A Northern Elite group that comprises of the following Northern elite rose from a meeting in Abuja, and released the below communique about the state of the nation.
Engr. Bello Suleiman
Mallam Adamu Maina Waziri
Mohammed Haruna
Engr. Suleiman H. Adamu
Dr. Aliyu Modibbo
Bashir Yusuf Ibrahim
Dr. Usman Bugaje
Mal. Nuhu Ribadu
Yusuf Tuggar
Dr. Kabir az Zubair
Ambassador Fatima Balla
Bilya Bala
Dr. Hakeem Baba-Ahmed
Nasir Ahmad el-Rufa’i
Lt.Gen (rtd.) Abdulrahman Dambazau
Lawal Tukur Batagarawa
Engr. Hassan Husaini
Dr. Yahaya Abdullahi
Hannatu Musawa
Alhaji Ibrahim Kofa
Mallam Abba Kyari
Bilkisu Oniyangi
Rufa’i Ibrahim
Dr. Auwalu Anwar
Alhaji Ibrahim Dasuki Nakande
Maj Gen (rtd) Abdulmalik Jibril
THE STATE OF THE NATION
In line with its broad objectives of facilitating the emergence of a leadership that will be rooted in the genuine needs and aspirations of the people of Nigeria, THE CODE GROUP recently concluded an extensive review of key aspects of our National life, particularly the unacceptable levels of insecurity, violence and their damaging effects on the economy and relations among the communities which make up our Nation.
THE CODE GROUP is committed to raising the awareness of the Nigerian people, and the level of sensitivity to all forms of authority, particularly Federal and State Governments, on all major issues of national importance. It is committed to upholding the values of good leadership and good governance; and
exposing the dangers and damaging effects of ineptitude, indifference, insensitivity and corruption in all its manifestations. It seeks to entrench the full values of selflessness and commitment in all leaders, in our search for solutions to governance and democratization issues; and protection of the rights and privileges of citizens.
THE CODE GROUP has observed that the North of Nigeria which has been battered by excruciating poverty has now become the victim of unprecedented violence and assault on its economy, its value systems and its political cohesion in the context of contemporary Nigeria. The Boko Haram insurgency is a threat to national security, but its impact on the North has been most devastating. The communities of the North suffer double jeopardy; they are victims, but are also held responsible, directly or indirectly, for the emergence and growth of this dangerous insurgency, by ill-informed policy makers, politicians and public commentators.
The recent flurry of activities by groups and leaders from the North in response to the threats posed by this insurgency and the weakened economic and social structures of the North seems to be giving credence to the wrong classification of the insurgency as essentially, a Northern problem. While the involvement of elected persons and many elder statesmen in the search for an end to this insurgency and the regeneration of the economy and society of the North is indeed a very welcome development, it by no means absolves the entire nation of its primary responsibility of finding lasting and equitable solutions to these problems.
Unfortunately, instead of joining hands and engaging the Northern leaders and statesmen in the search for solutions, some leaders are busy trying to score cheap political points by setting Northern communities against one another on ethnic, religious and sub-regional grounds; inflaming the crisis and the insurgency in the process. This is the last thing the people of the region and Nigeria need; for far from solving the problems, these opportunistic, politically motivated public relations stunts will only weaken the Country further.
The vast majority of the people of Nigeria want to live together in a peaceful, stable and equitable nation where people from all parts of the country are free to engage in their legitimate pursuits. Leaders from all parts of the country must therefore eschew and disavow political posturing, the support and sponsorship of provocative and inflammatory statements in the media and social network sites that only polarize positions, creating suspicions and deepening divisions. These attempts only exacerbate and compound the problems at a time when the region needs to re-discover its cohesion and the Country its unity. They will add no value to the search for real answers to the many questions and challenges that face the North and Nigeria in the 21st Century. It is ironic that we are busy talking about dividing our country when most regions of the world are busy consolidating and creating strong regional political and economic blocks.
THE CODE GROUP intends to continue to engage many of the elders and statesmen of the North and the rest of Nigeria who had served with distinction and protected the interests of the North and Nigeria in the past. We urge them to continue with the good work of resisting the temptation of playing to the gallery of ethnic, religious and regional jingoism now being draped with the false cover progressivism.
THE INSECURITY SITUATION
The Boko Haram insurgency is the most potent and visible threat to the Nigerian State and the citizenry. Even though this insurgency is currently geographically located in the North, its resolution must be informed by a national resolve, and should address both the intermediate and remote causes of recurring sectarian crises in Nigeria. In this respect, widespread poverty and a corrupt leadership must be decisively tackled, and all options must be considered in dealing with the immediate threat which this insurgency poses.
