BEVERLY HILLS, June 08, (THEWILL) – Governors Rochas Okorocha, Nasir El Rufai and Mohammed Abdullahi Abubakar of Imo, Kaduna and Bauchi states respectively have held a meeting with the leaders of Ohaneze Ndi-Igbo led by its President-General, Chief Gary Igariway in Owerri, the Imo state capital, over the recent beheading of an Igbo woman in Kano State, the violent activities of herdsmen and the unity of the country.
They were joined by the National Chairman of All Progressives Congress, APC, Chief John Oyegun for the meeting which held on Tuesday after the visiting governors and the APC Chairman attended an event on Monday night showcasing the achievements of the Okorocha administration for the past five years.
According to a statement issued by Okorocha’s Chief Press Secretary, Sam Onwuemeodo, the APC Chairman and Ohaneze leaders bared their minds on the disturbing issues of the Igbo woman beheaded in Kano, the rampaging herdsmen and the need to see those behind the unlawful acts as criminals and also as common enemies of the nation and Nigerians.
In his speech at the meeting, El Rufai said governors from the Northern part of the country totally condemn the murder of the Igbo woman in Kano, stressing that the matter should be treated as a case of murder while those responsible must be brought to face the wrath of the law.
His words, “we will not accept a situation where people either Christians or Muslims hide under the umbrella of religion to commit crime. If someone had insulted God, the person should be left for God to take care of. I have advised the Kano governor to publicly deal with the people involved to serve as a deterrent to others.”
He continued, “I thank Ohaneze for choosing the path of peace and unity. People are now using religion as a tool to divide and even defraud people. That necessitated the introduction of religion bill in Kaduna so that people can be stopped from using divisive languages in the name of religion.”
On the issue of the herdsmen, he said “It is a problem that is affecting the whole nation. It is not a case of Fulani invading other tribes but a criminal activity that must be nipped in the bud. In pure Fulani communities, the herdsmen are equally attacking them in numbers, doing all kinds of ugly things like kidnapping, armed robbery, rape etc.”
The Kaduna Governor continued that; “Owelle Okorocha should be commended for his vision, achievements and Nigerianess. His vision of going to APC at the time he did redeemed the Igbos from going into Political Oblivion. He is one of the few Political leaders who saw tomorrow, and whose entry into the merger that brought APC was strategic”.
On his part, the Bauchi State Governor, Abubakar said “the killing of the woman in Kano was an evil act. I had liaised with the Kano governor and he assured that arrest has been made and those responsible will face the full weight of the law”.
On the herdsmen problem, he said, the problem has been in the North over the years and its occurrence in the South should not be seen as an act of invasion but a criminal act that must be treated as such. He explained that the traditional Nigeria Fulani herdsmen are not known to be criminally minded, but because of the country’s porous borders, herdsmen from other African nations especially after the fall of Libya found their way into the country and they are the ones committing these crimes.
The APC National Chairman, in his contribution, said there were proofs that most of these crimes are being committed by foreigners and cited an instance of a Reverend father in Benin who was kidnapped and out of the number of those involved in his abduction only one was a Nigerian with the rest being foreigners.
While stressing that the nation must rise to squarely face the challenges, he applauded the leadership of Ohaneze for their maturity in handling some of these sensitive issues.
Earlier in his speech, the President-General of Ohaneze, Chief Igariway expressed satisfaction with the way the Governor of Kano State is handling the case of the Igbo woman beheaded for alleged blasphemy, and cautioned against inciting statements from leaders. He welcomed the goodwill demonstrated by the Kaduna and Bauchi State Governors.
The host Governor, Okorocha stated that the killing of the woman in Kano State was an outright case of murder and has nothing to do with tribe or religion because what is criminal is criminal and must be treated as specified by law.
The Imo chief executive averred that seventy percent of Nigeria’s problems could be adjudged to have arisen from lack of communication.
He noted that with what the governors said, “It could now be understood that the Kano incident was not an attack against Ndi-Igbo but a case of crime. It is also pertinent for us to know that the wonderful bridge that connects the Igbo to the North is not faulty. The bridge is as strong as it has ever been. The Igbos must fortify this bridge for both economic and political reasons.”
