* Igbo group urges FG to ensure security ahead of 2023 polls
Kingsley Nwezeh in Abuja
A coalition of Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) yesterday alleged that the recent security alerts issued by the foreign missions in Abuja were a calculated move to destabilise the country.
Their position came as the Pan-Igbo group, Igbo bu Igbo, expressed concerns over the deteriorating security situation in the country and the South-east.
It called on the federal government to ensure peace in all parts of the country as the nation prepares for the 2023 general election.
It also called on the federal government to release detained leader of the Indeginous Peoples of Biafra (IPOB), Mr Nnamdi Kanu.
While warning the US against attempts to bully or stampede the Nigerian State into doing its bidding, the NGOs insisted that security agencies, especially the military, Department of State Services (DSS), and the Nigeria Police have continued to strengthen their intelligence-driven operations.
The coalition argued that against ongoing efforts to contain criminal elements and their activities, such a security advisory was unnecessary.
The groups include Coalition for Peace In Nigeria (COPIN), Coalition of Nigerians for National Sovereignty and Unity (CONNSU), Save Nigeria Movement (SNM), Celebrities United for Peace (CUP), and Citizens Watch Advocacy Initiative (CWAI).
Addressing journalists yesterday on the implication of the threat alert, the Coordinator of COPIN, Mr. Emeka Akwuobi, called on the citizens to rise above fear and anxiety, and continue to support security agencies.
The coalition queried the motive behind the threat alert, considering the fact that the DSS, Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS), and the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), had issued security advisories of plans by terrorists to target soft spots in parts of the country
“For the avoidance of doubt, the US is preparing for elections, and is customary with the so-called ‘world police’, nations considered not in tune with her aggressive disposition, are often whipped into line.
“Having regard to our patriotic role as contemporary ‘watchdogs’, we wish to inform the public that, as always, the Democratic Party wants to continue in the usual opportunistic pastime of using the tool of destabilisation, to gain, or retain power, in the case of the subsisting government.
“With your kind permission, gentlemen of the press, we wish to raise the following posers:
“Why is this misguided, misdirected security advisory coming few months before elections in most parts of the country?
“Is it a coincidence that few days after the suspicious alert, a similar cul-de-sac – literally speaking – was visited on South Africa?
“Whereas Nigeria leads the way in the West African sub-region, South Africa is, unarguably, the biggest player in the Southern African geographical construct.
“It is pertinent to note that the said alarm underpins international politics: psychological warfare; scorched earth policy; or gunboat diplomacy”, Akwuobi said.
Meanwhile, a Pan Igbo group, Igbo Bu Igbo (IBI), expressed concerns over the deteriorating security situation in the country and the South-east.
It called on the federal government to ensure peace in all parts of the country as the nation prepares for the 2023 general elections.
It also called on the federal government to release detained leader of the Indigenous Peoples of Biafra (IPOB), Mr. Nnamdi Kanu.
“Igbo Bu Igbo is deeply worried by this growing insecurity. Granted that no state is spared in the South-east, it is noteworthy that the incidence is worse in Ebonyi and Imo states. Beyond the gravity of the insecurity incidence, the two state governments have also been accused by some of their own people of being responsible for perpetrating much of the insecurity through the reckless deployment of the Ebube Agu security outfits for politics and other acts of complicity or complacency.
“Coincidentally too, Ebonyi and Imo are the only two states in the South-east where the proposed regional outfit, Ebube Agu, is said to have taken off. Please, note that Igbo Bu Igbo is not affiliated with any political party or tendency. All that IBI desires is not to excoriate any individual, group, or public official. Its sole interest and intention is to canvass for the restoration of peace, security, and stability of the South-East zone”, it said.
