WorldStage– Former governor of Jigawa State, Sule Lamido had blamed northern leaders for the menace of religion insurgency and banditry across the northern part of Nigeria and asserted that they are the ones that must fix it.
Speaking during a broadcast interview yesterday, Lamido challenged the leaders on the origin of the many insurgencies, saying: “Where are Boko Haram members and bandits coming from? They are our children from the North, they were not thrown from the sky, they are among us, and today they seem stronger than us because of moral decay, the fault is ours, and we must fix it, starting from the foundation and proper upbringing at home.
“Someone will say Izala, another Qadiriyya, someone else this and that. This one says APC; another says PDP. We are busy talking politics, while this menace continues to confront us.
The former governor said there is nowhere in the world where what is happening in Nigeria is acceptable and acknowledged that though wars are being fought in different places, there is always a reason behind them, whether to defend religion, or country.
Here, however, he stated, the bloodshed defies every description and there is absolutely no justification for it.
Reflecting on the insecurity crises, he further said: “This has been happening for almost ten years. A human being, whether a Muslim or your neighbour, has become a commodity for transaction.
“We are at a critical juncture in the North. We must wake up and do something substantial to address the issue or face the consequences. Today political activities have overshadowed everything in the North. Politics on what? Politics in a land plagued by madmen, kidnappers or bandits?
“What is the essence of power? You are governor in Katsina, Sokoto or Zamfara, yet criminals have taken over your people..
Where is the power? In diplomacy, if you cannot protect your people, whoever controls them has become their leader. The rogue simply becomes the governor.
“If it were an Igbo man or Yoruba man or a Christian, we could perhaps argue differently. But this madness is happening among us.
Lamido argued that such lawlessness is hardly imageable anywhere in the world and lamented that “someone can invade your home, rape your wife and abduct you, only to regain freedom after paying ransom. We have drifted far from the natural order of humanity as ordained by God.”Comparing Nigeria to other countries, Lamido said “Look at our children. During political campaigns, they came out carrying sticks and all kinds of weapons. Is this how it is done in Ghana, Niger Republic or England?”
