Kidnappings, Killings: Don’t blame Buhari alone, says ex-minister

Former Sports Minister, Solomon Dalung, has expressed sadness over the unending killings and kidnappings, especially in the northern part of the country.

Dalung said President Muhammadu Buhari should not be blamed alone for the insecurity in the country.

He said that injustice had been endorsed in governance and that fundamental principles of the nation’s founding fathers had been neglected.

Dalung, who served as a minister under Buhari from 2015 to 2019, faulted the activities of the Service Chiefs for not curbing the kidnappings and killings in the country, especially in the north.

He spoke on Saturday at the launch of six books on Sheikh Dahiru Usman Bauchi, written by Professor Khalid Abdullahi Zaria, held in Abuja.

Dalung advised Buhari to sack the Service Chiefs if they cannot put a stop to insecurity in the country.

His words: “Our founding fathers governed us, especially in the north, without any discrimination. Then, there was peace, stability and the north developed.

“But today injustice has been endorsed in governance where these fundamental principles of equity have been neglected. And to my mind, this is why peace remains very illusive.

“And I challenge northern leaders to retrace their steps back to the legacies of the great founding fathers that united us.

“How can we have a situation where the Security and Service Chiefs are all northerners? Not only northerners, they are northern Muslims and you have merchants of men flourishing in the north.

“People are kidnapped and ransoms paid every day. The common people have been impoverished through kidnapping and other criminal acts for ransoms. I do not want to completely put the blame on President Muhammadu Buhari.

“He alone cannot govern Nigeria; he has appointed people and I think these people either need to deliver or on the alternative, the president should kick them out”.

He described Sheikh Bauchi as a man of peace, a great Nigerian and an exceptional gift to this country.

The author of the books, Prof Zaria, said Sheikh Bauchi had helped humanity and that his lifestyle should be emulated by all.

He said Sheikh Bauchi, who has clocked 96, had been preaching for 75 years.

Zaria called on Nigerian leaders to believe in one Nigeria and embrace peace no matter the situation.