President’s trip to Mali misplacement of priority, says HURIWA

The Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) has described President Muhammadu Buhari’s trip to Mali to make peace as a misplacement of priority, saying the peace-making mission by the President is shameful when half of the country is on fire due to insecurity.

It said the internal situation in Nigeria calls for greater attention, as the country continues to suffer all manner of security challenges, ranging from widespread robbery to kidnapping, ethno-religious conflict and terrorism.

The Rights group added that it is not against peace in Mali but expressed worry that he, “whose house is on fire does not chase rats”, noting that the peace mission is coming within the same week that armed Fulani herdsmen invaded and killed 21 villagers in Kagoro, in Kaura local council area of the Christian-dominated Southern Kaduna State.

In a statement by the National Coordinator, Emmanuel Onwubiko and the National Media Affairs Director, Zainab Yusuf, HURIWA said more worrisome is that the President in a most reprehensible and primitive approach to a grave threat to our national security attempted to explain away the killings as reprisals, and then run off to Mali two days later to make peace, stressing that it doubts if any good can come out from such a mission by someone whose house is rocked with a high wave of crisis and violence.

“We will continue to subject the Federal Government of President Muhammadu Buhari to heavy criticism in the face of the upsurge of violent attacks on innocent citizens. These outbreaks of violent conflict have become a major source of insecurity in Nigeria.

“Undoubtedly, Nigeria’s role at the regional level is one that cannot be overemphasized, but at the domestic level, the country is increasingly being confronted by several domestic security challenges that impact negatively on its effectiveness in international affairs.”

Considering the critical self-assigned role of the nation as a giant of Africa and leader of the black race and the responsibilities that come along in the field of security policy of the continent and the sub-region and even because of national need, to protect the physical integrity of the Nigerian state, there ought to be an alignment between objectives and policies.