Niger Republic Govs’ Participation In Buhari Kano Rally – Affront On Nigeria’s Sovereignty, Electoral Sanctity – SMBLF

BY AMOS DUNIA, ABUJA – The Southern and Middle Belt Leaders Forum, (SMBLF), has described the participation of two serving governors from the Republic of Niger, at the presidential rally of the All Progressives Congress (APC), in Kano as an affront on Nigeria’s sovereignty and a gross abuse of diplomatic relations.

The Forum noted that Issa Moussa and Zakiri Umar, governors of Zinder and Maradi regions respectively of Republic of Niger, were sighted in Kano, fully attired in the garments and colours of the APC and taking photographs with President Muhammadu Buhari.

In a strongly worded statements signed by Mr. Yinka Odumakin – South West, Prof Chigozie Ogbu – South East, Senator Bassey Henshaw – South South and Dr Isuwa Dogo – Middle Belt noted that for an administration which recently lampooned Western diplomatic powers and bodies for criticizing the unconstitutional purported suspension of the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Walter Nkanu Onnoghen from office, is the height of duplicity and doublespeak.

The statement further states that coming barely days to the presidential election, this singular action validates the wholesale desperation of the APC to deploy every untoward scheme to impugn the integrity of the forthcoming election, in a macabre reenactment of some evil aspects of the 2015 election.

The Forum noted that never in our political history has our national security been so endangered in the name of politics and politicking, stressing that the situation calls for immediate investigation by relevant security agencies.

It further states; “The National Intelligence Agency (NIA); the Defence Intelligence Agency (DIA), and the Department of State Services (DSS), must move to interrogate this development and report their findings to Nigerians whose best interests they swore to serve.

“In a country which has been in the vice grip of accentuated terrorism, herdsmen killings, banditry and kidnapping in parts of the country especially since the advent of the Buhari administration, the kind of unholy philandering between Buhari and foreign interests from regional neighbours suspected of complicity in our internal security challenges, calls for introspection and inquest.

“Only last year, President Buhari prioritized the construction of a rail line from Kano to Maradi in Niger, at a time several aspects of our national infrastructure were and are still begging for attention. Maradi, the third largest city in Niger Republic and Zinder, are two prefectures in the country which are predominantly populated by Fulanis with consanguineal relationship with Daura emirate, Buhari’s birthplace.

“As military head of state in 1985, Buhari purportedly favoured Ide Oumarou, a diplomat from Niger, over and above Nigeria’s own Peter Onu, in the race for the position of Secretary-General of the African Union (AU), to underscore his consanguineous relationship and sentiments with and for the Nigerien Oumarou.”

The Southern and Middle Belt Forum recalled that during the 2015 general elections, there were reports of thousands of people, many of whom were under aged voters, crossing from Niger Republic, into Kano through Nigeria’s extremely porous borders to vote in Nigeria’s elections for a particular candidate.

“Unfortunately, the illegality was acquiesced to by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

“In recent weeks, there have been reports of seamless human movements between our national neighbours, notably Chad and Niger, into parts of Nigeria of people in open top vehicles, to different parts of the country,” the statement noted.

The SMBLF therefore called for increased vigilance amongst all Nigerians, as the nation approach the critical last two weeks to the presidential election.

The Forum also drew the attention of the international community to the impairment of Nigeria’s territorial integrity and fragile national security, by the uncanny desperation of the Buhari-led APC to undermine the electoral process, even at the risk of exacerbating the nation’s already simmering political situation.

The SMBLF urged Nigerians to collectively resist any plot to further imperil and destabilize the polity in a desperate bid by some to win the forthcoming election at all costs and by all means possible.