PRESS RELEASE ON THE RESURGENCE OF TERRORISM AND STATE OF INSECURITY IN NIGERIA

PRESS RELEASE ON THE RESURGENCE OF TERRORISM AND STATE OF INSECURITY IN NIGERIA

The North East of Nigeria has come under increasing attacks in the weeks following the inauguration of President Muhammadu Buhari since May 29^th 2015. It is on record that since the May 29th some 181 people have been killed in renewed Boko Haram attacks. In the light of this renewed onslaught by terrorists against innocent and peace loving Nigerians while masquerading as insurgents, we at Community Agenda for Peace (CAP) are compelled to call upon and warn the Nigerian leadership of the dire socio-political and economic consequences of delay in strategic response to the attacks. 

Presently, Boko Haram’s hit-and-run attacks on villages and bombings North East of the country are ongoing, and for record purposes, we set serially the media report of a few of the depressing most recent Boko Haram terrorist’s attacks starting from the most recent:

1.    12-YR-OLD FEMALE SUICIDE BOMBER KILLS MANY IN CROWDED MARKET

2.   BOMB BLAST HITS MAIDUGURI MARKET

3.   20 DEAD, 50 INJURED IN TWIN SUICIDE BLASTS

4.   63 DEAD AS EXPLOSION ROCKS BORNO COMMUNITY

5.   10 FEARED DEAD AS BOMB BLAST HITS YOBE

6.   3 FEMALE SUICIDE BOMBERS DIE AS EXPLOSIVES DETONATE PREMATURELY

7.   FEMALE SUICIDE BOMBER KILLS 2

8.   32 DEAD, 53 INJURED IN BLAST

9.   58 DIE AFTER BOKO HARAM’S MULTIPLE BLASTS HIT MAIDUGURI

Most depressing to us however in the light of the above is that it seems the present administration of President Buhari has resorted to the familiar sing-song of “the crisis will soon be a thing of the past”, yet from our analysis of prevailing situation, there is actually nothing identifiable indicating a definitive step to arrest the situation.

Community Agenda for Peace (CAP) is convinced that Mr. President’s body language and readiness to consider the Amnesty International’s report indicting the Nigerian military on extra-judicial killings has not only discouraged, distracted and dampened the morale of the military but has also greatly encouraged the terrorists. Our position is that Nigerians generally and Northern population specifically need to know that Mr. President is going to extraordinary lengths to secure and protect them.

The body language of Mr. President may have been the catalyst for an increased zeal on the part of the terrorists to increase the ferocity of their attacks despite Mr. President’s diplomatic shuttle to curry neighboring country’s support. His body language seem to whittle down whatever benefit such diplomatic engagements may have gathered with the effect that the terrorists have grown more confident in the past three weeks thus killing and maiming more and more innocent citizens, displacing more and more farmers from their land, and preventing socio-economic and political activities within the affected areas.

We are therefore worried with the apparent sluggishness or lack of tactics on the part of the Federal Government to immediately fashion out a prompt strategy to meet these challenges. It is to this extent that we call on the Presidency to curtail this renewed onslaught by immediately:

1.    Disregarding the Amnesty International’s report against the Nigerian military by refusing to probe past and present leadership of the Nigerian Army.

2.   Drawing on the support of Northern governors, traditional Hausa and Fulani leaders and Islamic scholars.

3.   Recognizing that due to widespread disenchantment amongst Northern youth, they are currently trapped between violent extremism on the one hand and heavily insincere government responses on the other.

Finally, our recent findings indicate that most Muslims are usually as horrified at such atrocious acts of violence by Boko Haram as other Nigerians are, yet they bear the brunt of threats and attacks after each incident of terrorism floods the media. Muslim extremists and in this case, Boko Haram make up only an insignificant fraction of the Nigerian Muslim community, yet they receive most of the attention because of the terror they cause.

While calling for the building of stronger alliances between THE FAITHS, we further call on the leadership of the Islamic faith in Nigeria to do more to separate extremists from true Muslims, the radical few from the true worshippers and the terrorist Boko Haram from true Muslims.

Nigeria cannot win the war against terrorism if Muslim leaders up North continue to view the war against terror as a war against Islam and Muslims. We are convinced that Northern leaders cannot continue to view the fight against Boko Haram as a fight against Northern interests, as it will have the effect of demoralizing, distracting and intimidating the Nigerian Military.

Nigerians therefore must unite In support of:

1.    The Military to defeat the terrorist Boko Haram

2.   All Muslims against any backlash of the war on terror

3.   Government to build a virile nation where peace reigns

OBUESI PHILLIPS

National Director, COMMUNITY AGENDA FOR PEACE
Publisher, THE MANDATE MONITOR

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