The Pan-Yoruba socio-political organisation, Afenifere, has knocked the Federal government over poor handling of the nation’s security.
Afenifere in a statement issued by its national publicity secretary, Comrade Jare Ajayi on Monday, stated that the rate at which insecurity is festering was as though there is no authority who could reign-in the monsters.
It noted that according to the country’s constitution, the sitting president, Muhammadu Buhari, is the Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces, as such the person on whose shoulders the security and welfare of Nigerians squarely lie on.
“Unfortunately, we have not seen veritable indications that the C-in-C is aware of the enormity of the situation or is putting up any strategy to arrest it.”
Recalling President Buhari’s speech during this year’s Democracy Day celebration where he confessed saying that, “I am living daily with the grief and worry for all those victims and prisoners of terrorism and kidnapping,” Afenifere submitted that the business of Nigerian president is not to ‘grieve’ for victims of terrorism but to ensure that terrorism, kidnapping and allied crimes do not occur at all in the country.
It would be recalled that within two weeks, there have been about three kidnappings in Ogbomoso in Oyo State leading to the death of some victims, beheading of five people in the South East, abduction of people in Katsina, Kaduna, Nasarawa and Niger, killing and abduction of about 15 people including Indian expatriates in Kogi State and abductions of some chiefs in Akoko area of Ondo State etc all within days.
The organization stated that these are in addition to several of such dastardly acts that have been happening in different parts of the country with increasing ferocity.
It also alluded to the report from Ondo State where the Amotekun corps intercepted two trucks carrying 151 young men and women.
“Ordinarily, there is nothing wrong with people moving from one part of the country to the other.” But if those people were not on a satanic mission, why would they hide under bags of rice and beans? Why would they not be able to state their mission and actual destinations?
“They claim to have been raked from Kano, Katsina and Jigawa States to come to the South West for a mission or missions that they were not told about.”
Afenifere commends the efforts of Ondo State government and Amotekun officers for the gallant work they are doing.
It regretted that because of the kid-glove manner with which government is dealing with the terrorists and kidnappers have been so emboldened that they now attack security institutions at will and malevolently go into houses of their victims to deal with fellow Nigerians – all under the watch of government and security agencies!
The organization noted instances that can be cited in this respect included the following: ‘’Reports have it that bandits on the night of Sunday, August 7, attacked and killed three persons while scores were reportedly abducted by the attackers in Bali town, headquarters of Bali Local Government Area of Taraba State. The bandits began to raid people from house to house after overpowering the security personnel at the checkpoint.
‘’Just last Friday, four police officers were killed when gunmen attacked Agwa Divisional Police Headquarters in Oguta Local Government Area of Imo State, Nigeria’s South-east.’’
While conceding that the government and security agencies had been ‘doing one thing or the other’ on insecurity, it noted that expected result has not come because of uncoordinated strategies among others.
Specifically, Afenifere faults the idea of re-integrating confirmed terrorists and bandits, “As evidence had shown that such seemingly reintegrated bandits go ahead to commit crimes that are more heinous than the ones they were known for beforehand”.
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