Elders, leaders of socio-political
organisations and key stakeholders from the northern part of Nigeria have
scored the performance of President Muhammadu Buhari low and, consequently,
rejected him as their candidate for the 2019 general elections.
The
leaders who met on Saturday in Kaduna insisted that the present leadership
representing the region has failed in its mandate and, therefore, must be
replaced by competent persons.
Leaders
of the Northern Elders Forum, Arewa Youth Consultative Forum, Borno Elders
Forum, and Supreme Council for Sharia in Nigeria were among those present at
the meeting.
In a communique read by a member of the Northern Elders Forum and Chief of
Staff to Nigeria’s Senate President, Dr Hakeem Baba-Ahmed, the northern leaders
lamented that almost three years after President Buhari was sworn in, the
economy, security and political fortunes of the region have continued to
deteriorate.
To
make matters worse, they said the Buhari administration is doing little or
nothing to salvage the situation.
‘Not
enough strong will’
President
Buhari had swept to power promising to tackle insecurity, fight corruption and
boost Nigeria’s economy.
However,
the northern leaders believe his administration has not demonstrated enough
strong will to tackle the Boko Haram insurgency, rural banditry and
herdsmen/farmers clashes that have claimed scores of lives in many parts of the
region.
They
added that little effort has been made to tackle the poverty that has continued
to ravage the region and the entire country.
“We
demand immediate and decisive steps to improve the security of lives and
economic assets in the North by the federal and state governments. Too many
communities are at the mercy of attacks from sundry groups of criminals who
appear to have unchallenged access to space and weapons,” Baba- Ahmed said.
Furthermore, the northern leaders
stressed that the region will not vote for any politician who fails to show a
willingness to address the numerous challenges facing the region.
The
communique read in part, “The Summit noted that despite notable successes by
the administration against the Boko Haram insurgency in the North East, many
Northern communities still live under its threat. In many other parts of the
North, communities are routinely exposed to attacks from shadowy killers, and
suspicion and anger at known and suspected killers are pitching Northerners
against each other. Armed bandits terrorize rural communities almost at will,
while kidnappings and abductions have assumed alarming notoriety as crimes.
“The
nation’s security and law and order assets are stretched beyond points where
they can’t provide even the most elementary confidence and protection of
citizens. The North has rarely been so exposed to multiple and varied threats”.
“Since
2015, Northerners have occupied positions with the potential to make decisive
differences in the economy, security or political fortunes of the region. The
hopes that leaders who have exercised power since 2015 will reverse the abuse
and neglect of the region in the previous decade have been betrayed. Weak
governance, gross insensitivity and unacceptable levels of incompetence have
been compounded by battles of attrition in which northerners have sapped each
other’s’ strength. Weak and incoherent responses to provocations from other
parts of the country around the imperatives of re-visiting the foundations and
structures of the Nigerian state have created the false image of a North
without its own positions beyond survival as the parasite of Nigeria.
“The
Summit, having undertaken a thorough analysis of the state of the North and our
communities, therefore urges all leaders, elders and communities to seek
peaceful resolutions of conflicts between and among communities. Lives lost,
injuries suffered, and losses incurred in any community must be redressed
firmly and fairly. The roots of co-existence and inter-dependence in all
Northern communities are much deeper than the barricades being erected around
communities. All persons who are involved in killings and crimes against
communities must be brought to book.
“The
summit warns that no Northern politician should expect to be voted for in the
next general election unless they demonstrate a willingness to champion a
massive assault on poverty and underdevelopment in the North. In this regard,
most political office holders from the North are hereby served notice that they
have failed the test to lead the region towards economic recovery and growth.
“The
summit asserts the rights of all Northerners to examine all options in
political choices they will make in 2019. The leadership selection process must
be critically interrogated to present the best leader to Nigeria as a whole. No
one should take the North for granted, and it is not for sale. It will resist
shedding its blood for any candidate and will critically scrutinize all
politicians who will seek our mandate. At this stage, all options are on the
table, and politicians who have betrayed the hopes and mandates of our people
should be prepared to suffer rejection, in the same manner, the votes of the
North rejected the attempt to continue with impunity, corruption and
indifference of the previous regime.”
–
Source:
Channel
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