NORTHERN youths under the auspices of Arewa Youth Consultative Forum have faulted the decision of the government to relocate strategic departments of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) to Lagos.
According to AYCF the relocation is a significant threat to the status of Abuja as the capital and could have negative implications for the nation as a whole.
At a press conference in Kaduna on Friday, the President General of AYCF, Alhaji Yerima Shettima expressed concern over the potential consequences of the relocation of the departments.
Shettima showed discomfort over what he saw as the complicit silence of the Northern elite “regarding these provocations.”
He called on the Northern elite not to be silent when the political and economic viability of the region is at stake and urged Nigerians to speak out against arbitrariness in governance.
He stated: “The organisation urges decision makers to prioritise national unity and ensure that any actions taken do not perpetuate regional imbalances or compromise the political and economic viability of Northern Nigeria.
“AYCF remains committed to its mission of promoting unity and development in Northern Nigeria and the nation as a whole and vows to continue advocating for the preservation of Abuja’s status as the capital city and to resist any attempts to undermine national unity.”
Aside the cost to the North, Shettima also pointed out the potential harm the relocation might cause to the status of Abuja as the capital city.
He argued that Abuja was chosen as the capital to promote national unity and decentralise power and any agenda to tamper with the arrangement would be fiercely resisted by the north.
He believes that the relocation might further undermine national unity, disrupting operations, causing economic setbacks as well as perpetuating regional imbalances.
Meanwhile, FAAN and the concerned departments in CBN are already relocating to Lagos, citing high cost as part of the reason for the relocations.
The office of the Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, officially announced the relocations in a letter on January 15, 2024 signed by the Managing Director of FAAN, Mrs Olubunmi Kuku.
