Hausa community in Enugu State has promised to partner the state government in tackling kidnapping in the state.The Northerners also frowned on the situation their members were accused of spearheading the kidnappings in the state, saying they would no longer accept such negative profiling.

The Sarikin Hausawa in the state, Haruna Suleiman, stated this in Enugu, yesterday, when he turbanned 47 persons as part of activities to mark Hausa Cultural Day.

Suleiman regretted that the profiling of the community cost them much, as many people were afraid of doing business with them, stressing that they were neither kidnappers nor responsible for the kidnappings in the state.

The Hausa community leader, however, commended Governor Peter Mbah for not buying into the negative profiling. He said: “The very reason of turbanning my people were mainly because of security in the state. I have listened to Governor Mbah saying he is not going to call or blame any particular religion or tribe for the kidnapping and killings in Enugu because there are Hausa kidnappers, Fulani kidnappers and Igbo kidnappers.
So when we catch anyone, we should call him kidnapper, not a Fulani herdsman, a Hausa or an Igbo man.’’

“On our part as Hausa community, any of us who is not working but is driving a very big car will be apprehended and sent to the security agencies for questioning. Again, anyone we see that is always sitting in hotels, womanising, even when jobless, will be arrested and sent to the security agencies.”

According to him, some of the people turbanned are cattle rearers, adding: “They will be our eyes in the bushes, and will tell us what is happening there. We want to show the Enugu public that the Hausa are not kidnappers and we are going to work with the government to see that all kidnappers and other bad eggs among us are taken to the law,” Suleiman said. He thanked Mbah for carrying them along in the governance of the state, a gesture he noted would not be taken for granted.

The governor reportedly employed 600 persons from the Hausa community to join in the sweeping of the streets, which, he noted, was better that roaming the streets.