Of Kwankwaso

Of Kwankwaso’s Mass Weddings: Between Mass Hysteria and the Real Needs of Women

Aliyu Bala Aliyu

Governor Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso will surely go down in history as one of Kano’s finest leaders. I prefer to call him a radical; not a revolutionary- not just yet. There’s no point expending time and energy comparing him with Abubakar Rimi and Audu Bako - all three lived in different times and answered different calls. But whatever the spectra of opinions of today’s analysts, or the verdict posterity will confer on him, Kwankwaso’s place is assured in Kano’s Hall of Fame, Hall of Work and Hall of Change. He has brought some energy, innovation and ideas into the art of governing Nigeria’s most populous state and centre of commerce. There’s still a long way to go in making Kano a mega, modern and functional metropolis; and today’s Kano is far from it. Governor Kwankwaso, appears not to have stumbled upon the reins of power in a stupor, in a trance or by chance. For all intents and purposes, he seems to have come well prepared for the task of governance. A man of few words, his works scare me and put shame to a lot of governors north of the Niger. My governor for example is an exceptional talker and that means work naturally takes the back seat.

If it were possible to give Kwankwaso another four years, I have no doubt in my mind that Kano would not be the same again. Make no mistake- it would certainly not become El Dorado- her skylines would not suddenly become illuminated as those of UAE, Kuala Lumpur or Brussels nor would her groundnut pyramids return in a jiffy. Her comatose industries wouldn’t just rise from the dead; nor asphalted roads traverse the nooks and crannies of her 44 local governments.15-30 storey mass housings wouldn’t replace the numerous refuse dump sites nor will gushing fountains and subways crisscross the state - No! But many years down the road, Kano would be glad to have found one man who was extremely daring- a captain really determined to move the ship away from the harbor, with his eyes on the big picture. I have my reservations about some of Kwankwaso’s methods, but it is okay, no leader and his methods are ever absolutely loved, understood or accepted.

Kano state has an alarming divorce rate. Unfortunately for us in this country, data, statistics and records mean very little if anything at all. There is no certainty about the estimates of “menless” women; but it’s a plague in Kano. In 2009, Hajiya Hajiya Attine Abdullahi, the Executive Director of National Association of Divorcees, Widows and the Orphans of Nigeria, threatened to mobilize a one million “menless” women’s march on the streets of Kano to drive home the point of what is quite a serious issue for her NGO and a lot of people in the state. This estimate discountenances the multitude of spinsters who are eligible and willing to be married but cannot for various reasons ranging from household and individual poverty, unemployment, cultural hurdles among others on the part of young men. This category of young and not- so -young women are not considered to constitute any social problems or collective embarrassment as much as the divorcées and widows; or so it seems for now. While it is quite unlikely that spinsters in the heart of Kano would threaten to stage demonstrations and even embark on such in order to draw attention to their “plight”, it is for now “safe” to look elsewhere.

This article does not attempt to unearth the reasons for the massive divorce rates. Parents, religious leaders, and couples (both potential and actual) have a greater role to play in that regard. On the contrary, it is my opinion that a scientific approach which maximizes the benefits of the resources expended on the government aided weddings in tangible terms - money, manpower, man-hours- and also in such intangible terms as psychological and emotional investments is undertaken. This is not to say I support Kano’s misplaced and misinformed gesture- far from it. I am only compelled to comment on two fronts – (i) to suggest something more worthwhile and (ii) to implore Kano state to go deeper; beyond the scratch to do a thorough debrief of the beneficiaries of the promo and present society with the charts, graphs, tables and sundry data to help us make informed observations and arrive at safe conclusions; to be able to raise red flags where possible, at the appropriate time, or help spread this Kwankwasiyya gospel as the panacea to the divorce plague.

