Abdullahi Ganduje, governor of Kano State has urged Nigerians to address their issues through conversation, respect, and understanding, saying the country has come too far for anyone to consider seceding.

This was Ganduje’s message at the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations (NIPR)’s North West Citizens Summit for National Integration, Peace, and Security in Kano on Thursday.

The governor said the conference’s subject reflected the country’s reality, noting that his desire for national unity and cohesiveness motivated his desire to grant rights to all Kano residents to be recognized as indigenes, among other initiatives that have made the state one of the best in the country.

Ganduje, who was represented by Alhaji Usman Alhaji, Secretary to the State Government (SSG), said Nigerians should learn from Rwanda and Somalia and embrace conversation, respect, and understanding as the sole means of resolving disagreements.

Jigawa State Governor Mohammed Badaru, who was represented by his deputy, Umar Namadi, also spoke, saying that no matter what the government and security services tried to address insecurity, citizens must agree and actively participate in the efforts before the problems can be resolved.

Speaking earlier, the zonal coordinator of NIPR for North West, Dr Sule Ya’u Sule, said the summit was imperative because the institute felt it should not fold its arms and allow the country to slide into anarchy.

President of the institute, Mukhtar Zubairu Sirajo, said the outcome of the zonal summits, which would be held across the six zones, would be harmonised to produce a national charter.