President gives marching order
Ohanaeze, ACF raise dust over killings, kidnapping
The Federal Government at the weekend stepped up action against rising insecurity in parts of the country.
Last week, security operatives were killed in an ambush by suspected terrorists in Imo State.
In Gusau, capital of Zamfara State, bandits invaded the campus of Federal University Gusau and kidnapped an unspecified number of people including students, non-teaching staff members, and construction workers.
The military went after the kidnappers and rescued seven people. The whereabouts of the others are unknown.
The Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF), asked government to make public its road map to securing the country.
Yesterday, the Presidency ordered security to go after criminals. A statement by Presidential spokesman Ajuri Ngelale, said: “President Bola Tinubu has directed security agencies to rescue the remaining female students of the Federal University Gusau, Zamfara State, who were recently abducted by terrorists.
“Condemning the reprehensible act of abduction, the President says there is no moral justification for such heinous crimes against innocent victims whose only “offence” was their pursuit of quality education.
“While the President wholeheartedly commiserates with all families directly impacted by this sad incident, he affirms that his administration has a solemn duty to protect every Nigerian citizen and in line with this commitment, assures the families of the abducted students that no effort will be spared in ensuring their safe return.
“Furthermore, the President pledges that the Federal Government is determined to ensure that educational institutions remain sanctuaries of knowledge, growth, and opportunity, and totally free from the menacing acts of terrorists.”
ACF demands strategy to end banditry
ACF urged the Federal Government to rejig the country’s security architecture and come up with strategies to eradicate banditry.
The organisation, in a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Prof. Tukur Muhammad-Baba, said Nigeria required a new multi-pronged containment strategies against insecurity and other threats to schools and communities.
Condemning the attack on the private hostels, ACF lamented that, the attack by bandits on female hostels represented a set back to the cause of girl-child education in the country.
The statement reads: “It is with utter consternation that the Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) received news about the abduction of mostly female students of the Federal University Gusau (FUGUS), from their private hostels, at Sabon Gida Village, Bungudu Local Government Area of Zamfara State.
“Although official information about the incidence is scanty, relative to the enormity of the incidence, personal testimonies from witnesses to the disturbing incident suggests that the attack was well planned, coordinated and executed by the bandits/terrorists.
“Evidently, female students were specifically targeted, and the bandits were at the crime scene fully prepared. Efforts to repel the bandits by elements of the Nigerian Army neither deterred nor stopped the bandits from going off with a yet-to-be fully ascertained number of hapless victims.
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”ACF condemns the abductions in the strongest of terms. It is very disconcerting that such a most unfortunate criminal incident is not the first of its kind in memory but it certainly is one abduction far too many to occur in any community in Nigeria, nor elsewhere in the world.
“For ACF, the incident is even more worrisome, being of far reaching negative implications, among many others, for access to education which, especially for the girl-child, is subject to many formidable challenges in the best of times.
“A pointer to the unfolding tragedy is in an apparent voice note on social media where a girl was heard stating that her father had called her home, ordering that her pursuit of a university degree be abandoned; another was heard advising intending candidates for admission not to select this particular institution as place of choice. This is an absolutely and highly regrettable development to be condemned in all its ramifications.
“ACF therefore commiserates with the victims of the attack, their parents and FUGUS;
*Calls for and prays for the immediate and unconditional release of the abducted students unharmed; and
*Commends the security forces for their gallant response, even if ineffective in stopping the bandits in their sordid mission.
How to halt insecurity, by Ohanaeze
Ohanaeze Ndigbo urged the Federal Government to adopt a non-kinetic approach to restore peace and end the incessant killings in the Southeast.
The group also appealed to those causing violence in the region to embrace peace.
The President-General of Ohanaeze, Chief Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu, spoke in Enugu on the grave security situation during a news conference to announce the programme for the September 29 Igbo Day celebration.
The elder statesman said he was tired of the killing of Igbo by Igbos.
He said: “I don’t want us to be crying all the time. As a father, I am tired of the death of my children. Igbos have given me the responsibility of leading them at this time.
”Each time I hear anybody killed, I feel very sad because some of them are doing what they are doing because of hunger and unemployment.
“I am not saying that hunger or unemployment should make somebody become a criminal. But not everyone has the capacity to endure hardship or hunger.
“We have been using kinetic approach before now. I think, we’re going to adopt non-kinetic approach.
