Miyetti Allah: Presidency replies Ohanaeze on alleged payment of N100b to bandits, kidnappers

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Miyetti Allah: Presidency replies Ohanaeze on alleged payment of N100b to bandits, kidnappers

 

The Presidency has described as an ‘absolute falsehood’ the allegation that the Federal Government gave N100billion to Miyetti Allah, an association of Fulani herders, for ‘dubious reasons’.

Malam Garba Shehu, the President’s Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, made this known in a statement in Abuja on Friday.

The presidential aide was reacting to comments credited to Ohaneze Ndigbo and Afenifere, who expressed concern about the meeting between the government and Miyetti Allah.

He said: “We are pleased that Afenifere and Ohaneze Ndigbo found our insights worthy of attention even when they disagreed with our view that they, as socio-cultural associations, represent same interests as Miyetti Allah, an association of Fulani herders.

“Miyetti Allah, like any other trade, community, ethnic organization or interest group is a legal stake holder in our nation and should be respected.

“We maintain that the government needs to engage all stakeholders and seek partnership in building our country.

”The activities of Miyetti Allah do not benefit selected ethnicities or Muslims only, but everyone.

“Long before petroleum became the core of Nigerian economy, agriculture was the main source of Nigerian wealth. Cattle, hides and skin were a major part of Nigerian export.

“It is right to state that there are criminals among every group in Nigeria and in every country. There are criminals among the northern population as there are in the southern part of the country.

“It is not good to generalise blames. The government will engage each stakeholder and create dialogue between, and among, different groups.”

Shehu, therefore, maintained that both socio-cultural groups should not have insisted that government should not to talk to Miyetti Allah.

He added that the meeting was necessitated by ”the need to address and engage Nigeria’s ethnic, religious, cultural and economic plurality that was evident when General Yakubu Gowon introduced National Youth Service Corps (NYSC).

“The need to engage all groups of Nigeria is as much relevant today as it was then.

“The Presidency’s position is that President Buhari’s government is equipped to address these issues.”

According to him, the security challenges faced by Nigeria today make the task of addressing the issues very urgent.

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Insecurity: Ohanaeze highlights reasons, blames presidency

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Insecurity: Ohanaeze highlights reasons, blames presidency 

The apex Igbo socio-political organisation, Ohanaeze Ndigbo, on Friday highlighted reasons for the high-level insecurity in Nigeria.

Ohanaeze claimed that the presidency’s alleged weak handling of killer herdsmen was responsible for the level of insecurity in the country.

Deputy National Publicity Secretary of Ohanaeze, Chuks Ibegbu also blamed insecurity in the country on the elites and government officials, who loot public funds.

In a statement he signed, Ibegbu said: “We blame the issue of insecurity on elite insensitivity, looting of our commonwealth by government officials which leave the people and youths pauperized, inadequate training for security agents and nepotism in their recruitment.

“Kids glove treatment of armed killer herdsmen by government officials and the Presidency, parasitism by the ruling elites who corner the commonwealth of the people to their bottomless pockets, culture of impunity in high and low places, injustice and inequality between the haves and have nots, and the excessive breeding of the population which leads to population explosion especially of the youth strata.”

Ibegbu also stated that the “population of idle youths in Nigeria is much caused by uncontrolled breeding especially in the North.

“There are more than 20million idle almajiris in the North, 7million area boys in the west and 10 million militants and idle hands drawn into IPOB and MASSOB in the East and South-South respectively.

“When you have this angry youth population in the country you can imagine the consequences. The elites in the North now travel from Kaduna to Abuja by rail to avoid being kidnapped along the road. The elites in the East and South-South have no functional rail to travel through so they must face the kidnappers along East-West road.

“The elites in the Southwest are luckier, they can go by air or sea and some along the risky Lagos-Ibadan expressway. So nowhere is safe any more in Nigeria, not even barracks, except perhaps Aso Rock and state Government Houses,” he added.

On the way forward, Ibegbu called on the “Nigeria elites and ruling class to repent and address the needs of the youths and common masses else they will have no peace since they sowed the wind, they will continue to reap the whirlwind.”

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