Michael Olugbode in Abuja
The Emir of Fika, His Royal Highness Alhaji Ibn Mohammed Idrissa, has called for the strengthening of traditional institutions, insisting that the role of traditional rulers in peace building across Nigeria cannot be wished away.
Speaking in Abuja at the European Union (EU) and the British Council (BC) funded Managing Conflict in Nigeria (MCN) Programme: ‘Practice Dissemination Workshop on Initiatives to Strengthen Traditional Justice System, Impact dissemination and lessons learning event for traditional justice intervention in the Northeast’, Idrissa, who is also the chairman of the Yobe State Council of Traditional Rulers, insisted that traditional rulers have a critical role in peace building and resolution.
He said the duty of peacebuilding and resolution, which was hitherto domiciled with the emirates, has been taken over by the government.
The MCN Programme, which was implemented by the British Council in Adamawa, Borno, and Yobe States, trained no fewer than 2,404 traditional rulers and community leaders in dispute resolution between 2017 and 2023. The programme aimed to improve security and stability in the region, preventing population displacement and forced and irregular migration.
Idrissa noted that the peaceful community development initiative strategy, which was formulated and funded by the British Council and the European Union, needs to be sustained to ensure lasting peace in the region.
He emphasised that for any developmental programme to be sustainable, especially in the areas of Peace Building and Effective Conflict Management, the traditional institutions are critical for the desired success.
The Emir of Bade, Yobe State, Alhaji Abubakar Umar Suleiman, also emphasised that traditional institutions are responsible for resolving conflicts and are the best way of conflict resolution as it has no cost and delays like government institutions.
Meanwhile, the Gangwari Ganye, Adamawa State, HRH Umaru Adamu Sanda, regretted that the greatest victims of conflict are from the Northeast affected by activities of the Boko Haram. He urged traditional rulers to understand the basics of conflict resolution to enable them to perform better as rulers.
In his welcome remarks, the National Programme Manager, MCN, Prof. Mohammed Tabiu, explained that the programme focused on managing conflict in the Northeast had been implemented in the past six years to enhance the capacity of traditional rulers on peace and conflict resolution.
Tabiu revealed that over 2,404 traditional rulers and community leaders in three Northeast states were trained in dispute resolution between 2017 and 2023. He also disclosed that no fewer than 44,411 different cases ranging from disputes between farmers and herders, business disputes, family and domestic concerns, theft, and others had been resolved using knowledge from the training by traditional rulers and community leaders in the emirates covered by the programme.
