Governor Nasir el-Rufai of Kaduna state has said 22 persons lost their
lives during last Sunday crisis that rocked the metropolis, while 44
others sustained injuries with several properties worth millions of
naira damaged within the city.
The governor however vowed to enforce the various existing laws that
impose costs on communities that permit violence in their midst, in
order to stem intermittent crises in Kaduna state.
El-Rufai, who issued the warning in an address during the emergency
meeting of the State Council of Chiefs yesterday, stated that the
provisions of the Riots Damage Laws of 1958, the Collective Damage Law
of 1915 and the Peace Preservation Law of 1917, will henceforth be
enforced to impose on community members the cost of repairs of damage
arising from crises.
He said, “These laws impose on communities that permit violence in
their midst, obliging community members to be charged and levied
monies for the costs of repairing damage done during episodes of
violence. We will provide details of the enforcement of these extant
laws.”
El Rufai warned royal fathers that, “in situations of unrests, it is
common for traditional rulers to disclaim any control over unruly
youths. It is an excuse we can no longer accept. Where significant
sections of a community disdain the counsel or authority of their
traditional ruler, it imperils the rationale for keeping the
traditional institution and the occupant of the office.”
The governor, who traced the genesis of crises in Kaduna state, said
ethno-religious clash first occurred in Kasuwan Magani in 1980, adding
that “since then, it appears that a constituency has developed which
believes that violence pays, and is convinced that violence has no
consequences for the perpetrators.