Penultimate week while announcing his appointment as the new Emir of Lafiaji, the Kwara State Commissioner for Local Government, Chieftaincy Affairs and Community Development, Architect Aliyu Saifudeen, said his choice was based on the unanimous decision of the kingmakers on the issue of credibility among others. But he didn’t mention that whoever replaces the late Emir, Alhaji Saadu Kawu Haliru, is sure to have big shoes to fill. The late Emir ruled for 46 years during which he gave the community a toga of modernity in all fronts. This is the challenge for the new Emir.
Alhaji Mohammed Kawu is ascending the throne with broad boardroom experience having traversed the Nigeria banking sector in various positions. In this exclusive interview with Midlandpost, the new Emir opens up on his plan for Lafiaji and the whole of Kwara North. The interview was conducted by Gbolahan Balogun and Abdul Salaudeen
Your Royal Highness, do give us an inkling into your background- the early life, school and work experience.
I was born into the family of Abubakar Kawu, my Late father. My Mum was Hajia Ramatu. I am the first of six children of my parent. I was born in Kaduna, but I grew up and lived most of life in Zaria. My Dad was a university administrator, so I spent most of life in Zaria within the walls of Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria. I attended schools there- primary school, secondary school and the University. I did my MBA Programme also in Zaria.
I started my working career in 1997 with the Petroleum Trust Fund, PTF Consultants in Jos, Plateau State, but I was there just briefly. I joined Chartered Bank, and from Chartered Bank in 1997. In 2000, I went to Prudent Bank and I was there for seventeen years, Prudent Bank later became Sky Bank and today it is called Polaris Bank. I left Sky Bank/Polaris Bank in 2017 for Wema Bank Plc, and that was where I was till ascending the throne of my forefathers.
As a Prince, did you ever dream of becoming a king?
Every prince aspires to become a king, as you have rightly said, but very few become successful. Most at times, it is always a dream, you understand, but today, Alhamdullilahi, the dream has come true for me, I thank Almighty God for that.
Royal Highness, what gave you the edge over other 30 plus contestants for the thrones?
I remember we were over 30 contestants. I think that question would be better for the kingmakers to answer because I don’t even know the criteria. I also applied like other contestants, so why they decided on me, they will be in a better position to answer that question
How do you feel being chosen?
Alhamdulillah, I am happy of course I emerged as the Emir of Lafiagi. I give thanks to the Almighty God for that.
We remember you were the Ubandodoma before your emergence. How has this position prepared you for the new role?
Yes, I was Ubandoma of Lafiagi. There were a lot of other chiefs much higher than me. At least I had more than 10 people in terms of hierarchy. We have the five kingmakers and under the kingmakers, we have the princes that are very senior, you understand. The ranking stops there. The rest are all title holders but with no particular rank. Incidentally, I was Ubandoma for a brief period, I think for not more than two years before I became the Emir of Lafiagi.
It is believed that there are always conflicts between traditional institutions and people in government or politicians generally. How do you intend to manage conflicts between the traditional institutions and these groups? 
I will not agree with you that there is always conflict between them. I think more are even working with politicians. You have a few of these cases and then they become celebrated cases. But if we take statistics of all the emirates, and the number where we have conflicts with government, you will realize that it is a small percentage. Majority of the traditional institutions are working well with the politicians, but the few where there are clashes, you will see that they become very celebrated, you understand. Usually, it is not a good fight between traditional institutions and politicians, it is usually very dirty. That is why it is always in the news. But I will say that majority of the traditional rulers are still in peaceful existence with the politicians.
Do you think your new role as a traditional ruler won’t impinge on your businesses, given the fact that you were a boardroom person with major investments?
Well, if you have a flourishing career, you have a flourishing business. For any prince, the ultimate is for you to become a king. But it comes with a lot of sacrifices, because the moment you ascend the throne, it is no longer about you, but your people, you understand. So, it is like your life comes to a standstill; you change completely from what you are used to. You have to start a new life; you live a life where you mostly think about yourself, your immediate family and you also find yourself among those people who take a secondary position in your life. But then your primary focus now becomes your people and they are usually in large numbers, surrounded by poverty, problems, conflict resolution. It is a lot work to deal with at the same time. And there are two different lives, one as a career person and when you ascend the throne of a traditional institution. They are two different lives- one is about you, the other one is about people.
How do you intend to woo investors to your emirate using your vast experience as a banker and businessman?
I think when I set out to become the Emir of Lafiagi, it was all about the fact that I have been in all places in my career. I had a flourishing career as a banker, and it is now about development for my people. So, I am going to use the experience that I have garnered over the years in the private sector and to see how best I can translate that for the benefit of our people.
Your Royal Highness, what is your agenda for the development of the Lafiagi Emirate and Edu Local Government Area as a whole?
As I said to some of your colleagues in the past, we are basically an agrarian community. Most of our people are farmers. If you’re serious to help them, one of the best and fastest ways would be to impact on agriculture. If you improve the lot of the farmers, it would translate directly to majority of the people. It would improve their economic power, and if you improve their economic power, it would bring growth and stability within the emirate.
Secondly, education. There is no society that flourishes without education. In most successful societies or countries and places, you go to, you will find that their success is driven by education. The greatest empires of the world were great because of education. So, if you prioritise education, then it is a win-win situation for you. Progress and development will come.
Thirdly, our people need a lot of infrastructure. We need more roads, more hospitals. We need more schools; even we need more of our markets to develop. Alhamdulillah, I think the biggest market we have in the Emirate is a focus for the Kwara State Government is being developed into an international market that will bring a lot of improvement in the lives of our people.
We will reach out to more of the government agencies to try to see how we can get more projects for our people.
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