THE CODE GROUP further notes, as follows:
(i) The Boko Haram insurgency is destroying the economy of most of the North, and placing its people in great danger. The response of government to the insurgency may be registering some successes but it does not appear to be winning the war. The unprecedented deployment of the military and security personnel is exposing the nation to new and old dangers. Routine community policing has virtually ceased in many parts of the North; and the largest peace- time deployment of military personnel for internal security duties is disrupting economic activities and alienating a substantial portion of the population by the manner it undertakes its assignment. The widespread complaints of humiliation of the high and the low, religious and ethnic profiling of citizenry and disregard for sensitivities in areas where they should be respected, is not winning the government, the battle for the hearts and minds. The plan to spend about One trillion Naira for security is likely to provide more incentive for sustaining insecurity, than for securing the nation against threats. This situation, we believe, could best be tackled if instead this colossal amount of money is deployed to fight the excruciating poverty and provide the much needed infrastructure in the Region and indeed the country at large. Entire populations in the North live under siege, and they see little evidence that the extensive controls over their daily lives, the disruption of their economic and cultural lives, and the inconveniences they endure is winning the war against Boko Haram;
(ii) The leadership of the Boko Haram insurgency should be aware that it is fighting a war with no end in sight. The insurgency is killing and maiming Muslims in the North who constitute over 90% of its victims. Likewise, many Christians were also killed in their places of worship, even though some of these attacks were reportedly perpetrated by elements other than Boko Haram, including internal wrangling within the Churches themselves. This has created a backlash by the Government, which has virtually brought the economy of the North to a standstill. By implication this will have negative consequences for the entire national economy. The vast majority of Muslims, Northerners and other Nigerians will welcome a resolution of this insurgency, including extra-judicial killings, injustice, corruption and impunity of leaders. The Boko Haram should accord the necessary respect to all Nigerians by ceasing their attacks and exploring avenues for dialogue and lasting peace under justice.
(iii) The CODE GROUP also acknowledges the loss suffered by the Nigeria Police in the death of one of its finest officers, DIG John Haruna. Our condolence goes to his family and the police force. We also condole with the families of all officers and men of the services who lost their lives discharging their duties fairly and judiciously; as well as all other innocent victims of the crisis, who likewise lost their lives.
THE CODE GROUP has concluded that the following steps will be useful in any meaningful effort to resolve the immediate security problems of the North and Nigeria;
(i) Politicians who have made a career of gaining relevance by fanning the embers of ethnic, regional and religious mistrust for their personal gain should stay clear of issues currently challenging the North and Nigeria. The present circumstances in which the North finds itself and survival of our dear country are too delicate to be toyed with by this mercantile and self-serving political approach;
(ii) Government and the Boko Haram insurgency should explore avenues for a cease-fire for a period that will allow the emergence of credible mediation and the pursuit of confidence building measures towards a comprehensive resolution. As the entity responsible for the security and welfare of all Nigerians, including Boko Haram, the Government has to shoulder the greater part of this burden of responsibility. It must resist the temptation of using this insurgency as a cover-up for its failure to rise to the occasion;
(iii) The cease-fire, which should involve the dismantling of military and police check-points, will allow a substantial review of current deployments of security personnel, particularly the military, which have placed entire populations under siege, and threatens the economy even more;
(iv) The prevailing security challenges in the nation are fast becoming a lucrative avenues for contractors and suppliers of all sorts of security-related goods, works and services, thereby undermining genuine investment in employment generation through re-building the much needed national infrastructure and industrial capacity;
(v) Government should be aware of the dangers of internationalizing the Boko Haram insurgency by courting the involvement of foreign security and intelligence agencies, particularly those from the United States, Britain and Israel. The current quagmires in Pakistan, Afghanistan and Yemen are lessons to learn from;
(vi) Government should note that the Boko Haram insurgency has provided an umbrella and a franchise to all types of criminal gangs and rogue state actors who perpetrate crimes such as armed robbery, kidnapping, political and business-related assassinations to operate with impunity. Therefore we must resolve the insurgency quickly in order to expose and deal with these criminal elements;
(vii) Government must face the task of re-organizing, sanitizing and re-building the Nigeria Police Force with all the commitment and urgency it deserves. The Police Force must be transformed into an effective law and order and crime-fighting institution from its current state of degeneration into a network of kill-and-go squads answerable only to the whims and caprices of politicians and wealthy patrons.
Nigerians should not judge or relate with the North, or any other section of the country for that matter, on the basis of its current challenges or travails. We are living in the same country and in the course of time every region or section will face one challenge or another. It is our collective responsibility to rise up in unison to address these challenges. For if you do not assist in quenching the fire in your neighborhood it will eventually consume your own house.
May God Almighty grant us the wisdom, the will, the tenacity and the means to resolve the current challenges to enable us face the future with clarity of purpose and confidence
God Bless Nigeria.
THE CODE GROUP
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