Tuesday, 6 November 2012

Politicians Urge FG Not to Cheapen Self Before Boko Haram

 

Reports say that the politicians were reacting to the statement by the government that it would not succumb to the conditions given by the sect for negotiation.

The government had said at the weekend, through the Special Adviser to President Goodluck Jonathan on Inter-Party Affairs, Sen. Ben Obi, that it would not negotiate with the sect under some conditions.

According to Obi, if the sect is genuinely willing to dialogue over bomb attacks in Nigeria, the government will oblige it, but without unjust preconditions.

He said that Boko Haram's demand for the release of its detained members as a precondition for the negotiation was improper.

Obi spoke in Apapa, Lagos after an award ceremony organised by the Association of Anambra State Development Unions for distinguished Anambra citizens.

Other conditions given by the group include the adoption of Saudi Arabia as the venue for the proposed dialogue as well as the nomination of retired Gen. Mohammadu Buhari and some others as mediators.

In an interview with newsmen, the National Chairman of the People’s Progressive Party, Mr Damian Ogbonna, said that giving of the conditions demonstrated arrogance on the part of Boko Haram.

He condemned the groups’ demand for compensation.

"If there is anybody who has to compensate another, it is the Boko Haram who has killed hundreds or even thousands of innocent citizens.

"So, the Federal Government should not negotiate its ability to prosecute those who wantonly destroyed innocent lives," he said.

 Also, the South-West Secretary-General of the Conference of Nigeria Political Parties, Chief Gboyega Adeniji, urged the government to take decisive measures against the sect.

He claimed that the group gave the government the conditions because it observed that the government was kind.

"Nigeria needs to be very strong to be able to take decisive actions against any erring group," he said.

The National Chairman of the Progressive Action Council, Chief Charles Nwodo, advised the government to give its own conditions for negotiation with the group.

"If they accept the government’s terms and surrender, they can be rehabilitated and trained," he said.

Nwodo said that Nigerians needed peace and security to be able carry out their lawful duties without fear.

He urged the government to be courageous enough to prosecute any politician involved in the spate of bombings and killings in Nigeria.

 

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