A group of 46 prominent Nigerians has lamented the spate of insecurity across the country, calling on President Muhammadu and the National Assembly to devolve power by enacting enabling law to allow state governors more control of security in their domain.
The group, Concerned Nigerians, in statement on Thursday signed by Jibrin Ibrahim and Olisa Agbakoba, on behalf the members including Mohammed Tabiu, Pat Utomi, Rufai Alkali, Ukachukwu Awuzie, Koyinsola Ajayi, Attahiru Muhammadu Jega, Adele Jinadu, Jibrin Ibrahim, Femi Falana and others, advised governors, civil society groups and community leaders to voice their concern over the worsening insecurity in the country, while working at a legitimate mechanism for the protection of their people against the current spate of killings and kidnappings.
“The National Assembly should during the engagement with the Office of the President, ensure that the Office takes decisive action to improve the security situation in the country as stipulated by our Grand Norm,” the group said in the statement.
“In consonance with the widely accepted notion of devolution, the National Assembly should enact laws to facilitate State Governments take more responsibility for their security as they face increased insecurity.
“The security chiefs in the country have collectively failed to provide security for Nigerians and there must be consequences for this failure and in any case their tenure has expired,” it said.
Concerned Nigerians urged civil society groups and communities to come out and clearly show their legitimate concerns at mounting insecurity and make it clear that they are unwilling to continue to accept the current collapse of public safety.
It further demanded for the unfreezing of all accounts, freeing of all persons detained on account of organising the EndSARS protest, charging to court anyone found to have a case to answer for any crime, while President Buhari should show sensibility to the feelings of Nigerians rather than call objective critics derogatory names.
“President showing empathy and compassion, using the power of his voice to calm nerves, and urging all who speak for the government to show sensibility to the feelings of the people and not denigrate as criminals objective critics of existential problems we all face,” the group said.
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“The Federal Government should unfreeze all accounts and free all persons detained on account of organising the EndSARS protest, charging to court anyone it finds to have a case to answer for any crime. The Federal Government should stop all acts evidencing dissonance in government, labelling innocent and legitimate activity as criminal, ridiculing government by misrepresenting facts, and labelling the reportage of facts as fake news,” it said.
The group condemned the incumbent administration’s attempt to forcefully stop any protests, its refusal to implement the minimum set of proposals by the youths, saying that the administration had shown that it lacked ideas on how to tackle the insecurity in the country which was demonstrated in the recent brutal killing of farmers at Zabarmari, Borno State.
“Nigerians now live in a state of anomie, well outside our unsuccessful eleven-year old war against Boko Haram. Across the country, especially in the North, life has become extremely tenuous. People are killed daily, women are raped regularly, kidnapping is rife and many farmers cannot go to their farms,” the group said.
“We are concerned that over the past five years, in particular, public safety and security have been in steady decline throughout the country. According to the Global Terrorism Index 2020, Nigeria is the third country most impacted by terrorism in the world today.
“Everyone is asking, where is the state? Underscoring the message of many notable Nigerians, the Sultan of Sokoto declared last week that no one is safe anywhere in Nigeria. The country is facing a real crisis of food insecurity. Millions of Nigerians are in desperate need of emergency humanitarian support,” it said.
