Nigeria in state of fear and anxiety 'Sultan

The Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Muhammad Sa'ad Abubakar, yesterday identified corruption as the major factor hindering the development of the country, which brought about the state of fear and anxiety in the country.He made the remark during his installation as the Chancellor of the Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria.The Sultan regrets how some few individuals are mismanaging the wealth of the country, which leads to the prevalence of poverty, inter-communal crises and the collapse of many sectors like education.'We must tell ourselves the hard truths. Our country is today facing some of the most difficult challenges of nation building. Despite the unprecedented resources, our development has failed to match our national wealth. Corruption has emasculated our progress; poverty and unemployment has pushed citizens to the brinks; fuelling and confounding social conflicts; inter-communal crisis has extracted heavy toll in both human lives and property; persistent insecurity has generated panic and anxiety; our social and physical infrastructures are far from meeting the needs of the nation; and the country appears to be adrift. If it is any consolation, many nations have had to go through such trying times in the course of their growth and consolidation.'At the core of all these is ignorance and moral decay and our educational institutions, the universities in particular, must rise to the challenge. Our leaders must provide these institutions the necessary resources and latitude to rise to the challenge. We must all join hands to fix our country, no one will do it for us but ourselves and we have no other country but this one. I am confident that leaders at every level will appreciate the need to close ranks and work together as a national priority and together, with Allah's help and guidance, we shall overcome,' Sultan Sa'ad said.On his new chancellorship, the Sultan said he would work hard in lifting the standard of the University and that would include the review of the ABU's statutes, where applicable.The installation was followed by a pre-convocation lecture delivered by the Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Engr Austen Oniwon.
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