NORTHERN GOVS BEG BOKO HARAM TO ACCEPT AMNESTY

The
Northern Governors’ Forum on Thursday lamented the effect of the  
Boko Haram insurgency on the North and pleaded with members of the violent
Islamic sect to accept the planned amnesty for them by the Federal Government.

The Chairman of the forum and Niger State Governor, Dr.
Babangida Aliyu, stated this while receiving the report of the forum’s
Committee on Reconciliation, Healing and Security, in Abuja  on Thursday.

Aliyu, who  said the activities of the insurgents had led
to destruction of many lives and property, also advised the Federal Government
to  complement the resolve of  the forum  by taking into
account, the findings and recommendations of its committee.

 “Members of the insurgent group are called upon for
immediate ceasefire; accept the offer made by the Federal Government and come
forward for dialogue and eventual submission of arms,” the governor said.

Boko Haram Leader,  Abubakar Shekau had 0n April 10, said
the sect members did not need anmesty because they believed they had done
nothing wrong. He stated that it was the Federal Government that needed pardon
by the group whose activities in the past few years had led to the loss of at
least 3,000 lives and property worth millions of naira in parts of the North.

“Surprisingly, the Nigerian government is talking about granting
us amnesty. What wrong have we done? On the contrary, it is we that should
grant you (a) pardon,” Agence
France Presse had 
quoted him as saying in   Hausa language.

But Aliyu, who said the governors were determined to ensure that
the amnesty succeeded, explained that   “the formation of the
Reconciliation, Healing and Security Committee was as a result of recurring
incidence of violence and wanton destruction of lives and property which
crippled the economy of Northern states and paralysed socio-political
activities of the region.”

He  therefore urged  “the Federal
Government   to operationalise and streamline  critical
components of the (proposed) amnesty in line with conclusions of this committee
(Northern governors’ committee) towards successful and sustainable achievement
of the noble objectives of the peace process.

“This will no doubt go a long way in evolving a robust framework
for peace building and enforcement, wealth creation, and economic regeneration
in providing practicable solutions to the security challenges.”

The chairman said it was time Northerners began to see
themselves as one because they were treated as such in other parts of the
country irrespective of their ethno-religious backgrounds.

He also  decried what he called an increase in the fraud
associated with fuel subsidy payments which, according to him,  was now a
case of outright stealing with nobody asking questions.

The forum’s  chairman noted that the  masses believed
that governors were doing nothing over the development.

He said, “Today,  we were asking a question when reports of
issues came ( at the National Economic Council meeting); we were asking: ‘how
many of you people have gone to the filling stations and bought fuel at
subsidised rates?’ Very few, where is the subsidy going?

“There were some people  discovered to have lied and
collected money in the name of subsidy. Where are they? Today, we 
are   told that there is more thievery in our oil sector than before.

“The illegal bunkering and the stealing of oil are affecting
what comes to the federation account. Why because, if you catch one thief and
you do not punish him, an honest man    will think that it is
better to become a thief than to be  honest. We must as individuals, as
parents and administrators, stop these things. We must punish those who have
been caught.”

Giving a background of  the formation of the Northern
Governors’ Forum Committee on Reconciliation, Healing and Security, Aliyu said,
“You may wish to recall that concerned about the destruction, killings and
instability in the northern states, and in response to these challenges, the
committee  was set up on July 26 , 2012 and inaugurated on August 22 
in Abuja.”

Aliyu said the first step towards   peace process
begins at the family level  through  proper upbringing of children
and adherence to  moral obligations.

He  added  that the governors would soon meet in
Kaduna to study the recommendations contained in the report  with a view
to implementing them.

In his remarks,  Bauchi State Governor, Isa Yuguda, said,
“We have investigated enough, we have killed our people enough, the entire
northern Nigeria is filled with our own blood, that of our wives, our
parents  and  our grandparents without reason.

“We must appreciate that in the Nigerian nation, we are talking
about 400 tribes  and only 20 are from the South . The  
remaining   are in northern Nigeria. I have about 50 tribes in
Bauchi.

He said Islam got to Southern Nigeria first before it came to
the north  and pointed out that Muslims in the South were living  in
peace  with  Christians.

 “Why are they not killing themselves? he queried, saying
there is a lesson those in the north must learn from the South.

Governor Ibrahim Shema of Katsina State said, “The north is a
sleeping giant. It has potential  in terms of human and material
resources. Its eminent sons and daughters have performed credibly well in the
affairs of this nation for decades. There is no excuse for the north to keep
hurting itself.”

Earlier, Chairman of the Committee, Ambassador Zakari Ibrahim,
observed that the insecurity in the north had dire consequences for the
corporate existence of Nigeria.

He recalled that the committee submitted its interim report
on  February 14, 2013 and requested an extension of time to enable it to
complete its assignment.

Zakari said, “The north has suffered very serious economic,
social and psychological devastation with relationships among the people
severely fractured. Specifically,   the  underlying sources of
insecurity in the northern states are deeply rooted in the following:

• Economic inequality and narrowing opportunities, conflicts and
unhealthy competition among  ethnic and religious identities , ownership
and access to resources (land and territory), unequal access to political power
among  groups and the feeling of lack of respect; and

• Appointments into traditional headship positions, the
deterioration in personal and inter-group relationships, poverty, illiteracy
and ignorance, widespread impunity, injustice and  disregard 
for  the rule of  law.”

Zakari said  those factors were  surmountable if
serious consideration  was given to some of the recommendations in 
the committee’s    report.

He added, “Your excellencies, the people of the north are tired
of having committees formed every time a crisis erupts, while the
recommendations of reports of the committees  are hardly implemented.

“It is the collective view of the committee members  that
the north must get its act together. For too long, it has been seen by the rest
of the country as lagging behind despite its huge human and natural resources.”