From Femi Folaranmi, Yenagoa
As concerns grow across Nigeria over worsening security situation, the National Association of Seadogs (Pyrates Confraternity) has called on President Muhammadu Buhari to re-evaluate the war against insurgency.
According to the group, recent attacks launched by terrorists and the threat in the viral video against the President “is emblematic of how terribly Nigeria’s security situation has deteriorated.”
The NAS Capoon, Mr Abiola Owoaje in a statement entitled ‘President’s Buhari Ignoble legacy’ said it is unthinkable that terrorists would be given so much latitude to unleash violence.
“The National Association of Seadogs (Pyrates Confraternity) finds these latest developments disheartening and embarrassing. It defies rational thinking that violent non- state actors, who should be at the receiving end of a well coordinated military response to their heinous crimes, are openly threatening the President, the symbol of Nigeria’s sovereignty. Even worse, the inability of the security operatives to apprehend and unmask the identities of the terrorists in spite of all the hype and general public inconvenience that attended the NIN-SIM registration/ linkage exercise is quite unsettling,” he said.
Owoaje who drew attention to Buhari’s reaction on the Kuje correctional centre attack and comments from the Presidency on the terrorist’s viral video said the best of the President as the Commander –in- Chief “falls grossly short to inspire the armed forces and other security agencies, and allay the fears of Nigerians who are now practically living in fear.”
While calling on President Buhari to accept responsibility and demonstrate leadership to tackle terrorists, he called on the intelligence services to fish out traitors betraying Nigeria by supplying information to terrorists.
Owoaje also called for the immediate prosecution of the 400 alleged Boko Haram sponsors and financiers adding that the delay in their trial ridicules the war against terror.
The statement read in part, “We implore President Buhari to stop playing the ostrich, grid his loins and accept full responsibility for the escalation of terrorism in the country. His outsourcing of leadership at critical moments, failure to summon the political will to deal decisively with insurgents, inability to fire incompetent service and intelligence chiefs have created unsavoury situation for terrorists to seize the long end of the stick in the on-going war against insurgency.
“Finally, in the light of widespread impression that the Federal Government has no concrete strategy to defeat terrorism, we urge President Buhari to re-evaluate the war against terror by devising a strategy that goes beyond changing incompetent service and intelligence chiefs, and replacing them with another set of mediocre officers. If need be, he should headhunt for capable military commanders to prosecute the war while he provides the desired leadership. We restate our position that the Federal Government should discontinue the rehabilitation programme for repentant terrorists until a well-defined de-radicalisation policy is put in place.
“Above all, President Buhari has no option than to first, safeguard our country. The verdict of history will be harsh on him if the sorry state of affairs persists any longer than it already has.”