By Ken Azahan, Abuja
The Interfaith Dialogue Forum (IDFP) has called on President Muhammadu Buhari to intervene and rein in criminal elements causing violence and killing of Nigerians in various parts of the country, especially in the states of Kaduna, Plateau, Zamfara, Taraba and Benue.
Addressing the media after its advocacy visits to the five states by the forum, both co-chairmen of the IDFP, Alhaji Ishaq Kunle Sani and Bishop Sunday Onuoha, appealed to “President Muhammadu Buhari, Governor Nasir Ahmad el-Rufai and relevant security agencies to ensure quick resolution of the crisis that has engulfed Kaduna state, urging the people in Kaduna to see the current curfew as a painful necessity to combat agents of destruction and prevailing insecurity.”
In its brief observation on its recently concluded visits to the states, called on state governors and critical stakeholders to hearken to the cries of citizens in order to ensure improved conditions of living for the people.
While in Zamfara the forum was told that “activities of cattle rustlers and other criminals engaged in kidnapping and armed robberies remain obvious bumps to peace” the involvements of the local vigilante known as ‘Yan Sakai’ were listed as major reasons for the violent crimes ripping across the state.
In Benue, the interfaith discovered that what it described as “resource struggle” between herders and farmers, while both the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) and Jama’atul Nasril Islam (JNI) dismissed the crisis as being religious. Stakeholders insisted, according to the IDFP’s finding that government must work fast to “economic empowerment through job creation was harped upon to tackle the joblessness faced by youths.”
In Plateau the forum noted that clashes between farmers and herdsmen were becoming an albatross to peace efforts and called on both government and international community to intervene by enhancing security and providing financial aids to alleviate the suffering of the Internally Displaced Perosns (IDPs). In Taraba State, the forum further revealed, it was appalled by the worsening conditions at the IDP cams and called on government and the international community, especially donor agencies, to assist in averting the pitiable conditions of these IDPs.
Kaduna State stakeholders, according to the report of the IDFP, identified “hypocrisy among some members of communities, actions and inactions of some religious and political leaders who are not practicing what they preach as the factors responsible for the conflict.”
Identifying youth restiveness caused by unemployment and mutual distrust among various groups remain a major challenge, the forum lamented that it was unfortunate “His Royal Highness, the Agom Adara, Dr Maiwada Raphael Galadima, was abducted less than 48 hours after he granted audience to our team. The IDFP’s team cheated fate as Kasuwan Magani was enmeshed in an orgy of violence, less than an hour after the team interacted with critical stakeholders. After its completion of its activities in southern Kaduna, the IDFP’s convoy was confronted with the ugly scene where the above mentioned monarch was abducted.”
The IDFP was founded in 2016 and is supported by the Vienna-based King Abdullah Bin Abdulaziz International Centre for Interreligious and Intercultural Dialogue, popularly known as KAICIID Dialogue Centre, an international organization that supports dialogue platforms and trains peace builders globally. Throughout the visits, the IDFP teams met with critical stakeholders like security agencies, monarchs, Jama’atul Nasril Islam (JNI), Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), All Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN) and Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN), among others.
