By Agi Onda
Abuja
A coalition of civil society organisations, the Sahel Network on Preventing Violent Extremism (SNPVE) has called on the federal government to adopt robust peace building programmes in the effort to secure the country and the future of the younger generation.
The coalition, in a press statement after its stakeholders’ meeting in Abuja yesterday, said real peace and development would continue to elude Nigeria “if the federal government fails to adopt peace-building mechanisms and processes, including citizen engagement and human security approaches to address the intractable security and economic development in the country.”
A statement by the Executive Director of the CSO, Mr Theophilus Ekpon and made available to Blueprint said President Muhammadu Buhari has fared significantly well in the fight against insurgency and corruption but noted that a lot remained to be seen in the arrest of the army of youth and women through job placement, capacity building and empowerment, to be able to free the system of the lingering tension in the country.
Mr Ekpon said government at all levels should embark on realistic “approach to justice system reforms that respect the rule of law and universal human rights, especially those which pertain to the rights of children and vulnerable persons. We encourage access to justice for all, elimination of prolonged detention without trials, court delays and sustainable capacity building for law enforcement and security officers.”
Besides, Ekpon said: “The APC government should rehabilitate and reintegrate those associated with and affected by violent extremism through all means necessary, including through socio-economic and psycho-social support, and during all stages of any criminal justice process, including imprisonment.”
Ekpon explained that the SNPVE is a body of over 20 civil society organisations operating in the Sahel region, based on the “Abuja Civil Society Declaration on Preventing Violent Extremism.
Apart from building on the principles of the Charter of the United Nations, SNPVE executive director said the body recognises the role of the ECOWAS Counter-Terrorism Strategy (CTS) and Implementation Plan which focuses on the three pillars of prevent, pursue and reconstruct (PPR).
