Middle Belt Forum, MBF, yesterday, called on communities in the region to ariseand defend themselves against unabated pogrom being launched at them by herdsmen. Reacting to last weekend’s killings in Plateau State, President of the Forum, Dr. Pogu Bitrus, who made the call at a media briefing in Abuja, said the killings going on in the Middle Belt were unacceptable. He argued that the call for self-defence had become imperative since the government has abdicated its responsibility to protect them.
“Section 33 of the Nigerian Constitution guarantees every citizen the right to life and nobody should be deprived of that right. The right to private self-defence is constitutionally recognized to protect that right to life,” he said.
Bitrus, who indicted the security agencies as culpable of conspiracy in the killings, said: “In very many cases, the circumstances surrounding the killings and destruction suggest that there is complicity by the leadership of security and intelligence agencies. “Besides, the forum has asked the international community, African Union, AU, to condemn and call to order the federal government for failing in its responsibility to protect the people of the Middle Belt.
Bitrus, who also noted that the African Union’s silence was no longer golden as Nigeria had been on the road to the genocide in Rwanda with the African Union maintaining silence, however, called on the International Criminal Court, ICC, to investigate the genocide in the Middle Belt and bring the perpetrators to justice. He stated further: “We call on the entire people of the Middle Belt to organize themselves in their communities to defend themselves and their property as the government has abdicated its responsibility to protect them.
“Section 33 of the Nigerian Constitution guarantees every citizen the right to life and nobody should be deprived of that right. The right to private self defence is constitutionally recognized to protect that right to life.
“Governments of all states in the Middle Belt should as a matter of urgency support communitiesin the Middle Belt to train vigilante groups on ways of repelling external aggression of the sortcommunities in our homelands have been subjected to in the last two decades.
“Governors of the states of the Middle Belt should urgently bring to the attention of President Muhammadu Buhari the need to bring to an end this undeclared war against the people of the Middle Belt as it has the potential of degenerating to a state of anarchy.”
The Forum also called on President Buhari to immediately reconstitute the top echelon of the security forces. “The people of the Middle Belt have every reason to suspect that the top echelon of the security forces is unwilling or unable to protect them.
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