NLC, NBA, Others Condemn Boko Haram Attacks

The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Nigerian Bar Association and the Human Rights Watch, among others, yesterday condemned last week’s massacre of students of the Federal Government College, Buni Yadi, in Yobe.
The NLC also condemned the attacks on Michika, Madagali and Shua, in Adamawa and Borno, respectively, and urged the Federal Government to stop the audacity of the Boko Haram sect.
This is contained in a statement signed by NLC President, Malam Abdulwaheed Omar in Abuja.
Omar condemned the routine decimation of communities in Borno and Adamawa, saying that this had brought to the fore the gory reality of the new phase of the war on terror.
“The Nigeria Labour Congress is shocked by this brazen and ferocious savagery and saddened by the seeming helplessness of our security forces.
“The earlier successes of the declaration of state of emergency seem to have petered away, giving room to despair.
”The congress appreciates the challenges of our intelligence and security forces by way of a porous border, large and uncharted expanse of land, and an extremely difficult terrain.
“But finds unacceptable this level of mindless violence and the response of our security forces,’’ it stated.
He said that recent events amounted to an open war, noting that the armed forces could not afford to be caught napping again.
The NLC president said they must be seen to renew their commitment and capacity to protect the sovereignty of Nigeria.
He warned that the congress would not fold its hands while the territory was being ceded and scores of innocent lives and priceless property wasted on a daily basis.
Omar said the congress would mobilise its members to the streets to protest these massacres.
The international rights group, Human Rights Watch (HRW), and the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) have also condemned the recent attacks by the Boko Haram sect in some North Eastern states of the country.
Nigeria Researcher, HRW, Ms Mausi Segun, in an electronic mail sent yesterday, urged the Federal Government to bring the perpetrators to justice.
“Human Rights Watch calls on the Nigerian Government to urgently take steps to protect the lives of citizens in vulnerable communities in the North-East and to rescue the scores of girls taken captive by the insurgents in the past few weeks.
“These measures must be carried out in ways that do not further jeopardise the rights and safety of members of those communities.
“All those most responsible for these horrific crimes must be brought to justice as soon as possible,” Segun said.
In an interview, Chairman of the Ikeja Branch of the NBA, Mr Onyekachi Ubani, urged the government to change its strategies in tackling the insurrection.
Ubani called for the removal of the governors to enable the Nigerian military to be in complete control of the areas.
Ubani also backed the National Assembly’s directive that the Nigeria Army should move its headquarters to the troubled states.
Meanwhile, Northern States Governors’ Forum yesterday assured Nigerians, especially those living in the troubled North Eastern states that a lot was being done to guarantee peace in the area.
The group also said efforts were being done to save lives and property in the troubled states.
Chairman of the Forum and Governor of Niger, Dr Babangida Aliyu, in a statement, urged all stakeholders to continue to pray to God to end the scourge of the senseless killing of defenceless citizens.
The statement, signed by his spokesman, Dnaladi Ndayebo, in Minna, urged the perpetrators of the dastardly acts to lay down their arms and embrace dialogue.
Aliyu made the call in his reaction to Saturday’s explosions which killed several persons at the heavily-populated Ngomari-Bulumkutu area of Maiduguri, Borno.
Aliyu urged members of Boko Haram to embrace dialogue, assuring them that “the surest way to resolve grievances is through dialogue and not violence.”
He then commiserated with the families of those killed or injured during the blast, and called on all security agencies to re-double their efforts in the discharge of their responsibilities.