He urged patriotic Nigerians not to let anyone destabilise the nation.
He spoke at a retreat organised by the Northern caucus of the House of Representatives on the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB).
The Sultan reminded the lawmakers that no matter how important a piece of legislation might be, it cannot function effectively without peace.
Represented by the Dan Madamin Sokoto, Alhaji Farouk Ahmed Maishanu, the Sultan said: “Today, tribal politicians are bent on tearing the fabric of our nation apart under different guises.
“As patriotic and peace-loving Nigerians, we should not fold our arms and watch them destroy our unity.
“I, therefore, urge you, as grassroots politicians, to continue to support government efforts in restoring peace and stability across the country as no nation can prosper under chaos.
“All Nigerians must enjoy equal freedom and equal rights to live peacefully and pursue their legitimate businesses in any part of the country they so choose, be it in the market or in the forest.
“We must reject all ill-conceived schemes that are divisive, schemes that are setting Nigerians against fellow Nigerians.
“We must abhor laws that are capable of causing inter-tribal or inter-regional disharmony. All men are created equal and the unity of Nigeria is sacrosanct”.
The Sultan noted that the nation was passing through multiple challenges, adding that the government was doing the best it can to improve the situation.
He said: “At the back of every effort we make, we must underscore the need to strengthen our national unity, boost our economy to provide employment to our growing youth population.
“Our economy has for more than five decades remained dependent on oil, but today the world is moving away from oil to clean energy, therefore, it is of great importance for the 9th Assembly to treat the PIB as a priority before it is too late.
“Almighty Allah Has blessed our nation with abundant hydrocarbon resources but we are yet to fully discover and tap these resources due to suboptimal regulations.
“We continue to talk about poverty, unemployment and the attendant insecurity while we are sitting on billions of barrels of hydrocarbon from Sokoto Basin to Chad Basin, and from Gongola to Bida and Benue Trough Basins untapped.”
He said: “We should have a PIB that will encourage massive hydrocarbon exploration in those frontier basins, a PIB that will attract foreign investors to bring their funds and develop the resources, a PIB that will guarantee optimum value to Nigerian people and investors, and a PIB that will strengthen Nigerian economy and boost our sense of unity as citizens of one Nation.
“The passage of the PIB will enable Nigeria to commercialise these huge hydrocarbon reserves, to get more funds to develop other sectors of the economy such as education, health, agriculture, solid minerals, technology and innovation, manufacturing and infrastructure before the end of the oil economy.”
Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Mallam Mohammed Bello said though efforts were ongoing to diversify the economy, it was important to ensure efficient and effective management of the oil sector.
He said that the lawmakers must ensure that the PIB does not only bring about reforms in the oil and gas sector, but it should also meet the aspirations of Nigerians.
He asked them to consider including the funding for renewable energy in the bill as it is the new trend that will keep the economy going.
Bello said adequate attention should be given to making gas available to all Nigerians to replace the use of firewood.
According to him, the use of gas was far cheaper and would prevent indiscriminate felling of trees.
