The sad news that gunmen, Tuesday night, attacked Greenfield University, a private institution in Kaduna and abducted some students is glaring evidence that the country has been overrun by armed non-state actors, rights advocacy group, Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA), has lamented.

It observed that such non-state actors are emboldened by the compromised security and political establishments. The unfortunate addition is that Nigeria, at this moment, lacks functional independent legislative and judicial branches which inevitably create serious vacuum which these desperate armed non-state actors are cashing in on.

It said Kaduna state, which suffers from governance deficit, has become the headquarters of kidnappings and ethnically-motivated killings.

HURIWA condemned President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration and the government of Kaduna state for their abysmal incapacity to protect lives and property of Nigerians.

The rights group said if the Federal Government’s commitment is directed towards protecting lives and property which is the primary purpose of government, the rampant cases of invasions of schools and kidnappings of students that keep repeating themselves would have become a thing of the past.

It asked for the immediate declaration of emergency rule in Kaduna state so that measures by military authority can be effected to restore law and order in Kaduna state and rescue the 39 students kidnapped over a month ago because it seems like the political stakeholders in Kaduna are benefitting from the organised crimes going on there.

HURIWA recalled that Greenfield University, the only operational private university in the state, and located along the Kaduna-Abuja road, some kilometres away from Kaduna city, has come under attack reminiscent of the invasion, nearly a month ago at a neighbouring Federal College of Forestry Mechanization in the state.

The rights group blamed the collapse of intelligence gathering capacity of the security forces and especially the Nigerian Police Force and the Civil Defence Corps for the frequency of these armed banditry and kidnappings, stating that politicians have weakened the endorsement by soldiers to carry out the flushing out of these armed criminals.

HURIWA wondered what kind of government will act the same way like that of President Buhari which gave two months’ notice to armed kidnappers to stop their attacks or be flushed out, adding: “This ultimatum is ruthlessly criminal and illegal.”

“A government need not offer armed terrorists soft-landing or ultimatum. A decisive government acts by degrading and decimating armed terrorists,” HURIWA affirms.

The rights group observed that that because the heads of the security forces in the states are not held to account for security breaches in their areas of jurisdictions, they therefore believe that they can afford to abandon their core responsibilities to the citizens of Nigeria since the appointing authority does not care so much about accountability and effective delivery of their duties and responsibilities.

“We in HURIWA are sad that armed marauders, terrorists, armed Fulani herdsmen and bandits are allowed unfettered operations all over the country and citizens are killed, maimed, kidnapped and these terrorists are never arrested.

“Because the states lack functional legislative branches and also because the National Assembly has become a cash and carry contraption, the so-called legislators are prepared to legislate cows database into law than compel the Executive arm of government to be alive to [it’s] primary responsibilities which is the protection of lives and property of the Nigerian people.

“We are saddened that some students were abducted but nobody is ready to immediately say how many students were kidnapped. The attack in Greenfield University along Kaduna-Abuja road around 20:15 hours is disheartening and shocking.

“This abysmal failure of governance is unprecedented and it is unbelievable that we are now like hostages to all kinds of armed criminals, some of whom are backed by some government officials,” HURIWA lamented.

Update news