Conference of Minority Tribes, a formidable association among the minority ethnic groups in Nigeria has condemned in strong terms, the unruly attacks and killings of security operatives by ethnic agitators; describing it as barbaric and evil.
Rising from its National Emergency Meeting in Jos, Plateau State on Wednessday, the group frowned at the spate of the recent needless killings of Nigerian Military and Policemen in Southern part of the country, in the name of agitation.
In a Press Statement made available to newsmen by its National Coordinator, Comrade Okpokwu Ogenyi, the group described such attacks as “out of tune with contemporary approaches to agitation and definitely contrived to making minority ethnic groups suffer”.
The statement reads in part: “As a responsible body, the Conference of Minority Tribes condemns these attacks and killings of security operatives in the strongest terms possible as it is barbaric, evil, out of tune with contemporary approaches to agitation and definitely contrived to making minority ethnic groups suffer.
“The rights to life supersedes rights to peaceful assembly, movement and other rights encapsulated in the UN charter as fundamental human rights, and must be respected.
“All Security officers in Nigeria have rights to life and any group of persons under any guise who uses arms against them declares war on the Nigerian state and should not expect to be treated less than insurrectionist in any way”.
The Conference emphatically bemoaned the recent faceoff between Nigerian Security Operatives and Niger Delta Avengers (NDA), The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) and the Movement for the Actualisation of the Sovereign State of Biafra (MASSOB) in separate attacks which resulted to lost of lives.
According to the statement, the group expressed sadness over the lackadaisical approach with which Elders and supposed leaders from various ethnic communities massage the rising insurgency.
“Sadly, we observe that leaders from the South-South and South-East zones where these groups operate, rather than play the roles expected of them and condemn these heinous crimes, are obliquely endorsing the criminality by hyping dialogue without calling the killer squads on the loose to order.
“We see the current situation as an attempt to destabilize President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration by those who had threatened to do just what is happening now, and by those who want to use the cover of the crises to evade prosecution for corruption charges against them.
“We call on the security agencies not to relent in the performance of their duties. The unity of Nigeria is not in contention and the so called agitators should come up with different strategies to express any displeasure they feel.
“President Muhammadu Buhari must thoroughly weigh the situation before succumbing to those parroting “carrot and stick” approach because we must end the culture of incentivizing irresponsible criminality with monetized amnesty. Youths of all ethnicities must learn to work for money as opposed to being paid to off crime.
“We appeal to security operatives to update their strategies for dealing with these criminal elements to minimize casualty and prioritize arrests and intelligence gathering that will expose the sponsors of these crises”, it added.
While calling on the ‘Amnesty International’ and other human rights organizations to defend the families of security agents who are the targets of ethnic militias, the group also sued for peace and advised the ‘crisis Entrepreneurs’ behind the crises to have a rethink; adding that “no individual, group or people have the monopoly of violence. This makes us worried that, it is a matter of time before other ethnic nationals whose sons are being killed in service to Nigeria would vent their grievances on Niger Delta Avengers, IPOB and MASSOB. This will be ugly”.
The Conference also wants President Muhammadu Buhari and all security operatives in the country to rise up in defence of the sovereign nation, by employing the same military strength experimented against Boko Haram insurgency in the North, saying “no individual or groups can be stronger than Nigeria as Nation”.
This conference is coming on the heels of series of attacks on the Nigerian security Personnel by various Ethnic Agitators. Aside the protracted Boko Haram insurgency in the North, another group, the Shiite also recently attacked the convoy of the Chief of Army Staff, Gen. Buratai.
The Niger Delta Avengers have also reportedly killed more than fifty (50) security operatives since they began attacks on oil and gas facilities few weeks ago.
The insurgents also threatened to kill any troops sent to stop them from destroying economic assets in the Niger Delta.
The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) and the Movement for the Actualisation of the Sovereign State of Biafra (MASSOB) only this week, also took on security operatives in several south-eastern cities, leading to the killings of several security personnel who were on duty for the country.
IPOB members are also threatening to kill Nigerian soldiers if they dare to protect the national infrastructures.
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