Northern elders tackle Buhari over insecurity

Northern Elders Forum (NEF) has accused President Muhammadu Buhari of lacking the political will to tackle insecurity in the north, especially in troubled states like Zamfara, Katsina, Kaduna, Benue, Niger, Plateau and Taraba states.

NEF made the accusation while addressing newsmen after the forum’s meeting in Zaria, Kaduna State, at the weekend.

The group blamed the insecurity on failure of leadership and what it termed “irresponsibility of governance.”

The Chairman of NEF, Prof. Ango Abdullahi, also called on President Muhammadu Buhari to demonstrate higher level of concern and sensitivity to the plight of traumatised citizens, especially in the aforementioned states.

He said; “There is serious irresponsibility of governance in the country, especially in the North; the leadership is not doing enough to meet up the challenges of poverty and under-development.”

“We also demand a decisive, comprehensive and fundamental government actions against poverty, underdevelopment and insecurity affecting North as well as show leadership and compassion which are reciprocal expectation of the Nigerian people.”

The NEF Chairman also added that it was shameful that a recent report of an international organisation revealed that 90 per cent of the over 13.5 million children out-of-school in the country were from the North.

“The children will be adults in the next 10 years; no education, no vocational training, what do you expect then? Insecurity situation,” he asked rhetorically.