For the umpteenth time, the Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Muhammad Sa’ad Abubakar, has expressed concerns over the growing insecurity in Nigeria, urging President Muhammadu Buhari to do the needful to stem the tide.
The monarch spoke against the backdrop of the abduction of hundreds of students of Government Science Secondary School (GSSS), Kankara, Katsina state.
Before now, the Sultan had, while speaking on the Zabarmari massacre of 67 rice farmers in Borno state, said the northern part of the country was no longer safe.
Speaking along same line Monday, the Sultan, who is also President General of Jama’atu Nasril Islam (JNI), said the boldness of the bandits to carry out the abduction on the day Mr. President arrived his home state-Katsina-was test his resolve to tackle banditry.
In a statement issued through the JNI Secretary-General, Dr. Khalid Abubakar Aliyu, the Sultan lamented the lapses in Nigeria’s security architecture that needed to be urgently and seriously addressed.
He also urged President Buhari to listen to calls from Nigerians to revamp the security architecture and address the nation.
“There are insinuations that for pecuniary benefits, some top echelon among the security operatives don’t want the insecurity to end. If not, how can one explain the movement of the bandits in their hundreds on motorcycles without being detected? What happens to intelligence gathering that this heinous plan was not uncovered before it was hatched?
“How comes the bandits took their time, gathered the school boys, heaped them on bikes and whisked them away without being rounded up by the security agencies? Mr. President needs to hearken to the call of Nigerians; REVAMP THE SECURITY ARCHITECTURE AND ADDRESS THE NATION!
“The Jama’atu Nasril Islam (JNI) under the leadership of its President-General, Alhaji Muhammad Sa’ad Abubakar, the Sultan of Sokoto received with absolute shock the most unfortunate story of the abduction of students from Government Science Secondary School (GSSS), Kankara, Katsina state, after shooting the security guard on the spot, at about 10:45pm on Friday.
“This abduction in commando style is one tragedy too many coming on the heels of the infamous Zabarmari massacre just not long ago. This indeed is a sad reminder of the abductions of school girls in Chibok and Dapchi of Borno and Yobe states of North-East Nigeria, and it’s an indicator that the powers that be don’t read the present through the spectacle of the past; otherwise this wouldn’t have happened,” the statement said.
Raising some posers, the JNI asked: “For the umpteenth time, we will continue to ask: for how long shall the masses continue to live in fear? For how long shall the Federal and state governments continue to issue empty condemnations whenever tragedies strike? Is the government and the security agencies so overwhelmed and thus cannot secure the citizens? Are there insurmountable challenges or acts of sabotage that the government is hiding from the public? These and many more questions continue to bedevil every discerning mind within and outside Nigeria.
“The Kankara abduction was so belligerently orchestrated that it happened the day Mr. President arrived Katsina state on a private visit. Are the bandits this bold as to further test the resolve of the government or smite the face of the Commander in Chief by bringing it up to his doorstep in his presence? This further proves what we once said that the bandits rule in many communities and do as they wish with impunity.
“If there is any worse outcome than the abduction itself, it is the fact that this is the most potent action to frustrate school enrolment in Northern Nigeria, as no parent will forthwith be comfortable to send their children or wards to boarding school despite the many enrolment campaign efforts by the government. And it will even be callous for anyone to call on the traumatized parents to expose their beloved children to these unprotected environments to be used as fodder by bandits and insurgents at will.
“What baffles us the most is the government’s inability to locate the enemies’ actual enclave, the focal point of their strength and to devote all available means to rout them out or incapacitate them. Is it that the political will isn’t there? What really is the challenge or Nigerians don’t deserve to know from the government they elected?
“We nevertheless in a plangent mood commiserate with the families of the GSSS Kankara victims and wish them safe and immediate reunion with their respective children. We also pray for Allah’s continuous guidance, strength and stamina to all those on the battle fields against all forms of insurrections in Nigeria.
“In the same vein, we urge the people and government of Katsina state not to get depressed; Allah, the Most High shall continue to be their strength In-sha’Allah. In light of the above, we call on governments at all levels to with all urgency do everything possible and use any means possible to return the school boys.
“The Prayers of the JNI and Nigerian Muslims are therefore that: government should spare no effort(s) to immediately return all the abducted students of GSSS Kankara. And then there should be no sacred cows – heads must roll for the repeated slackness.
