The Northern Elders Forum (NEF) has said that if the country is to survive its current difficulties and build a better nation, President Muhammadu Buhari must improve his levels of competence, and awareness that the nation is sliding into disaster and be sensitive to the frustrations of Nigerians.
In the same vein, the forum said, “other political leaders who take advantage of the limitations of the President to light fires should know that they will get burnt in them” adding that the overwhelming majority of Nigerians do not want war or an end to our union.
This was contained in a statement by NEF titled, “Escalating Threats to National Security, Unity and Integrity” which was signed by the director, publicity, and advocacy of the forum, Dr. Hakeem Baba-Ahmed.
According to the statement, the forum said it is convinced that it is time to respond to issues that threaten our collective security and the unity and integrity of the country, stressing that the forum has held back on joining issues with persons and groups intent on provoking the type of crises that will escalate beyond control.
“It is now clear that elected people sworn to protect the constitution and protect the unity and integrity of Nigeria have decided to surrender to deeply divisive or outrightly irredentist and secessionist tendencies and movements. In the South East, governors are yielding their political turf and mandates to secessionists, criminals, and subversives who think they can exterminate federal presence and northerners from the region, and achieve dubious political goals related to 2023, or break away from the country.
“In the South West, elected leaders and pampered ethnic bullies are closing ranks to provide a front that apes the do-what-we-want-or-we-leave-the-country strategy of the marginalized leaders of the South East. Governors are building ethnic monsters and hiding behind them to whip up sentiments in a crude attempt to extract concessions no one is in a position to give or guarantee. The South-South is squeezed between fear and uncertainty, and its leaders are gambling that they can benefit from a further weakening of the federal administration and the North if it rides along with the rest of the South.
“A plastic unity is being contrived to create the impression that the entire South is united behind shared grievances against the Presidency and Fulani herders and all northerners who are cast as fair game in responding to all of President Buhari’s multiple failures. A desperate but futile attempt is being made to split the North along lines that suit people who ignore its complexities and plurality when it is convenient to lump all Northerners and submit them to humiliation or attacks.
“The NEF recognizes that most of these provocations feed on the widespread perception of weak national leadership and a broken political process that has become captive of narrow political interests. For the record, the forum restates its support for a programmed transition that will eliminate open grazing and the establishment of productive, safe, and sustainable options in managing our huge national asset in animal husbandry. This cannot be achieved with threats and harassment, but with commitment and collaboration involving all governments and stakeholders.
