Okwe Obi, Abuja
Following the recent attacks along the Abuja-Kaduna expressway, the Action Democratic Party (ADP) has called on President Muhammadu Buhari to sack federal service chiefs for failing to tackle the worsening security crisis in the country.
ADP National Chairman Yabaji Sani demanded in a statement an investigation into the kidnappings of police personnel in Katsina State.
Sani, who frowned at the remarks made by the Minister of Police Affairs, Muhammadu Maigari Dingyadi, that bandits had already been degraded, stated that issue of insecurity should not be trivialised.
‘In the preceding week through to this week, the mass media were awash with a report of the orgy of bloodbath visited on hapless Nigerians in various locations by marauding armed bandits and kidnappers.
‘First to hit the headlines was the reported killing of fifteen travellers, men, women and children and the abduction of close to thirty others on the now dangerous Abuja-Kaduna highway.
‘Earlier, there was the reported incident of the killing of 16 citizens in multiple attacks again, by armed bandits in four local government areas of Kaduna State.
‘There was also the most shocking of the rendition of the unceasing mayhem on twelve (12) Assistant Superintendents of Police (ASP) who were abducted while on transit between Katsina and Zamfara states.
‘It amounts to insensitive triviality and chicanery by officials of the APC Federal Government that they have responded to the unfortunate incident either by way of eerie silence, denial and making statements that are best interpreted as lack of empathy to the pains and agonies of victims and their loved ones.
‘We in the Action Democratic Party, ADP, find all the official responses to the incidents in reference and other similar ones elsewhere in the country, offensive and grossly insensitive to the yearnings arising from the ruination of insecurity by Nigerians.
‘Nigerians who are the victims of the catastrophes of banditry, kidnapping and insurgencies, among other forms of crimes, are simply fed-up and will accept nothing short of immediate action by those they elected to protect and secure their lives and property.
‘Accordingly, the ADP is hereby reiterating the demands we have made repeatedly in the past that:
‘President Muhammadu Buhari should rise up to the challenge by immediately overhauling and rejuvenating the nation’s security architecture in the face of these monsters of kidnapping, banditry and insurgency.
‘In any case, we are hereby merely reminding the promise solemnly made on several occasions by the President and his party chieftains to make fighting insecurity as a cardinal policy of the APC.
‘We are alarmed and dumbfounded that in spite of the recent gory incident President Muhammadu Buhari has not found it inevitable to immediately, without much ado, replace the present crop of security chiefs i.e., the heads of the Army, Air force, Navy and the Police.
‘We share in the bewilderment of the generality of the citizenry, as to the reasons why the Commander-in-Chief has tenaciously held on to his war commanders who clearly have run out of ideas.
‘In respect of the deafening silence and denial by the police high command over the abduction of twelve officers of the force, the ADP strongly calls for a thorough investigation over the sad and unfortunate incident.
‘It is a frightening spectacle that such a large number of policemen can be subdued and taken-in by a ragtag band of marauding urchins and hoodlums, what fate then can easily befall the ordinary citizens?
‘Enough of banalities, chicaneries and playing the ostrich! It is time the APC- led Federal Government wakes up from its deep slumber and unrewarding rhetoric by finding pragmatic, workable solutions to the carnage of bloodbath and anguish of citizens now,’ he said.
