The Committee for the Defence of Human Rights (CDHR), Ebonyi chapter, has praised President Muhammadu Buhari for expressing commitment to a united and indivisible Nigeria.
The group commended the President in a statement signed by its secretary, Mr Jerry Obasi, and made available to journalists in Abakaliki on Thursday.
It said: “We commend Mr President for being resolute and committed to the ideals of the country’s founding fathers that espoused a peaceful, united and egalitarian society anchored on social justice.
“While we subscribe to the peaceful coexistence of the country and de-escalation of ethnic tension and agitation, we urge the Federal Government to adopt peace and dialogue in dealing with the unarmed peaceful pro-Biafra agitators.
“We wish to use this medium to appeal to the President and the Federal Government to engage various agitators in dialogue and to de-emphasise excessive use of force.
“Excessive military force will be counter-productive to resolving the secessionist agenda of some Nigerians and can plunge the country into another civil war.
“No country can afford the horrors of fighting two civil wars and having tasted a civil war in the past, Nigeria cannot afford to engage in another one.’’
Obasi said that the group found it necessary to issue the statement because of the recent order President Buhari gave to the Service Chiefs and other security operatives to clamp down on the members of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) and other secessionist groups in the country.
The group urged the Federal Government to avoid any form of military clampdown on peaceful and un-armed agitators.
The committee urged the Federal Government to deploy strategies that would be effective in tackling the IPOB and other dissident issues in the country. (NAN)