The Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) has thrown its weight behind Governor Murtala Nyako of Adamawa State, who in a memo dated April 16, 2014 sent to the Northern Governors Forum accused the Federal Government of genocide against the people of the North.

Nyako had in the controversial memo alleged that the central government has failed to arrest the mindless slaughter and indiscriminate bloodletting by the Boko Haram insurgents and other terrorist groups, which he described as a clear and systematic effort to destroy the northern population for partisan political advantage.

ACF in a statement issued yesterday by its National Publicity Secretary, Muhammad Ibrahim, also raised questions on Boko Haram’s potency despite claims of significant victories over the sect by the Nigerian military.

Mr. Ibrahim said in the statement: “ACF had in the last six years expressed serious concern on the spate of killings and destruction of property by the Boko Haram insurgents and other criminals in the North especially in the North east region. It had also appealed to Government at various levels on the need to adequately equip and fund its military and other security personnel to tackle the insecurity challenges bedeviling the North, unfortunately the measures employed by Government including a state of emergency have not yielded the desired result, hence the incessant attacks and kidnapping of innocent people by the insurgents and unknown gunmen.

“The scale and sophistication of the attacks being waged by the insurgents against armedless people who do not even know or understand their grievance is beyond the capacity of the semi-illiterate almajiri (Boko Haram) that we know.

“It would be recalled that not long ago, our Military command informed the world that it had found and destroyed over 700 vehicles belonging to the insurgents in one of their camps, so as to wither the fighting being waged by the Boko Haram insurgents, how come the killings and kidnappings have continued to be on the increase especially in the North east region?

“ACF had earlier called on the Government to thoroughly investigate the source of funds, arms and ammunitions the insurgents have in carrying on with their deadly acts of terrorism against the people without much resistance from our security forces deployed in the affected states.

“Therefore, Governor Nyako being a victim of the calamity that has afflicted the Northern states is only expressing the frustrations being felt by other victims.

“ACF therefore calls on the Federal Government to urgently investigate the allegations made by Governor Nyako especially the support being enjoyed by the insurgents from third parties within and outside Nigeria in order to get to the root of this insecurity ravaging the North.”

•Photo shows ACF Board of Trustees Chairman, General J.T Useni.

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