“In fact, on the Igbo Day celebration, I’m likely to announce a non-kinetic approach. I will, as a father now, call everybody because Igbos have made me their leader. As a father, it’s my duty to call everybody to peace; to make peace among everybody. So, we’re initiating a non-kinetic approach to restore peace in Igboland.
“What we’re doing now (Igbo Day celebration) is to ensure that when people finish school here, they would have opportunities. We have tried to get a lot of things done”
Iwuanyanwu appealed to the leaders of the unknown gunmen to lay down their arms and embrace peace.
He said that Ohanaeze will soon send a delegation to Finland and other places to beg those causing bloodshed in the region to give peace a chance.
Iwuanyanwua dded: “I will beg all these people (unknown gunmen). I will even give them my life if that’s what it will take to bring peace back to Igboland, I’m ready to surrender.
“The National Executive Council (NEC) of Ohanaeze Ndigbo has given me the approval to set up a committee that will go abroad to dialogue with the funders of these people.
“We will go to Finland and other places and beg them. We’re not going there to arrest them. We’re not going there to kill them. I don’t want to kill any of my children. All these unknown gunmen are my children. That’s why we’re going there to beg and appeal to them to give peace a chance. Tell us what we should do and we are doing it already. I’m sure even those who are hungry, we can find what to do to make them happy.
(Igbo separatists leader Simon Ekpa leaves in Finland from where he has been giving directives to those carrying out terrorism)
“But you see, the shedding of blood should stop. My new resolution is: ‘enough of bloodshed’.
“I have noticed that these people are determined. It’s not easy to stop a hungry person who probably has been getting his livelihood through the use of guns. But, I’m sure, if I as a father go and cry to them, we will see what will happen.
“I trust in God. My parents were very good Christians and they taught me from cradle to trust in God. So, I believe God will do this for me.”
The Igbo leader said the non-kinetic will work if it has the joint backing of the Federal and state governments.
His words: “It will be good for the Federal Government to have peace in the Southeast. It won’t pay anybody to have bloodshed anywhere because nobody is benefiting from it.
“So, whatever sacrifice they (Federal Government) make to make the non-kinetic approach work and end bloodshed, killings and violence, and so on, will be useful. That’s what I want to do.
“In our constitution, the Federal Government has a duty to protect the lives and property of every individual.
“So, I want to call on the Federal Government to put a stop to people stopping its citizens from going about their normal businesses.
“Otherwise, if some aspect of our laws are activated, the Federal Government maybe paying compensation to those persons who are forced to stay at home. This is because he is staying at home because of insecurity which the Federal Government could not contain”.
Iwuanyanwu also appealed to the Federal Government to assist the zone with the reconstruction of railways, creating seaports and more international airports to ease their businesses.
He said: “I want to appeal to the Federal Government. Many people have been coming, be it service chiefs and all of that. We’re not looking for guns. We’re looking for opportunities for our youths.
“Now, they are talking about palliatives. These things don’t affect the lives of a normal Igbo person because it does not change his poor condition. What you can do for an Igboman is to give him an opportunity to make a living for himself.
“What the Federal Government can do for us is to ensure that we have the same job opportunities others have. We want them to create job opportunities here.
“Also, we want the Federal Government to support our governors. If they can increase the funding for the five Southeast governors because they’re spending a lot of money on security. You know this security is actually supposed to be federal responsibility, not state responsibility.
“There are other areas that the Federal Government can help us. For example, our people are traders, commercial people. Now look at the transportation problems. In the whole of Southeast, we have two international airports: Enugu Airport and Imo Cargo Airport. Up till today, Imo Cargo Airport has not started working in terms of bringing cargoes. Our people are traders. It will save them money if that cargo planes are landing in that airport.
“Even in Enugu that’s already operating international flight, only one airline which is an African airline belonging to Ethiopia that is operating there. We need European, Asian and American-bound airlines to be operating there.
“All these will make life very easy for us. Take for example, railway lines are important for our kind of business. Studies have shown that if we create rail lines in the capitals of the five states, it will be a profitable business. We are going to propose it to the governors and we need the Federal Government to support it.
“I want to use this opportunity to thank the Federal Government for the dredging of Oguta Lake. We commend Governor Hope Uzodimma of Imo State who got the Federal Government to do that.”
