Northern Elders to President Buhari: Killings, Destructions in the North Going Out of Hand

- There are concerns over the mounting insecurity in northern Nigeria

- Elders in the region say the killings and destructions by bandits and terrorists have gone from bad to worse

- The elders, however, supported President Muhammadu Buhari's stance not to negotiate with criminals

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A group, Northern Elders for Peace and Development, has cried out over the deteriorating security situation in the north, saying the ugly development was going out of control if nothing urgent was done to arrest it.

The group lamented that killings of both security personnel and civilians since the beginning of 2021 were alarming, adding that the situation of developments in the region was being downplayed.

In a statement signed by the group's national coordinator, Engr. Zana Goni, the elders declared their support for President Muhammadu Buhari's stance that no ransom should be paid to abductors or negotiation be engaged with bandits again.

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Vanguard quoted Goni as saying:

“We observed that the insecurity in Borno, Yobe, and Adamawa states is getting worse by the day. As a matter of fact, it has degenerated in the last one month to a point of very serious concern.

“We are sure that this has been so because Mr. President is not getting the right briefings from those entrusted with the situation.”

Recall that Nigeria's National Security Adviser, Major-General Babagana Monguno (rtd) recently restated that the federal government won't negotiate with bandits.

Monguno made the comment on Thursday, March 11 during an interaction with State House correspondents at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

Meanwhile, the House of Representatives may soon pass a Bill for Act, to permit Nigerians from the age of eighteen, to carry arms for self-defence.

A bill to that effect, entitled: “Firearms Amendment Bill,” has already been sponsored by Honourable Adejoro Adeogun.

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