The federal government has been advised against a move to change the approval for a museum at the site of the old Prison in Potiskum to a Female Custodial Centre, as such move would amount to policy somersault.
The change would also portray lack of continuity of policies of previous ministers by their predecessors and the government as inconsistent, a situation capable of leading to the eruption of ethnic protests, disruptions, upheavals and crisis.
This was the position of the people of Fika Emirate in Yobe State, at the end of a Special Assembly of Fika Youth Movement, in pursuance of peaceful measures to avert the impending crisis associated with the denial of the Federal Government’s approval to Fika Emirate to transform the old Potiskum Prisons into Museum.
The people accused the Comptroller General of the Nigerian Custodial Service of colluding with the Mai Pataskum, Alhaji Bubaram Bauya, a retired prisons officer to confuse the minister of interior, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola to reverse a decision reached by the former minister, Abdurrahman Dambazzau.
In a communiqué signed by Abdullahi Barde, Director of Socials & Publicity they stated that:
“Upon the approval of the former Minister of Interior, General Abdulrahman Dambazau to return the Old Prisons in Potiskum to Fika Emirate via a letter with the reference number FMl/PS0/020/Tl/345 dated October, 2015, the Mai Pataskum only gained consciousness on the 15th of July, 2020, to demand for the reversal of the approval to Fika Emirate five years after.
“This amounts to an afterthought and willful desire to cause confusion in the area. Besides, similar approvals were made by the Interior Minister for the return of Old Prisons in Wukari, Taraba State, Maiduguri, Borno State to the emirates they situate without resentment or the kind of animosities perpetrated by the Ngizim and Pataskum Emirate in Yobe state.”
They therefore called on the state governor, Mai Mala Buni to cause for the proper delineation of the boundaries of Fika and name change of Pataskum Emirate.
“It should be recalled that while the Edict establishing new emirates indicated Yerimaram as the headquarters cum area of operations of the new Pataskum Emirate, Mai Pataskum opts to remain in Potiskum to rival the Emir of Fika, with a corrupt variant – Pataskum Emirate. Mai Pataskum operates from Potiskum to confuse the general public of the originality of the name Potiskum which is the official headquarters of Fika Emirate. Also, the existence of two Emirs and Emirates in Potiskum is a grand design for confusion, distraction and anarchy,” the communiqué added.