Weekly and Daily Trust’s Ishaq Modibbo Kawu, Umar Ndagi and Bala Mohammed have at different times written on the scary divorce phenomenon in Kano. Ishaq Modibbo Kawu said in his “Before the Kano divorcees’ street protest” of Thursday, 22 January 2009, that he had helped prepare a package for the BBC’s Network Africa programme on the problem of divorce in Kano. That was as far back as 1995! On Saturday, 19 March, 2011, Umar Ndagi, in his article “A disturbing trend”, wrote: ‘A research conducted in Kano in 2008 by the Kano State Directorate of Societal Re-orientation reveals that out of every two marriages, a divorce is recorded. Indeed, another research claims that only about 32% of Marriages in Kano survive after a period of three-six months. This statistically means that about 2/3 of marriages collapse before the 180th day of brides in their matrimonial homes. Many young girls of 20-25 years of age who are divorcees in Kano are said to have gone through three marriages, at least, making it a very disturbing trend. One conservative opinion argues that there are more divorcees than weddings in Kano every week; a situation that has turned Kano into what a writer describes as a “divorce factory”.’

It isn’t uncommon to come across young women in Kano, who, less than 30yrs of age, have been serially divorced. Matchmakers or fixers armed with photographs of young and old divorcees or widows are not hard to find- it is that serious. Divorce itself is not in itself a bad thing. It is that outlet from marriages that have been irreparably damaged and have become toxic. It is to the institution what the escape valve is to pressure cookers. Understandably, it is these valves that Kano state has been trying to suture albeit in an interesting way.

The first batch of beneficiaries rolled out in May 2012, and numbered 250 couples, while the second batch had 100 couples. As at Saturday, 27 April 2013, another 1,000 couples joined in the mass weddings. The fourth in the marriagemania series is in top gear; and Governor Kwankwaso is extending the largesse this time around to Christians resident in the state as well. Previous episodes had been an exclusively Muslim affair. It should ordinarily be good news and a politically adept move at that for Kano’s image makers when viewed against the background of the hue and cry of Christians in the state that they have been at the receiving end of years of religious and political unrest; and in recent times have suffered casualties in the wake of the insurgency bestriding the north. A record 1,111 beneficiaries are being planned for this record event and 50 slots have been reserved for Christians the government says. But beyond the patina of what seems like a correct social intervention, this match- making and wedding frenzy which saw Gombe state inaugurate a committe to go and learn the Kwankwasiyya formula should elicit certain critical and fundamental questions: Has Kano state government involved the ministry of women affairs all along in this matter which is directed mainly at women thus far? Have psychologists, counselors, social workers and religious scholars been part of it or has it been left to the understanding and execution of Hisbah, Kano state’s religious police and morality squad? Were the forms and questionnaires comprehensive enough with a view to extracting certain kinds of information from the beneficiaries so as to help the government and other end users of information like researchers, social workers, NGOs, marriage counselors, religious scholars and institutions, the media among others to be able to access the declassified versions to help in the planning, formulation and subsequent improvement of such policies? NB: A sample questionnaire is provided in the appendix at the bottom this article.

But how did Kwankwaso with his finesse, refinement and exposure arrive at this decision that the best thing to do for divorcées and widows in Kano was to help them get married again? Is that all there is to impacting the lives of these categories of women in the state? By what percentage, for example, have the mass weddings dipped the population of divorcées and widows in Kano since it was kick started? Are there plans to measure this? By what percentage, for example, have the state-arranged and sponsored marriages stabilized in the last 1 or 2 yrs? How many have fallen apart and why? Are there plans to record these and use them? Are there follow ups on the part of social workers and Hisbah? Are there marriage counselors the benefitting couples can run to in the event of challenges in the marriage?

In all fairness, the divorce plague is not limited to Kano alone. The United States, Puerto Rico, Russia and the United Kingdom are countries with the highest divorce demographics in the world. A lot of states in northern Nigeria are also suffering from the effects of the encroaching menace. But Kano still holds all the aces in Nigeria’s divorce mapping. However, something tells me that a woman that has been married and divorced, particularly one with children has other priorities far from re-marriage. More often than not, women who are economically and educationally impoverished are much more likely to seek re-marriage in the quest for male benefactors. Divorced or widowed women, particularly ones with children, who have financial and educational empowerment, are less likely to be preoccupied with re-marrying and more likely to focus on the upbringing and companionship of their children. Such women in their bubble of independence are more likely to make informed choices about their children’s education, health, general well being and nurturing.

