Northern youth have commended President Muhammadu Buhari for securing release of the abducted Kankara schoolboys, while urging for the immediate release of Leah Sharibu and the remaining Chibok girls.
The Northern youth under the aegis of Joint Action Committee of Northern Youth Associations told journalists in Kaduna on Monday that the commendation and call was the outcome of their conference last week in Kaduna which discussed the prevailing security situation in Northern Nigeria.
According to the Convener, Muhammed Murtala Abubakar, “we applaud the governments for not just freeing the students, but ensuring it was done without collateral damage. This shows that if there is a political will on the parts of political office holders, synergy among the security agents and involving the civil populace, no security challenge that cannot be overcome.
“With the speed and strategy used to ensure the rescue of hundreds of Kankara boys, we demand the government does same to rescue the remaining Chibok Girls who have spent over 2, 400 days in captivity. Same with Leah Sharibu who is the lone victim with the abductors of the Dapchi Girls and all other Nigerian citizens in captivity.
“For the rescue of the Kankara students to have been that swift and successful when most of the senior security chiefs were in self-isolation, following the outbreak of covid-19 during the Chief of Army Staff Annual Conference, added credence to the demand for the relieving of the service chiefs of their appointment. We urged President Buhari to hearken to that demand.
“It also shows that if the Northern states Governors would set aside their differences, unite and work as a team, security challenges in the region can be tackled and overcome with ease and with speed too. We saw this in the synergy between Katsina state Governor Aminu Bello Masari and his Zamfara state counterpart, Muhammed Bello Mutawale who are not even in the same political party.”
The youth said security issues go beyond political differences and personal interest, while urging political office holders to live up to the oath of office they swore to, to protect the lives and property of citizens, as anything short of that is a leadership failure.
