From Okwe Obi, Abuja
The Coalition of Northern Groups (CNG), has condemned recent attacks on some northerners in Imo State.
The group claimed that the destruction, demolition, burning of structure and assets belonging to the peaceful northern settlers of three communities from Thursday 27th to Friday 28th July, 2023, were carried out under the behest of Governor Hope Uzodimma.
CNG’s Spokesperson Abdulazeez Suleiman, in a statement yesterday, he said the north’s reticence to speak out or taking action was not born of fear or ignorance of how to respond in kind, stating that it was simply because of respect for others and deep commitment to national integration.
He he said the call on the Northerners to return to the North was borne out of the realisation that their lives had been put at risk due to the recent actions perpetrated in Imo on the orders of the state governor.
He said: “Against the backdrop of these concerns and observations, the CNG, not wishing to remain silent or passive and allow things that affect the North and potentially cause greater instability in the country to continue unchecked, hereby takes the following key decisions:
“We emphatically repudiate the gangster action of Uzodimma and deem the targeting of the northerner communities in Imo for vilification, systematic dehumanization, profiling, alienation or any action that will render them object of attack and persecution, not only immoral and illegal, but also abhorrent to our sensibilities and ordinary decency and therefore unacceptable.
“We reiterate the call on Northerners living in Imo State and all unfriendly parts of the South-East to consider leaving the region for the sake of their lives and properties over policies pursued by the likes of Hope Uzodimma.
“The call on the Northerners to return to the North was borne out of the realisation that their lives had been put at risk due to the recent actions perpetrated in Imo on the orders of the state governor.
“It is also by worries about their well-being and the conviction that their safety can no longer be guaranteed and we would rather have them back in areas where their safety is guaranteed.
“The bottom line is that their safety is far more important than their stay there. This is a country we all wish to keep together but not at the expense of other sections.
“We call on the Federal Government to take immediate steps to disband all militias and armed groups in Imo and other parts of the South-East by resort to the use of force if needs be, to ensure that no group has the capacity to challenge the State in its prerogative to maintain law and order, and protect citizens’ lives and properties.
“We call on the Inspector General of Police and the Nigerian Army Headquarters to interrogate the extent of involvement of their personnel in the commission of this dastardly act against peaceful everyday northerners in Imo State.
“We demand for the establishment of a judicial enquiry that would be saddled with the responsibility of determining the quantum of loss of properties by northerners in the Imo attacks with a view to paying compensation due to each of the victims.
“We warn Uzodimma and his ilk that the North shall no longer tolerate its people being profiled, attacked and killed, their properties destroyed by officials of government and state sponsored elements in the South-east with incidences of religious and ethnic profiling.
“We warn that while the North continues to support other Nigerians particularly the Igbo, to benefit from its tolerance and accommodation, it will also demand other Nigerians to note that the laws of the land demand that every Nigerian lives and earns his legitimate living in any part of Nigeria without discrimination or molestation.
“We warn the complacent section of the northern elite that their actions will not go unnoticed, and in the fullness of time, they will be held accountable to the extent of their docility and bankruptcy.
“We are aware that the Uzodimma’s and other southern politicians have made an entire career out of demonizing and insulting the North and all it stands for.
“Their fathers in the past have vilified the North, killed its leaders, scandalized its institutions and ridiculed its traditions and customs.
“They have under various administrations tried to bring down the North by destroying its institutions, undermining its economic and social fabrics, and encouraging rampant social problems like armed robbery, kidnapping, prostitution, drug and substance abuse.
“The CNG today declares enough is enough. The North will no longer remain passive under such deliberate and sustained attacks and will henceforth be forced to react coin for coin to every provocation and unwarranted attacks by the Igbo and other self-appointed enemies anywhere.
“The North’s reticence in speaking out or taking action is not born of fear or ignorance of how to respond in kind. It is simply because of our respect for others and deep commitment to national integration.”