The pan-Yoruba socio-cultural and political organization, Afenifere, has appealed to President Bola Tinubu to urgently convene ‘Meetings for Understanding and Peaceful Co-existence’ among local leaders in Nigeria so as to stem increasing terrorism and banditry.
The organization in a press statement issued by its National Publicity Secretary, Comrade Jare Ajayi, emphasised that the immediate reason for the call was that the terror acts unleashed in Plateau, Benue, Kogi, Borno, Sokoto, Niger, Ondo, Katsina, Rivers States etc. lately.
Afenifere stated that there was the need to tame the monster stressing that if the terrorism act remained unchecked in any part of the country it would amount to putting pressures on other parts of the country hitherto considered as safe. The organization noted that,it is concerned because it has empathy for Nigerians and has always felt the pains of those who are at the receiving end irrespective of where they are from
It noted that it would be recalled that about 200 people were reportedly killed on Christmas eve in three local government areas of Plateau State while over 10,000 were rendered homeless.
On the same Christmas eve, “12 people were reportedly killed by suspected gunmen in Kurya village, Rabbah Local Government Area of Sokoto State. This was in addition to some killings and kidnappings that took place in the same state earlier in December, 2023. That of Borno was typified by repeated assaults in Chibok.”
It explained that a careful appraisal of the ogre of terrorism indicated that the incidents can be categorized into four. “Those being carried out for the purpose of extorting money from people (manifesting in kidnapping). Those being carried out for territorial reasons. Those being carried out for ideological reasons and those being carried out with the encouragement of external interests as a result of mineral resources available where the victims domicile.”
Afenifere stated that for steps being taken to be effective, the above classifications must be taken into consideration.
Afenifere therefore urged President Tinubu to come up with a Presidential Order proclaiming State and Local Government Police and that modern security technologies must also be acquired and deployed to various parts of the country without further delay.
