Human rights lawyer, Femi Falana and former Governor of Kaduna State, Balarabe Musa have warned President Buhari to take pragmatic steps in tackling the insecurity and ethnicity brewing in the country as the nation is already heading towards anarchy.
A statement issued by the duo on Sunday said amid the cacophony of ethnic and regional voices, it was imperative that pan-Nigerian voices should be heard louder than ever before to save Nigeria from disintegration, stating that the symptoms of the brewing socio-political crisis were manifest.
They said the Nigerian state had failed to tackle the worsening insecurity plaguing every part of the country, stressing that Nigeria was increasingly being defined by insecurity, as killings had become almost a daily affair in Nigeria.
“Terror attacks, banditry, kidnapping and armed robbery are perpetrated by criminals with reckless abandon. In practical terms, no part of Nigeria is immune to violent crimes, although the incidence might be relatively higher in one part than the other at this time. Tragic news of lives wasted issues from the north and south, east and west.
In response to the flourishing crimes in the face of the worrisome incompetence of the state, ethnic and regional champions have resorted into the dangerous ethnic profiling and demonisation of others. It is the reign of hate speech and marketing of prejudice.
Claiming to speak for “our people,” they issue irresponsible ultimatums and orders for which they lack constitutional authority to enforce. Some of those who are supposed to act as statesmen at this critical hour have instead joined the ranks of issuers of prejudicial statements.
“The appropriate response to these sectional voices is not to glibly question the patriotism of any person or group. The effective response is to compel the Nigerian state under the watch of President Muhammadu Buhari to perform the constitutional duty of keeping Nigeria secure.
Nigeria must not be turned into a killing field. The way to take the wind out of the sails of merchants of hate is for the government to confront the worsening insecurity in Nigeria squarely and honestly,” they said.
According to Falana and Musa, law enforcement and other security agencies should fight crimes competently and strictly according to the law and that in doing so, the ethnic and religious identity of the criminal was not of any importance, as ethnic and religious profiling could distract from the urgent task of stamping out crimes.
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