President Muhammadu Buhari has maintained that his administration was not ready to negotiate with bandits, saying that would continue to deal decisively with insurgents, bandits, kidnappers and other criminals terrorizing the country.
Buhari spoke through his Chief of Staff, Prof. Ibrahim Gambari, on Thursday at a meeting of the governors of the 19 Northern States, the Senate President, Ahmed Lawan, the Inspector-General of Police, Mohammed Adamu, Director General of the Department of State Service, Yusuf Bichi, as well as the Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed.
The Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Saad Abubakar III was also at the meeting. He led traditional rulers from all parts of the north to the meeting that held at the Sir Kashim Ibrahim Government House, Kaduna.
Also in attendance at the meeting including prominent northern lawmakers from both chambers of the National Assembly represented by the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Alhaji Ahmad Idris Wase, who stood in for the Senate President, Ahmad Lawan, leaderships of the Arewa Consultative Forum, Northern Elders’ Forum among others.
Governors of the region at the meeting were Kano, Kaduna, Katsina, Jigawa, Nasarawa, Yobe, Plateau, Sokoto and Kebbi States. Other state governors of the region were represented by their deputies.
The leaders deliberated on the current insecurity in the country following the activities of bandits among others.
Buhari also asked Nigerians to stop the ethnic profiling of criminals, adding that criminals should be treated as criminals.
Buhari said at the gathering, “This meeting is coming at a time when the nation is making steady progress in addressing the many challenges impeding development and progress.
“We are providing critical infrastructures such as roads, railways, airports among which are critical to the economic prosperity of our people as well as opening up economic opportunities for our citizens to pursue legitimate aspirations that grow the economy.
“At the same time, we are confronting the various dimensions of security challenges that continue to slow down the emancipation of our people from poverty and economic deprivation.
“The Government shall continue to deal with insurgents, bandits, kidnappers and other criminals constitute innocent threat citizens across the country.
“Criminals are criminals and should be dealt with accordingly without resorting to ethnic profiling.
“I have already tasked the new Service Chiefs to devise new strategies that will end this ugly situation where the lives of our people continue to be threatened by hoodlums and criminals.
“I expect that at this meeting, your Forum will also discuss and devise ways of building stronger collaboration with the security architecture and the people in defeating criminality across the region and the nation at last.
“It is pertinent to note that the increased realization of our security, democracy and development indices are inextricably linked. Democracy and the rule of law promote stability and in turn, reinforces the power to assert freedom and economic progress of our people.
“This thread of interconnection needs the support of the Northern State Governors Forum and the entire citizenry of the country as any amount of positive sacrifice would be beneficial in bringing about National development and security out nation.”
Earlier, the Plateau State Governor and Chairman of the NGF, Simon Lalong said that statistics had shown that the northern region had a long way to go in the area of “education, healthcare delivery, infrastructural development, food security, industrialization and human capital development among others.”
Further noting that insecurity had affected the economy and jeopardised food security, Lalong said “that is why we have remained resolute in supporting and advising the Federal Government, collaborating with relevant security agencies and also using opportunities at our disposal to work for a more secured nation.”
Lawan, who was represented by the Deputy Speaker, Wase on behalf of northern National Assembly lawmakers said the National Assembly would collaborate with the North to see to the problem bedevilling the region and by extension the country.
The host Governor, Nasir El-Rufai, speaking at the meeting drummed on the need for peace and development of the region and the country.