Date Published: 07/27/09

HURIWA blames intelligence failure for Bauchi violence

Human Rights Writers’ Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) has on Monday (Yesterday) called for urgent implementation of a comprehensive and workable reforms of the nation’s intelligence community and the Nigeria police by the Federal Government to prevent the intermittent orgy of violence unleashed by religious fanatics in Nigeria.

The human Rights body in a statement endorsed by its national coordinator Comrade Emmanuel Onwubiko condemned the violence unleashed by alleged members of a radical Islamic sect, Boko Haram in Bauchi State at the weekend even as it called for a transparent judicial commission of inquiry to unravel the remote and immediate causes of the blood bath and the prosecution of all perpetrators. The human rights group traced the recurrent religious violence in the Country to the total lack of political will on the part of the Federal and State Governments to charge perpetrators of all the previous religious riots to Court to serve as deterrent.

HURIWA blamed the failure of intelligence on the part of the Nigeria police and the State Security Service (SSS) for the escalation in religious and ethnic motivated killings in some parts of the North including Maiduguru, in Borno state and Bauchi in Bauchi State. The Rights group stated that these violent religious unrests have contributed in tarnishing the international image of Nigeria and have discouraged the inflow of foreign direct investments into Nigeria and called for concerted effort on the part of Government to put a halt to the violence. The Federal Government, according to the Rights Group, has continued to treat the issue of religious violence with ‘political kid gloves’ and has so far failed to punish perpetrators of the heinous crime against humanity.

Specifically, about 70 persons were reportedly killed on Sunday in clashes between the police and members of a radical Islamic sect, Boko Haram, said to be inspired by the Taliban in Afghanistan.

In Maiduguri, Borno state, few hours after the police paraded nine alleged followers of a religious sectarian leader Muhammad Yusuf, with 74 locally made bomb shells, a locally made bomb exploded at the weekend in the residence of another follower, blasting him to death while his friend sustained severe injuries and is being hospitalized at the University of Maiduguri Teaching hospital.

HURIWA asserted that the unprecedented rise in armed insurrection in the different parts of the country and the resurgence of religious motivated violence all across the Northern states are symptoms of a nation whose intelligence community in the federally controlled security agencies have unfortunately gone to sleep. The Rights Group therefore stated that the immediate result-oriented re-organization of the different security agencies and the boosting of the intelligence gathering capacity of the members of these security agencies in the country is one sure way of halting Nigeria’s dangerous slide to social anarchy.

Recalling that several months ago, alleged armed thugs from neighbouring country invaded some parts of Kano state and engaged in vicious gun battle with members of the Nigerian army even as few months after that reprehensible violence, a popular cleric Mallam Ja’afar was gunned down while leading a prayer session in the broad day light in the same Kano City and the perpetrators have not been arrested and prosecuted by the law enforcement officials. HURIWA stated that it was unfortunate that these types of armed attacks by religious zealots have continued and the different security agents have failed spectacularly to nip these gruesome killings in the bud.

Citing section 14(2) (b) of the 1999 constitution which states that “the security and welfare of the people shall be the primary purpose of government, the rights group asked the National Assembly members to pass a vote of no confidence on the president and for Nigerians to insist on immediate comprehensive reforms of the nation’s intelligence community and the Nigerian police force to save the populace from violent attacks by hoodlums.

HURIWA called on the Federal Government to do all within its constitutional mandate to implement effective national disarmament programme whereby all unauthorized owners of small arms are encouraged to turn them in to Government in exchange for presidential pardon from prosecution. The Rights Group however opposes any move to compensate unauthorized owners of arms and ammunitions as is the case with the amnesty package for the Niger Delta militants.

HURIWA stated: “It is absolutely unacceptable that Nigeria will continue to spend Billions of tax payers’ money every year to fund the different law enforcement agencies and yet the members of this intelligence community consistently fail to nip the different armed insurrections in the bud. The Government of President Umaru Musa Yar’adua should either work out credible security measures to prevent the current slide into the precipice of anarchy or he should resign because his failure to provide national security is a constitutional breach.”