• Group faults police recruitment, wants probe on alleged withdrawal of soldiers from Kuje prison

The Resource Centre for Human Rights and Civic Education (CHRICED), yesterday, expressed concern over rising wave of insecurity and its implications for political stability.

In a statement signed by Executive Director, Comrade Dr. Ibrahim M. Zikirullahi, CHRICED said, “if the increasing pattern of attacks by terrorists and criminal elements is not resolutely confronted, it could serve as a catalyst for serious religious conflict in the country.”

It added: “If President Buhari believes he is too weak or tired to take charge of protecting citizens’ life and property, as he was elected to do, the best option is for him to resign as President, rather than subject the country to its current travails, where it is sliding towards the status of a failed state where impunity reigns and people are at the mercy of bandits and insurgents.

“The government has a responsibility to protect all citizens. The sooner it begins to fulfill this responsibility, the better for our country’s stability.”

The statement reads in part: “As things stand, not a single day passes without citizens being subjected to violent attacks by a variety of criminal elements that leave a trail of sadness, tears, and blood.

“In the face of these atrocities, the Nigerian state seems impotent and incapable of effectively responding to the security crisis that has engulfed the entire country, despite billions of United States dollars invested by President Buhari’s administration in the fight against insurgency, including the purchase of Tucano Jets.

“One worrisome aspect of the country’s insecurity is the emerging pattern of religious leaders and clerics being targeted for attacks, kidnapping, or outright elimination. From the kidnapping of the Methodist Prelate in Abia to the recurring abduction of Catholic Church priests, the religious dimension of recent violence necessitates introspection and a clear shift in strategy by those tasked with protecting life and property.”

This was as Governor Bello Mohammed Matawalle of Zamfara State lamented that the Federal Government is not helping issues as far as security matters are concerned.

The governor disclosed this when he received a coalition of civil society organisations at his Maradun country home.

Matawalle said the Federal Government has failed in its constitutional responsibility to protect life and property of the entire citizenry. He expressed dismay over the number of kidnapped victims and lives that have been lost in the state.

Matawalle said that as a governor, who has no control over the military, police and other security agencies, “I decided to implement arms for self-defense.”

He lamented that most of the military and security operatives that were supposed to be helpful to society with their wealth of knowledge were retired prematurely.

The governor said if the Federal Government could extend the retirement age of medical doctors, university lecturers and judges, it should consider doing the same for security personnel.

“That is why, as a governor who has no absolute control over the Army, Air force, police, and other security agencies, I asked the residents of the state to carry arms for self-defense.

“We had dialogue with the bandits but it did not work. That was why we decided to close markets, shut down telecommunication networks and sale of petrol, yet all these did not work,” he said.

Meanwhile, Muslim Media Watch Group of Nigeria (MMWG) has faulted the Federal Government on recruitment shortage in the Nigeria Police Force and called for a probe into the alleged withdrawal of some security personnel from the Kuje Correctional Centre, 24 hours before terrorists struck.

It condemned the recruitment of 10,000 personnel since 2020 into the police and accused state governors of misappropriation of monthly security votes appropriated for the security of life and property.

National coordinator of the group, Ibrahim Abdullahi, and National Missioner, Sheikh Abu Sheriff, said this in a statement marking the Eid-el-Kabir festival in Abuja. (The Guardian: Text, excluding headline)

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