Nairobi, Kenya
Religious leaders in Nigeria are appealing to the international community to help address the deteriorating security in the country and to people of goodwill to support those persons who have been affected by the insecurity.
Their appeal comes days after a priest was kidnapped by gunmen suspected to be Boko Haram terrorists on 8th May in south-eastern Nigeria. Gunmen on motorcycles had also murdered at least 50 people in three villages in north-west Nigeria’s Zamfara state on 6th May.
Nigerian military ride on their truck as they secure the area where a man was killed by suspected militants during an attack around Polo area of Maiduguri, Nigeria, on 16th February, 2019. PICTURE: Reuters/Afolabi Sotunde.
The West African nation of more than 200 million people has been embroiled in an armed conflict since 2009 with the Islamist insurgency group popularly known as Boko Haram. Other armed organisations, including herder-allied groups, criminal gangs, and vigilantes, have also wreaked havoc, especially in the northwest and central part of the country. The conflict has seen thousands of people killed and millions displaced.
But the latest attacks, including killings, kidnapping, and looting by armed bandits in north-west Nigeria, have shocked people in the country, including church leaders. The armed bandits made international headlines last year when they kidnapped hundreds of students in schools and colleges. They released some of the students while others are still held in the forests. In January this year, an estimated 200 people were killed in attacks by armed bandits in Zamfara, the epicenter of the violence. Several other attacks have followed, including the recent one where at least 50 people were killed.
Muslim leader Sheikh Suleiman Shehu lamented, saying innocent people were losing their lives while thousands of others were living in camps for internally displaced people in different parts of the country due to killings and kidnappings being witnessed across the country.
Sheikh Shehu expressed condolences to the victims’ families and appealed to the wellwishers to assist families that have taken refuge at various camps, especially in the northern part of the country. He urged the government to step up and protect its citizens and immediately end the horrific killings.
“We are tired of hearing that people are dying and others are being kidnapped every day. The government must not allow it. They should act and do all that can be done to bring peace,” he said, appealing to donors to provide water, food, and shelter to refugees in various camps. “As religious leaders, we commit to preaching peace and working with the government to ensure a lasting solution is found.”
Bishop Hyacinth Oroko Egbebo of Nigeria’s Catholic Diocese of Bomadi. PICTURE: Catholic Diocese of Bomadi
Bishop Hyacinth Oroko Egbebo, of the Catholic Diocese of Bomadi in southern Nigeria, said the country was experiencing an upsurge in cases of murder, kidnapping for ransom and looting by terrorists and criminal gangs. He said the intercommunal clashes in the north-west part of the country between farmers and herders had escalated the situation as warring groups fight for dwindling resources aggravated by the climate crisis.
“We are worried because the security situation in the country is deteriorating,” he said. “The attacks on people by Islamist militants and criminal gangs negatively affect the country’s economy. People’s daily lives have been disrupted, livelihoods have been affected, and there are widening social and economic divisions.”
While blaming the rising wave of criminal gangs and terrorists on youth employment, Bishop Egbebo accused the international community of not intervening to bring peace to Africa’s most populous nation.
“Youth unemployment is contributing to insecurity in the country because youths have nothing to do that can keep them busy. Therefore, they resort to criminal activities that can earn them an income,” he said, explaining that terrorists and criminal gangs were using Kidnappings to extort money from families, the government, and churches.
“We are praying that we can find peace, and we call on the government to step up law enforcement and encourage reconciliation through dialogue between warring groups.”
Meanwhile, Fr Stephen Ojapah, a priest of the Missionary Society of St Paul, said the church was already providing humanitarian aid and relief support to refugees in the north-west part of the country.
“We have started helping the most vulnerable to ensure they have food, shelter, and basic commodities,” he said. “Those families affected are suffering, and we need to assist them during this difficult time.”
