Categories

Nigeria: Bombings – Mark Seeks National Security Review

WARNING: This is Version 1 of my old archive, so Photos will NOT work and many links will NOT work. But you can find articles by searching on the Titles. There is a lot of information in this archive. Use the SEARCH BAR at the top right. Prior to December 2012; I was a pro-Christian type of Conservative. I was unaware of the mass of Jewish lies in history, especially the lies regarding WW2 and Hitler. So in here you will find pro-Jewish and pro-Israel material. I was definitely WRONG about the Boeremag and Janusz Walus. They were for real.

Original Post Date: 2011-01-04 Time: 10:00:02  Posted By: News Poster

By Adetutu Folasade-Koyi, Kemi Yesufu And Austin Oboh

Lagos/Abuja – Sympathisers abroad and citizens at home are increasingly agitated about Nigeria’s security.

They express doubt over the country’s coming elections, and the ability of the most populous black nation on earth to remain intact amid killers so daring they stick murders in the face of Aso Rock with impunity.

Senate President David Mark has urged the Villa to urgently review and strengthen national security because of frequent bomb blasts by insurgents, from Yenagao to Jos, and now Abuja, where such explosions killed many on New Year’s eve.

The latest terrorist acts in Abuja came a week after bombings in Jos on Christmas eve, and three months after the twin blasts during the independence anniversary in the federal capital on October 1 last year.

Strengthening national security, Mark reasoned on Sunday, demands collaboration between the military and para-military agencies to plug loopholes.

The situation “can no longer be handled with kid gloves” he counselled, stressing that the current security network is inadequate to meet the challenges.

He expressed concern about the growing security threat in the country saying, “Something has to be done urgently to arrest the situation and reduce tension in the land.”

Mark urged the perpetrators to desist from these heinous crimes “because the continuous elimination of the lives of citizens would not and cannot contribute to the solution of any problem.

“No matter the level of anger in a man’s mind, how can snuffing of the lives of harmless and innocent citizens be a solution?

“I think wise counsel should prevail. There are many channels through which we can address our problems or grievances. Causing mayhem and killing people certainly cannot be an avenue towards solving our problems or addressing our grievances.”

Mark sympathised with the victims and implored the government to assuage their pains.

“No matter the situation, we should remember to be our brother’s keeper. We need each other, no one can live or survive in isolation. Let us rethink and halt these carnage. Life must be sacrosanct.”

From abroad, British Foreign and Commonwealth Office Minister, Jeremy Browne, condemned the bombings and charged Nigerian security agencies to fish out the culprits behind the attacks, which came when citizens are still smarting from the recent violence elsewhere in the country.

“Following the earlier incidents in Jos and Maiduguri over the Christmas period, I am shocked and saddened to learn of the bomb attack in Abuja on New Year’s eve.

“I condemn this incident and the loss of innocent lives and send the UK’s condolences to the victims and their families. Every effort should be made to bring the perpetrators to justice,” Browne added.

Former British High Commissioner to Nigeria, Bob Dewar, in one of his last assignments, had issued a statement decrying the violence in the country.

Also on Sunday, a host of political actors, including the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), Conference of Nigerian Political Parties (CNPP), National Conscience Party (NCP), Labour Party (LP) and Democratic Alternative (AD), condemned the terrorist actions across the country and expressed fears over the elections in April.

They said there is no clear indication that the government can contain the trend.

The ACN noted that the inability to arrest and prosecute the perpetrators of previous killings is fuelling the violence, and pointed out that in the midst of it all, the PDP-led government is clueless on how to solve the problem.

ACN Spokesman Lai Mohammed urged President Goodluck Jonathan to consult parties outside the PDP as well as individuals and groups to find a way out of the quagmire.

The party recalled its earlier position that the only panacea to the recurring violence is to smoke out those behind it, no matter their status, and ensure they face the maximum punishment prescribed by the law.

It said Nigerians are sick and tired of hearing the same refrain, ‘We shall fish out and bring to justice those behind this,’ when the perpetrators of previous killings are not punished.

The statement added: “Never in the history of Nigeria have the people been subjected to the kind of violence reigning supreme under the PDP. It is indeed a double tragedy that a government that cannot even provide for the people is also unable to ensure their security.

“Only last week, the PDP ward congress in Oyo State was turned into a theatre of war, where people were killed and maimed, as guns, machetes, axes, and other weapons were wielded freely.

“It is doubtful whether a party that cannot even organise a violence-free congress can preside over a free, fair, and violence free national election.”

CNPP National Chairman, Balarabe Musa, argued that there is no longer doubt that the series of bomb blasts are politically motivated with its occurrence in Yenagoa and Abuja.

“Those who are afraid to relinquish power and be called to account for their mismanagement would do anything to derail the electoral process so that they can continue to hold on to power,” he stated.

Adding its voice, the NCP claimed that the Abuja blasts are an unmistakable clue to what happened in Jos, and “it is now clear that these bomb explosions were not motivated by ethno-religious but political interests, because Abuja where the latest incident occurred, is a neutral zone.”

NCP scribe Tanko Yunusa narrated that the Abuja explosions occurred minutes after he had passed the spot, and tasked Jonathan to unmask the perpetrators for a change.

He said the spectre of insecurity could threaten the country’s unity.

LP Spokesman Ikpe Etokudo reiterated that desperate politicians are making life unbearable for Nigerians and warned that there may be no elections in April.

Democratic Alternative (DA) National Chairman, Abayomi Ferreira, said: “The rapidly increasing rate of terrorist bombings is a disturbing index of security preparedness.

“It is equally an indication of poor quality government; the usual lazy responses of condemnation by politicians in government do not address the matter better than the crackling sound from a cracked record.”

In his own reaction, former military President, Ibrahim Babangida, called for a stakeholders’ summit, stressing that Nigerians must learn to avoid certain pitfalls that could generate instability.

A statement issued by his Spokesman, Kassim Afegbua, expressed surprise at “the deliberate ploy to link him with the spate of wanton bombings that have created palpable fear in the land.”

He said the ploy exposes the weakness in the system if private persons and former leaders who are enjoying their retirement are being linked to acts of terrorism or bombings.

“Babangida condemns in totality this act of criminality which is gradually giving us a bad image and making us the attraction of the world for the wrong reasons.

“Rather than play politics and trying to gain any political mileage with these heinous acts against humanity, the government must take adequate and appropriate measures to rally round all stakeholders to find a permanent solution to this growing crime.

“Babangida is therefore suggesting that the government should call for a stakeholders’ security summit to identify new methods and approaches that will be useful solutions to these disturbing trends.”

He stressed that no sane Nigerian is at peace with what is going on and the loss of innocent souls and helpless citizens “should worry all of us” and should “bother all of us to see Nigerians being slaughtered in such wanton manner as if we were in a war situation.”

To him, it is barbaric, reprehensible, condemnable, brutish, callous by every standard; a disturbing trend that must be given attention both by the government and the people to arrest the trend.

Original date published: 2 January 2011

Source: http://allafrica.com/stories/201101031009.html?viewall=1