The real needs of the divorced and widowed women are financial empowerment by way of grants; startup capital for petty trading, small scale businesses, cottage industry initiatives targeted at individual women or in groups, entrepreneurial risks aimed at helping them keep their body and soul together as well as those of their children. Should it not be asked afterall why these categories of women cannot actually be targeted for mass adult literacy programmes to bridge the illiteracy gap in the state? If a girl’s education had been truncated on account of her being pulled out of school to get married or completely denied the opportunity of acquiring basic education or going further than that for the same reason of marriage- induced termination, her life sentence of illiteracy / half- literacy can be lifted through such mass adult literacy initiatives. Government can find innovative and out-of –the box ways to allow such girls or women another shot at education. I have no doubt in my mind that the more educated women a society has, the better for that society. An educated woman is 99% more likely to see that her children acquire formal education than an uneducated one. In the event that an educated woman is a full time housewife, she is able to give her children a head start – preschool – or at worst complement what the schools teach them. If however poverty prevents both father and mother from sending their children to school, an educated mother is more likely to homeschool the children than an educated father is. Children of educated women do not constitute the army of destitute children and almajiris that litter the streets of northern Nigeria.

Nigeria is ranked the third country with the highest number of poor people in the world. The 2012 Nigerian Bureau of Statistics (NBS) data showed that about 61% of Nigeria’s population- approximately 100million people live on less than $1 (N160) a day. Inequality gaps are criminally wide and on the rise. Kano with a population of 9,383,682 is Nigeria’s most populous state according to 2006 census figures. Poverty is widespread; and access to potable water, decent sanitation, healthcare and a host of others are beyond the reach of ordinary citizens. With very few jobs created by the central government; and with the states tied to the apron strings of the central government; their survival depending on monthly allocations from oil revenues, the state civil service can only employ a handful and the anticipated revolution in entrepreneurship and agriculture is dependent on critical government infrastructure like electricity, good and functional roads, improved seedlings for farmers, reliable storage facilities, and of course a ready market. Like other northern states, aggregate school enrolment is not impressive and when compared with enrolment in south-western or south-eastern Nigeria, the gulf is pitiable. The odds are skewed unfavourably in the direction of the poor; and it is not surprising that drug abuse, prostitution, violence and other crimes can be traced directly or indirectly to this potpourri. Add the recent wave of insurgency to these ominous clouds and it is obvious that the showers of recovery and catch-up are far away.

The 2006 co-winner of the Nobel Prize in economics and founder of Grameen Bank, Muhammad Yunus, has been able to touch the lives of Bangladeshi women. He has freed scores from the grip of poverty by providing them with opportunities at economic empowerment with his revolutionary microcredit initiatives. Is there something Muhammad Yunus may be willing to share with Governor Kwankwaso if he chooses to ask? Having sent hundreds of indigenes to go and study various disciplines in universities all over the world, Bangladesh may be able to teach Kano a thing or two in terms of affecting the lives of poor women and open up their access to finance, hope and a better tomorrow for them and their children. Moreover, I think another group of people are more deserving of, and much more in need of government’s aid and that of philanthropists to get married than the divorcees and widows – they are the company of young bachelors and spinsters upon whom the burden of getting married is quite a heavy one to bear all by themselves.

A couple of years ago, while on semester break, which I had come to spend in my home town - Bida, I had cause to request to see all of my female cousins in the family house. Moved by the biting poverty and the extremely challenging times, I had asked them these rhetorical questions as our discussion progressed: “…at what point and with which generation will we stop recycling poverty”? “If our parents bequeathed poverty to us, do we have to bequeath same to our children”? In further explaining my points, I suggested family planning options even though I knew and still know that it is a topic that is viewed with so much skepticism in the north; spoken in such hushed tones; and among significant Muslim populations, viewed with both inexplicable fear and spiritual confusion. Those who believe that every sexual activity between husband and wife must result in pregnancy regardless of whether or not the parents have the means to cater for them and have the ability to spend quality time with them, nurturing them into responsible and loving human beings abound in northern Nigeria. To them, all others doors are non-existent. With scholars to impose the guilt of murder and infanticide on couples who accept family planning options; and traditionally etched views on the glory of a woman being perpetually in the production of children till eternity, I didn’t think my advice would mean anything- I was under no such illusion. I simply satisfied my conscience and hoped that I would have gotten at least one person thinking. Fast forward a couple of years to 2013, and I am, once again, under different circumstances, under no illusion that Governor Kwankwaso would accept my postulations or suggestions. Bon marriage Kanawa.