Don't label Fulani people as evil perpetrators - northern govs

Governors of the 19 northern states have condemned the recent attack in Enugu but warned that labelling every perpetrator as Fulani was wrong. The Nation reports that the governors said this shortly after their Northern States Governors Forum in Kaduna on Friday, April 29.

The governor said they were saddened by the recent attack in Agatu and Enugu but said tagging a particular ethnicity was wrong just as Igbos would not be tagged alongside kidnapping even though the practice is prevalent in the south east. Alhaji Kashim Shettima who is the governor of Borno and the chairman of the forum said it was an insult to label Fulani as criminals. He said: “We want to unequivocally condemn the recent killings in Enugu and other parts of the country. But we equally condemn the politicisation or permit
me, the ‘ethinicisation’ of the whole crisis. It goes beyond Fulani. If anything happens, they say Fulani herdsmen; to me it is an insult. “Kidnapping in this country originated in the South-east, were they called Igbo kidnappers? We have a great national

challenge and we want to call on all and sundry to come and let us solve our common challenges as a people. Because the blood of paternity that binds us together supersedes whatever differences that might divide us.” On the issue of Boko Haram, the governor said the menace has been wiped out although pockets of violence still occoured. “In respect of the insurgency in the North-east, I can confidently confirm that the insurgency has been irredeemably halted and the insurgents themselves completely subdued. “What remains now are few isolated pockets of suicide bombings which the recalcitrant remnants of the insurgents use as a last resort to attract attention and create unnecessary panic among the general population.”

“In the North West and North Central, the security situation is alarming as the issues of cattle rustling, kidnapping, banditry and the persistent conflict between farmers and cattle rearers are gradually assuming unacceptable proportions. “It has therefore become a strategic imperative for us to take a hard look at these formidable challenges and work out strategies on the most    effective ways of not only reversing   the trend but also overcoming them   once and for all. Whatever resolutions we can come up with would   be communicated to the appropriate authorities for obvious analytical examination and possible   implementation,” he added