Sultan asks governors to prepare for food shortage, says it may worsen insecurity

Muhammad Sa’ad Abubakar III, the Sultan of Sokoto, has asked governors to ensure there is adequate supply of food for underserved citizens as global food shortage looms.

He spoke in Gombe on Thursday during the opening ceremony of a summit organised by the Da’awah Coordination Council of Nigeria (DCCN).

The monarch said the non-availability of food will fuel insecurity in the country.

In May, the prices of major food items across the world rose to their highest level in 10 years.

The Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) had also said food prices are expected to rise in developed and least developed countries this year.

Commenting on the development, the monarch said: “I will like to call on the state governors to make sure that they make adequate supply of food in store for the common man in anticipation of possible shortage of food in the world, at the right time, subsidise it so that common man can afford.

“This is because a hungry man is an angry man. Without food, there will be no peace and without peace, there will be no security.”

Speaking on the insecurity in the country, the traditional ruler said the situation has gotten out of hand.

“Let us not deceive ourselves that things are right; things are not right, we know it and we have seen so much in our lives,” he said.

“It doesn’t take anybody to know that Nigeria is in a very bad situation and it is a fact.”

The monarch called for tolerance and asked Nigerians to love each other regardless of tribe or religion.

“God wants us together that was why he created and allowed us to live together, tolerate and understand ourselves,” he said.

“No religion preaches intolerance, both the Bible and Qur’an tell us to love our neighbours as we love ourselves and even more than ourselves.

“I am appealing to all of us to implement what we will learn in this fora, and not to forget what we have learned after the programme.”