Runsewe advises FG on engaging traditional rulers in governance
The National Council for Arts and Culture (NCAC) has advised the Federal Government on the need for direct involvement of traditional rulers in governance.
Its Director-General, Chief Olusegun Runsewe, gave the advice when he received in audience a delegation led by the Olujumu of Ijumu land in Kogi, Oba Williams Olusegun, at the Nigerian Culture House on Friday in Abuja.
Runsewe, in a statement, said the traditional rulers should be recognised and assigned constitutional roles as Chief Security Officers to tackle the problem of crime and youth restiveness.
“For the rate of crime and criminality to take a downward turn in our society, the traditional institutions should be recognised and assigned the constitutional roles of chief security officers in their various domains,” he said.
Runsewe noted that, as the primary custodians of culture and tradition, the traditional rulers play a very vital role in maintaining peace in their various communities.
He said that the traditional institution was the closest to the grassroots, which makes it possible for the traditional rulers to easily detect trouble spots and violence and curb them from escalating.
He explained that the high rate of crime and criminality in various parts of the country stems from the fast-eroding norms, culture, and traditions of the people.
“As primary custodians of our various traditions and cultures, the traditional rulers will make our traditional institutions a veritable springboard for cultural reorientation for our teeming youths who have gone under the wild influence of westernisation,” he said.
Speaking earlier, Oba Olusegun expressed profound gratitude for the warm hospitality accorded him and members of his entourage.
He said that before the advent of Christianity in Ijumu Kingdom, tradition and culture played key roles in the administration of the kingdom, but he regrets that most of the beliefs, customs, and traditions of the people of his kingdom had been lost.
He noted that on his assumption of the throne of his forefathers, the need to reintroduce the lost culture and traditions of the people came to the forefront.
The traditional ruler said the delegation was in Runsewe’s office to officially invite him to the first ever Indigenous Ijumu Cultural Festival coming up on November 4 at the Ojumu Palace, Iyara, in Kogi State.
He said this was necessary as the director general remained an icon and ambassador of Nigerian culture.
