Many people in public office today were not well brought up – Sanusi II
The Emir of Kano, Muhammadu Sanusi II, has expressed concern over the declining moral standards across various levels of Nigerian society.
He remarked that a significant number of individuals holding public office today lack proper upbringing, which is why they enter positions of power and plunder the national treasury without restraint.
Sanusi Lamido.
He said …
“I think what has failed in this country is upbringing. The truth is that many people you have in public office today were simply not well brought up. When I was in Kings college in form 1 and 2, we had a class called Civics and it was taught the principal himself.
So from a very young age you were taught certain values. You were taught the importance of honesty and integrity, you were taught the importance of human rights, you know it’s important to live a good name, you know that when you go into public office, it is an opportunity to serve. You do not go into public office to make money.
Many of the people that have assumed office simply did not have that upbringing, they did not have that training. Many people go into government for the wrong reasons.”
He emphasized that Nigerian society must put an end to the practice of granting additional public roles or opportunities to individuals who have looted the nation’s resources while in office.
“The entire value system of the country has been eroded. We have been ruled by people with no values, they have no names behind them and have no desire to leave a name after them. These are people who define themselves by what they own , how many houses they have, how many private jets they have, how many billions they have in their bank accounts,” he said.
He further added …
“A society in which material wealth, no matter how you get it, is respected, is glorified, where people who are known to have stolen money get rewarded with ministerial appointments, that society will continue to reproduce itself.
We don’t have a sense of disgust for people who hold public office and amass wealth; we reward them with appointments, with more public offices, and more opportunities to amass wealth, and this is what Nigeria has become.”
The Emir, while reminiscing about the legacy of the late former military Head of State, Murtala Muhammed, 50 years on, stressed the need for a renewal of societal values in Nigeria.
He asserted that the responsibility for restoring these values lies with both the leaders and the general populace.
In his view, material riches should never be placed above virtues like honesty, hard work, and compassion.
He added …
“I think we need an entire regeneration of values. It is not about one person, the president or the governors, or the ministers cannot on their change this country”
Sanusi further asserted that politicians are to blame for the decline of the civil service, emphasizing the need for Nigeria to rebuild and reinforce the system. According to him, a stronger civil service would empower public servants to refuse unlawful instructions from political leaders.
