Ganduje Urges Unity, Governance Continuity

Former Kano State Governor Abdullahi Umar Ganduje has urged Nigerians to turn the country’s diversity into an asset and promote continuity in governance to support national development.

Ganduje made the call on Tuesday, at the 5th conference of the Former Deputy Governors’ Forum, themed National Governance. He said nation-building requires Nigerians to believe in the country and see its cultural and ethnic diversity as a strength, not a source of division.

“Do we actually believe that our diversity is an asset, not a liability?” he asked. “The way we are moving our diversity is becoming a liability.”

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Ganduje explained that Nigeria’s different ethnic groups had their own systems of governance before colonial rule. He said British colonial authorities brought the groups together mainly to serve their economic interests and supply raw materials for industrial development. He noted that the colonial administration’s main goal was not to build a stronger, united country.

The former governor also praised Nigeria’s First Republic politicians for promoting nationalism and securing independence through pressure groups rather than armed struggle.

abdullahi — Former Kano State Governor Abdullahi Umar Ganduje. Credit: NewsCentral TV.

However, he said some leaders who had embraced nationalism during the independence struggle later adopted tribal attitudes because political parties were built around ethnic identities.

Ganduje urged Nigerians to take responsibility for building a stronger nation by promoting unity and using the country’s diversity to its advantage. He also called for better continuity between successive governments, describing the friction between former and incoming officeholders as a major obstacle to sustainable development.

Ganduje questioned why disagreements often arise between outgoing and incoming governors, even when they belong to the same political party.

“That friction is denied as continuity in governance,” he said, stressing the need for smoother transitions and cooperation between political leaders.

He argued that sustainable development requires successive administrations to build on existing progress rather than allow political differences to disrupt governance.

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