co-chairman. Others are Obi of Onitsha, His Royal Majesty Prof. Alfred Achebe, who is the chairman of the South-east council traditional rulers, Obong of Calabar, His Eminence Ediden Ekpo Okon Abasi, who led their South-south counterparts, Etsu Nupe, His Royal Highness Alhaji Yakubu Abubakar, and other eminent traditional rulers across Nigeria.

The traditional rulers, who arrived Owerri for the august Summit, were received at the palace of Eze Imo, who is also the chairman of the Imo State Council of Traditional Rulers, Eze Samuel Ohiri.

Welcoming them to his palace, Ohiri said that the peace and unity of the country must be the primary concern of all, irrespective of political or ethnic affiliations. According to him, there is the need for the country to maintain peace in the aftermath of the contentious general elections, adding that as traditional rulers and custodian of the people’s culture and tradition, the royal fathers owe it a duty to generations of Nigerians to keep the country at peace all the time.

He counselled the political class not to overheat the polity, but to channel their grievances to the appropriate quarters, especially the courts.

His admonitions were also echoed by other speakers at the occasion. The Sultan of Sokoto, who also harped on the unity of Nigeria, said that it was of paramount interest to everybody, adding that the gathering was for the purpose of fostering peace.

The Ooni of Ife said traditional rulers could not afford to be seated on their various comfort zones and see the people they are ruling scattered. He added, “So, the peace of Nigeria must cost us something worth sacrificing. All of us seated here have a duty to let our subjects know that there is always a light at the end of the tunnel. Therefore, we must rise up to join our leaders to find lasting peace to our diverse political and cultural situations.”

President Muhammadu Buhari encapsulated the mood of the meeting when he said that but for the role played by traditional rulers, the pre and post 2019 general elections could have been anything but peaceful. He stressed that as the closest institution to the people than the government, the role of traditional rulers at ensuring peaceful co-existence cannot be overemphasised.

Buhari who was represented by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Mr. Boss Mustapha, said, “But the most sterling issue about the whole matter is establishing peace, how to bring peace to Sokoto, to Adamawa and others. But we all understand that this responsibility rests rather more squarely on the shoulders of our traditional rulers who are closer to the people than the government.”

Earlier on their arrival, the traditional rulers had paid a courtesy visit to the Governor of Imo State, Owelle Rochas Okorocha, who said that the Igbo are one of the misunderstood people in Nigeria despite the fact that it is only the Igbo amongst all other ethnic groups that can go to any other town and settle to develop that culture.

He said, “The Igbo man is the one who will hardly come back home to his grassroots without leaving a lasting impression of good development in the place he is living. But Nigerians have taken this for weakness. And that is why at every side they are chased from pillar to post as if they are not part of the entity called Nigeria.”