“Government at all levels in collaboration with different security agencies should proactively rise against the tide of insecurity in whatever guise by nipping it in the bud, before it escalates; we must all be upright in our dealings and remember that we shall all account for our respective actions and inactions, thus we should be God-conscious.
“We should continue to seek Allah’s intervention to ending these orgies bedeviling our country, as well as return to Allah with all righteousness; repentance, remorsefulness, brokenhearted and seeking for His pardon.”
…Northern elders too
In a similar vein, the northern elders have again raised the alarm that the region is now at the mercy of terrorists, bandits and other criminal elements, following the abduction of the 333 students in Kankara, Katsina state.
The elders, under the aegis of the Coalition of Northern Elders for Peace and Development (CNEPD), said the attack further confirmed the country’s security architecture was in dire need of a total overhaul.
The elders insisted the Service Chiefs were no more in charge of the security situation in the zone and the entire country.
They stated that the abduction of the school children confirmed their position that the region was no longer safe for habitation.
In a statement signed Monday by CNEPD National Coordinator, Engineer Zana Goni and its women leader, Hajiya Mario Bichi, the group said the continuous stay in office of the Service Chiefs whom they noted, “have been exhausted with nothing more to offer in security service, was emboldening the adversaries in their increasing dastardly actions against the country.”
The elders condemned the attack on the school children, saying the development which came few days after the decapitation of over 46 rice farmers in Borno state, was disturbing.
They reiterated their earlier call on Buhari to seek foreign help, stating that any further delay by the president may lead to the extinction of the region following increasing mass killings of its people by the terrorists.
The statement said: “The latest attack on Government Science Secondary School, Kankara, in Katsina State, where over 333 children are reportedly missing has further confirmed our position that our region is now at the mercy of terrorists, bandits, and other criminal elements.
“And as a result of this, we strongly believe that time has come for our president to bring in fresh hope and clear directions on how best the country will strategise to overcome the present insecurity situation in the country in general.”
Describing the attack on school children as callous and reprehensible, the group said: “At the boiling point we have found ourselves in today, we strongly believe that it will not be out of place to seek assistance in dealing with these threats from outside.”
While extending their sympathies to the families of the victims, the elders said, “We would say in the strongest possible terms that there can be no justification for the deliberate targeting of innocent school children.”
The elders called on authorities to ensure that those responsible for the action are brought to justice just as they tasked communities in the region to demand that schools be considered as places of safety.
They said the Service Chiefs “have lost the support of human, nature, and spirit and also exhausted their energies, ideas and capacities hence can no longer turn around the country’s security for good,” and urged the president to see reason with majority of Nigerians calling for fresh hands to come on board as service chiefs.
“Our President was elected by Nigerians and the same Nigerians have spoken through their representatives in the National Assembly. Our president should listen to them by dropping the service chiefs, who have since reached retirement age in the military and appoint new ones with fresh ideas to do the job for which we elected him to do,” the statement further said.
The coalition also said the “president’s idea about insecurity has proved inadequate to deal with the threat to our lives and property.”
They called on him to “urgently change tactics and personnel in order to win the war against rising threats to the lives of Nigerians.”
Masari assures
But Governor Aminu Bello Masari has assured that the kidnapped children would be rescued.
He gave the assurance Monday while briefing President Buhari in Daura, Katsina state.
Speaking to journalists after the briefing which started at 2.00pm, Masari said: “We are making progress and the outlook is positive.”
The governor, who was accompanied by his deputy, Manir Yakubu, said the kidnappers had made contact and discussions were already on pertaining to safety and return to their homes.
He said security agencies had located the position of the children.
The governor said the president was fully committed to the rescue of the school children, adding that it was only appropriate to visit the president and give him more details of rescue efforts.
UNICEF speaks up
In a further condemnation of the students’ abduction, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) Monday called for the boys’ immediate release, describing the attack on schools as a violation of children’s rights.
The statement read: “We are deeply concerned about these acts of violence.
“UNICEF condemns in the strongest possible terms this brutal attack and calls for the immediate and unconditional release of all children and their return to their families.”
It’s Regional Director for West and Central Africa, Marie-Pierre Poirier, expressed solidarity with the families of the students and their communities.
Poirier declared that the violence was a “grim reminder” that abductions of children and widespread grave violations of children’s rights continued to take place in the northern part of Nigeria.
“Children should feel safe at home, in schools and in their playgrounds at all times. We stand with the families of the missing children and the community affected by this horrifying event,” she added.
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