Insecurity: Resign Now – Northern Elders Forum Tells Buhari
Following the unabated killings across the country, especially in the North, the Northern Elders Forum (NEF) on Tuesday demanded the immediate resignation of President Muhammadu Buhari, stressing that his administration does not appear to have answers to the challenges of security to which Nigerians are exposed.
It pointedly said that Nigerians have shed enough tears, and blood without an appropriate response from those with responsibilities to protect the people.
The NEF, which evaluated the security situation in the country, said that Nigerians cannot continue to live and die under the dictates of killers, kidnappers, rapists and sundry criminal groups that have deprived the people of their rights to live in peace and security.
It pointedly declared that the 1999 constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended) has provisions for leaders to voluntarily step down if they are challenged by personal reasons or they prove incapable of leading.
These were contained in a statement issued by the Director of Publicity and Advocacy of NEF, Dr. Hakeem Baba-Ahmed, in which he stressed that it is now time for President Buhari to seriously consider that option since his leadership has proved spectacularly incapable of providing security over Nigerians. The NEF said that it is aware of the weight of this advice, adding that it is also aware that Nigerians cannot continue to live under these conditions until 2023 when President Buhari’s term ends.
The Forum said that it made the recommendation with the highest sense of responsibility, and expressed hope there are enough Nigerians who enjoy the confidence of President Buhari to advise him to consider resigning.
The NEF specifically lamented that killings and assaults on communities have now become daily features of the lives of all Nigerians, as traveling anywhere is now risky, and the option of staying put does not make anyone safer.
The statement of the NEF further states; “Killers and other criminals appear to have sensed a paralyzing vacuum at the highest levels of leadership, and they grow more confident and acquire more competence in subverting the State and our security”.
It urged politicians aspiring to lead the nation to seriously weigh their capacities and commitments and challenges of leadership very carefully.
The Forum also said that leading Nigeria out of its current state and placing it firmly on the path of rediscovery is not an all-comers affair and that Nigerians will exercise greater levels of discretion in deciding who they can trust in the future.
It further said; “There are also groups who deepen the concerns of Nigerians over the possibility of a safe and free campaigning and conduct of the 2023 elections. Comments which threaten those parochial political demands must be met, rather than negotiated or processed through the democratic process and not threaten all Nigerians and hint at a wider space for violence in the run-up to the elections, and after it.
“These comments are unbecoming of elders, and they detract from the genuine and difficult search for good leaders who will be totally committed to one nation with very serious challenges.
“Our Forum re-commits to engagements and dialogue with all politicians and groups to seek the lowering of tensions and stresses which represent threats to our democratic process.
“The Forum condoles families who have lost members, and prays with those whose members are kidnapped that they will be reunited without further delay,” NEF enthused.
