Governor el-Rufai At Kajuru, Urges Communities To Shun An Eye For Eye Stance
BY AMOS TAUNA, KADUNA – Governor Nasir el-Rufai of Kaduna state on Wednesday urged all communities in the state to reject an ‘eye for an eye’ stance in resolving differences.
In a statement by his Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Samuel Aruwan, Governor el-Rufai said that an attitude of attacks and reprisals only produces pain and suffering.
Speaking at the Maraban Kajuru IDP camp, el-Rufai said that he has directed relevant agencies to reassess the condition of the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs), who are from different communities to enable them to return to their communities soon.
He said he was saddened by the situation which he described as unfortunate, adding that “we must speak out and tell our people the right thing to be done.”
He further said; “An eye for eye is not a solution to the vicious cycles of killings and will complicate and undermine collective efforts. Our admonition is simple. If Fulani or Adara community have complaints of killings or attacks, they should report and allow security agencies and government to take up the administration of justice.
“If these communities resort to taking the laws into their own hands, it will not work. That is not the solution. All communities must resist the temptation to take the law into their own hands.
“Security personnel and assets cannot be in every inch of our state. Communities must stop this abnormality of taking the laws into their own hands. It has never worked and will never work.”
The governor said that it is not helpful to create false narratives and politicize security challenges that can be solved with goodwill and law-abiding conduct by all parties.
In his words; “As a government, we will continue to collaborate with security agencies, traditional and religious institutions in peace building, but we will be frank to our communities.
“They have lived peacefully before this mistrust and they can rekindle the glorious past by simply not taking the laws into their own hands and doing away with jungle justice.
“On our own part, we will do our very best in protecting lives and property. We will also not shy away from applying the law to anyone found complicit in the violent communal conflicts, irrespective of their status, religion, ethnicity or political persuasions. Let us cherish all lives. No life is more precious than another life.”
After receiving briefings from officials of Kajuru Local Government Council and the volunteers managing the IDPs, Governor el-Rufai directed that urgent reassessment of the condition of the displaced citizens be undertaken so that their return to normalcy can be fast-tracked.
