Northern governors to Arewa people: Don’t attack southerners in the north
- Nigerian leaders have woken up to the task of reducing the tension in some parts of the country
- The governors in northern Nigeria are at the forefront of ensuring that the recent ethnic crisis in Oyo state do not spark reprisals in the north
- The indigenes of northern Nigeria have been asked to exercise restraints and ensure the peace currently witnessed is sustained
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The Northern States Governors Forum (NSGF), on Monday, February 15 asked people in northern Nigeria not to take revenge on southerners living in any part of the north due to the ethnic crisis in some parts of Oyo state.
The forum noted that such action will not solve the current problem the country is facing, but would further escalate it.
The NSGF, however, assured the Arewa people that it was doing everything possible to address the problem that affected some northerners in Oyo state.
Governor Simon Bako Lalong of Plateau State who is the chairman of the forum made the appeal during a meeting between the Northern Elders Forum (NEF) and NSGF at the Plateau Governor’s Lodge in Abuja.
Source: UGC
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Daily Trust quoted him as saying:
“This meeting becomes necessary and has become part of our engagement since the issue of threat on quit notice began from different groups in the country.
“We engage leaders from the north to find solutions and calm down the current tension following the crisis that erupted in Oyo state.
“There is no gain in taking revenge on southerners living in the north. We have sent a delegation to Oyo to ascertain the situation and the truth about what happened.
“By God’s grace we will get to the bottom of the problem. The country belongs to all of us. We don’t want people to tell others to leave the region. This is totally unacceptable.”
Recall that former aviation minister, Chief Femi Fani-Kayode recently revealed how another violence was averted in Oyo state.
According to Fani-Kayode, the prompt intervention of the Oyo state governor, Seyi Makinde and some of his colleagues in northern Nigeria saved the day.
He wrote on Twitter:
“Had it not been for the visit of the four northern governors and the remarkable efforts of Governor Seyi Makinde and his team who were up all night monitoring the situation, appealing to the warring communities, and disarming angry youths all hell would have been let loose in Bodija.”
Meanwhile, the House of Representatives has asked the police and other intelligence agencies to unravel the plot behind the recent ethnic violence in Shasha community of Akinyele local government area in Oyo state.
The lower house mandated security agencies to prosecute and penalise the offenders with immediate effect.
Jerrywright Ukwu is an Abuja-based senior political/defence correspondent at Legit.ng. He is a graduate of the Nigerian Institute of Journalism, Lagos and the International Institute of Journalism in Abuja. He is also a member of the Nigeria Union of Journalists. He spends his leisure-time reading history books. He can be reached via email at jerrywright39@yahoo.com.
Source: Legit.ng
