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By Ayobami Ife, Abeokuta
A first class monarch in Ogun State, Oba Ebenezer Akintunde Akinyemi has passionately appealed to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to take every necessary step to end the recurring kìllíngs and displacement of persons in Benue, Plateau and other States of the Federation by suspected armed Fulani killer – herdsmen and other militant groups.
Oba Akinyemi, who is the Eselu of Iselu Kingdom in Yewaland North Local Government Area of the State, lamented that Nigerians have not fully reaped the dividends of democratic governance since 1999 because of insecurity and the attendant industry it had fostered, stressing that it has regrettably become a drain pipe to the nation’s yearly budget with barely little left for planning and Infrastructural development to bring about dividends of democracy.
In his Open Letter to the President on Easter Monday, and made available to The Daily Crucible, the monarch argued that if Tinubu failed to end the orgy of kìllíngs that began many years ago and hardened before he assumed office, the industry that it had created would continue to gulp a chunk of the national budget.
According to him, the recurring carnage in Benue, Plateau and other northern parts of the country has continued to keep importers of military equipment and weapons in business; sustain managers and contractors for internally displaced persons (IDP) camps and inexorably stifled all efforts to provide dividends of democracy difficult due to the huge funds federal government spends to secure the country.
He added that the insecurity has also gradually become emboldening and a veritable card in the hands of the country’s opposition politicians, who frequently deploy it as their mantra both to blackmail and campaign for a change of government.
The monarch urged President Tinubu to take decisive actions to end the scourge, which he also stressed had become lucrative to the perpetrators who would
want the maiming, killings, and destruction to continue interminably despite investing in military equipment and recruiting young Nigerians into the armed forces.
While sympathizing with the families of the innocent citizens who lost their lives in the latest dastardly acts in Benue and Plateau which were perpetrated by people he called “the enemies of Nigeria,” he advised the President to initiate national dialogue in the National Assembly on the feasibility of inviting professional mercenaries to assist in rooting out the marauders and bring peace back to the country.
Arguing for the need for mercenaries, he said if the nation’s security operatives could not stop the persistent carnage and calamity with over three successive administrations, “there is no point putting fresh soup in the same old pot.”
The letter reads in part: “Sadly, insecurity has now become a weapon in the hands of politicians. This same insecurity was used to oust President Jonathan in 2015. The Buhari Government who succeeded him promised to end the insecurity in some months, but failed woefully. In fact, Buhari Government’s abysmal failure in office almost made it difficult for his party’s Presidential Candidate then (Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu) to win the 2023 election. Thank God that destiny paved the way for you and you are now the number one citizen of Nigeria.
“It is crystal clear now that the oppositions in the country are now planning to oust Your Excellency in 2027, using the same insecurity as a campaign strategy. Must we allow this strategy to persist when the lives of innocent Nigerians are often taken in some northern states in our country.To me, some actions that we have always taken as a country will continue to encourage the bandits, terrorists, kidnappers and foreign Fulani herdsmen to wreck havoc in our country.
“Mr. President, as a stakeholder in the Project “Nigeria” and as a patriotic citizen, I believe it is high time we changed the approach we are using to tackle the unending terrorism. Given this, I want to
suggest that Mr. President should open a debate in the National Assembly on how to invite mercenaries into Nigeria for the purpose of wiping out of the terrorists.
“This measure will prevent
our country men and women from taking sides with the perpetrators of the criminality whenever there are plans to get them killed at war fronts. It is evident that governments across the globe
invest in importation of sophisticated weapons and vehicles to protect their countries and their managers, so there is nothing wrong bringing in professional mercenaries to come and assist us to wipe out the madness and bring peace back to our dear country, Nigeria.
“We cannot be complaining about the problems and also be complaining about the solutions. If our security agencies cannot stop this calamity for three administrations, there is no point putting fresh soup in the old pot.”
