Aliyu, in a statement by his Chief Press Secretary, Abubakar Bawa, said as “the Number Two citizen, an elder statesman and a father to all,” Shettima ought to have “a full knowledge on issues of national concern before commenting on them.”
The advice by the Sokoto governor came in the wake of Shettima’s warning against an alleged attempt by the Sokoto State government to dethrone the Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Sa’ad Abubakar III.
On Monday, the Executive Director of the Muslim Rights Council, Prof. Isiaq Akintola, raised the alarm that the Sokoto State government was planning to depose the Sultan.
Akintola cited the removal of 15 traditional rulers for various offences by Governor Aliyu in April.
He warned that Nigerian Muslims would reject any hostile actions against Sultan, who is the Nigerian Muslim spiritual leader.
The warning by MURIC came against the backdrop of the removal of the Emir of Kano, Ado Bayero, by the Kano State governor in May.
Apparently reacting to the alarm raised by MURIC, the Vice President, speaking on Monday at the North-West Peace and Security Summit in Katsina State, warned against any negative move against the Sultan.
Shettima said, “In all developmental issues in this country, His Eminence, the Sultan of Sokoto, I want to use him as a point of reference to recognise and appreciate all our royal fathers present here.
“And to the Deputy Governor of Sokoto, I have a simple message for you: Yes, the Sultan is the Sultan of Sokoto, but he is much more than that; he represents an idea, he is an institution that all of us in this country need to jealousy guard, protect, promote, preserve and project for the growth of our nation.”
However, the governor, in a late Monday night meeting, described the claim by MURIC as false and baseless and expressed displeasure at the Vice President for commenting based on it.
Aliyu, in the statement by his CPS, said, “This is coming in the wake of recent pronouncement made by the Vice President in Katsina regarding the false story circulating that the Ahmed Aliyu-led administration is planning to remove Sultan Muhammad Sa’ad Abubakar.
“We sincerely expected the Vice President to have consulted the governor before going public.
“The state government urges Vice President Shettima as No. 2 citizen to have full knowledge on issues of national concern before commenting on them.
“As an elder statesman and a father to all, he should have facts and figures before judging issues raised by mischief makers and the mushroom social media handlers known for negative propaganda.
“The fact of the matter is that there was never any attempt to sack the Sultan nor have we sent him any threat regarding that.”
The governor said the Sultan enjoyed all the powers he was entitled to and “we never denied him any of his freedom or rights.”
“We, therefore, do not need to be told to guard, protect, and promote the Sultan; it is our sole responsibility.
“The government and the people of Sokoto cherish and adore the Sultanate Council and would do everything possible to protect the dignity of the revered institution.
“The government to this end reassures all Nigerians that, it will continue to protect the Sultanate Council and its dignity at all times,” the statement added.
The Sokoto State Commissioner for Information, Sambo Danchadi, had on Monday told the PUNCH that the story of the alleged plan to remove the Sultan was baseless as the state government had not amended the law creating the Sultanate.
“The statement is just an imagination of the writer and even the opposition party in the state who are capitalising on the situation in Kano,” Danchadi said.
The state government, in a separate statement on Tuesday, knocked MURIC for the propagation of the false claim.
“The attention of the Sokoto State Government has been drawn to a malicious publication credited to the Muslims Rights Concern, alleging a plan by the state government to dethrone the Sultan of Sokoto, Muhammad Sa’ad Abubakar.
“The state government wondered how a responsible body like MURIC, claiming to be protecting the rights of the Muslims, would descend so low and cheaply as to join hands with deluded mischief makers and enemies of progress to fabricate such a false and unsubstantiated story just to create an unfriendly atmosphere and fear in the minds of the law-abiding and peaceful citizens of the state.
“We believe that MURIC is not the type that will be dancing to the tunes of enemies and mischief makers who are trying to take away the attention of the good people of Sokoto State and Nigerians from the transformative initiatives taking place in Sokoto State over the last one year,” the statement said.
Meanwhile, former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, on Tuesday, urged governors to accord the necessary respect.