New Telegraph

Songs of sorrow over unending insecurity

Last week, President Muhammadu Buhari faced condemnations from some groups who are unhappy with his poor handling of the security challenges facing the country. ONWUKA NZESHI reports

 

President Muhamnadu Buhari rode to power in 2015 on the wings of popular vote against an incumbent administration which the people felt was not doing enough in the governance of Nigeria.

He defeated the then incumbent President, Dr Goodluck Jonathan whose government was having a hard time combating the Boko Haram terrorists in the North-East region of the country.

During the heated campaigns leading to the historic election, Buhari was packaged and presented as a messiah who was coming at an auspicious time to save Nigeria. As a retired military officer and former Head of State, Major General Muhamnadu Buhari, as he then was, had his job cut out for him. He spoke and acted like a general itching to return to the battle field to give the enemies of his country a bloody nose.

It is unarguable that the over 14,000,000 Nigerians who voted for him in that election, did so on the presumption that he was the right man for the job.

 

However, six years down the line, the songs of praise for the lanky, gap toothed, spartan looking war hero has since turned to songs of sorrow in many parts of the country. The reason for this change of tunes is neither far-fetched nor did it become manifest in one day. It is the culmination of events, actions and words that appear incongruent with the initial expectations of the people.

 

The apprehension among Nigerians has been made worse by the recent events in Afghanistan where the Talibans overran the country in 10 days following the withdrawal of US troops who had kept peace there for twenty years.

 

Although, the Buhari administration had always treated critics as adversaries and always labelled them as members of the opposition who must be crushed, many interest groups have been taking the risk of telling the home truth and damning the consequences.

 

A few days ago, the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) echoed the voices of many Nigerians when it spoke openly against the leadership failures of the Buhari administration, particularly on the perceived double standards being applied in handing the security challenges in parts of the country.

 

The umbrella body of Christendom in Nigeria, chided President Buhari for allegedly paying lips service to security challenges and warned against unguarded comments and actions which could trigger more crisis.

Secretary of CAN, Joseph Daramola, who spoke to the media in Abuja, said that reactions from the government regarding the recent killing of 22 persons in Plateau State was ‘divisive’ and appeared deliberately targeted at fuelling a religious crisis.

 

The leadership of the Christian group advised President Buhari to desist from playing lip service to the security challenges but to take the issues more seriously. Daramola condemned the recent killings in Plateau State, but frowned at government’s utterances and body language which seemed to show it was taking sides with one religion over the other.

 

He advised that President Buhari should take conscious and deliberate steps to address the unending killings, rather than issuing press statements and holding periodic meetings with security chiefs that produce no positive results.

 

The statement reads: “Stopping killing of the innocents by the criminals cannot be done by mere issuing press statements and holding periodical meetings with the security chiefs by the President.

 

Until the government shows the political will by arresting and bringing culprits to book, the shedding of innocent blood will not cease. “While we commiserate with the bereaved of the dastardly attack on those travellers, we were alarmed by the statement of President Buhari describing the motive behind the criminality as ‘religious persuasion’.

 

“This is the first time that the Federal Government will make this type of assertion. Whenever CAN cries out against the killings of its members, the government always rises up to condemn us telling us that the terrorists and bandits that are killing are not targeting any religion but innocent people irrespective of their religious affiliations.

 

“The reaction of the President is, to say the least, provocative, unacceptable and unjustifiable. The government shouldn’t be seen as being on the side of one religion against another. Criminals are criminals irrespective of their religious affiliations.

 

“One minister reportedly said the President lost his appetite as a result of the killing on the Plateau.

Such unguarded comments and actions of the government, including the Nigeria Police appear strange since the same people never took convincing step as this since the time criminals have been attacking predominantly Christian communities in the Middle belt zone especially in the same Plateau State. “Once again, we repeat that the government was wrong in tagging the unlawful actions of the criminals as religious.

“While we are pained in our hearts for the callous killing of the innocent people in the buses, we are not impressed by the government’s comments which is divisive, religion wise. It is shocking and disappointing to hear that the police have deployed ‘surveillance helicopter’ to apprehend criminals.

 

“We wonder why the same police did not take same measure to apprehend the those terrorists tagged bandits who are holding many people captive, including several students, in different forests?

 

This government is seriously called upon to be alive to its responsibilities. “Till date, no one has been held for the killing of hundreds of people in Benue State, Plateau State and Southern Kaduna.

 

This is totally unacceptable, unjustifiable and unbelievable.” In the same vein, CAN advised the Federal Government to stop recycling terrorists under the guise of deradicalisation and rehabilitation of criminals. The government had some time ago, launched the Operation Safe Corridor, a programme that encourages terrorists to surrender to security forces in exchange for amnesty and reintegration to the civilised society.

However, CAN and other groups in Nigeria have kicked against the programme because of the elements of deceit and sabotage inherent in it. In other climes, CAN argued that criminals who surrendered or got arrested on the front lines of a battle against terrorists are prosecuted and sentenced to appropriate jail terms.

 

The group said: “As far as we are concerned, criminals who are abducting and placing heavy ransom on their victims are not bandits but terrorists and if the government has no sympathy for these criminals, let them stop them. Our security agencies have what it takes to stop these terrorists but they are playing the ostrich.

 

“We charge the Federal Government to fix the security challenges or throw in the towel. The police and the military should be tasked to wake up to their responsibilities before these criminals turn the country into another Afghanistan. “Let there be state police now after all some states like Kano have religious security outfit that  are being used to enforce their laws.

 

“We don’t want to believe the thought of many that it is either the government has sympathy for those criminals or some of its top functionaries have sympathy for the terrorists, bandits and murderous herdsmen. “The security architecture has collapsed and the evidence is the unending killings, kidnappings and other criminalities and we called on the Federal government to wake up to its primary responsibilities.

 

“We don’t have to remind President Buhari that it is his responsibility to protect lives and property of the people under his watch irrespective of their religious, tribal and political persuasions. This we are yet to see. Nigerians are still waiting for the disclosure of those who are financially supporting terrorists as promised by the Federal Government.”

 

In a separate protest, the Men’s Missionary Union (MMU) of the Nigerian Baptist Convention, has called on President Muhammadu Buhari to be decisive in dealing with kidnappers and other criminal elements making life unbearable for Nigerians.

 

President of the union, Dr. Soye Asawo, who spoke at it’s 41st Annual Congress in Abuja, urged the federal and state governments to compensate families whose children have been abducted by the bandits. Asawo raised concerns over the fate of students of the Kaduna Bethel Baptist High School who are still in captivity and charge the security agencies to take the war to the kidnappers den instead of waiting on parents of the students to pay ransom for their release.

 

He said: “We appeal to perpetrators of this act to without further delay and demands, set these innocent children free so they can reunite with their families and live their normal lives “Government should be decisive in dealing with the issue because over time perpetrators have not been brought to book which is helping to worsen the issue.

 

We want an end to this insecurity and peace restored to all troubled areas in the country?” The missionary group also advised Christians to take advantage of the Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) and register with the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) ahead of the 2023 general elections.

 

According to the group, every Nigerian must rise up and take necessary actions in the leadership recruitment by voting capable leaders in the 2023 general elections.

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