By Bashir Mohammed
Kano
Executive Director, Centre for Information Technology and Development (CITAD), Malam Zakari Yau Zakari, has said that no sustainable development could ever be feasible without entrenching peace at the lower rung of the ladder
He also identified the issue of social justice and blatant discrimination, as part of the factors, which must be addressed for the prime objective to be achieved.
Speaking at a one-day evaluation meeting on peace organised by CITAD in Kano yesterday, Zakari stated that the notion of social justice must be predicated on the premise of equality before the law, adding that the issue of addressing violent conflict could only be realistic with the citizenry being equal in the eyes of law.
According to him, the spectre of hate speech and propaganda stunt on social media and other means of communication had taken a heavy toll on the quest to find a lasting solution to intractable conflicts stressing that CITAD was up and doing in creating the much needed awareness for everyone to comprehend.
He said CITAD had also undertaken a pain staking research on myriad cases of human right abuses stemming from the ongoing Boko Haram insurgency affirming that the result, so far, recorded was impressive given the level of response received from those appalled by the alleged wanton violations of their right.
On the problems and challenges CITAD was facing at present Yau said CITAD was not able to reach out to the legislature at the federal level and the top military brass who were major stakeholders in ending the ongoing insurgency on the issue of advocacy and collaborative synergy
He, however, lamented that there was low awareness and poor understanding of the inner workings of the social media which serves as a veritable launch-pad in disseminating the basic information needed to engender peace saying many people were afraid to indulge in social media communication to appreciably forge ahead.
