4th July, 2012
The new National Security Adviser, NSA retired Col. Sambo Dasuki (retd) continued his tour of crisis ridden parts of Northern Nigeria on Wednesday with a visit to Jos, Plateau State in central Nigeria where hundreds of lives have been lost to ethno-religious violence in the past 10 years.
The new NSA had earlier visited Yobe and Borno State, the epicentre of the Boko Haram insurgency.
Dasuki during a meeting with stakeholders in Plateau State revealed that he is already in possession of contacts of key Boko Haram leaders, signifying government’s readiness to dialogue with the group.
Indeed, Dasuki said he is ready to meet with the group to convince them to cease fire.
“I was in Yobe and Borno States last week and I have got the telephone numbers and contacts of key Boko Haram members and I will meet with them”, said Dasuki who described the situation in the two states when he visited as pathetic.
” But I have the mandate to put heads together with religious and traditional leaders as well as the state governments to ensure an immediate ceasefire,” Dasuki added.
The Security Chief said he is in Plateau for on-the-spot assessment of the security challenges facing the State and in furtherance of the Federal Government efforts at ensuring that peace return to the troubled states in the Northern part of the country. He therefore challenged all stakeholders in the State to embrace genuine peace and reconciliation.
“Before now, it is difficult for me to believe that you can see a Fulani and Berom man together on the street of Plateau fighting”, said the NSA who said he had a stake in Plateau having lived in Pankshin and Jos when his father resided here.
“So if we lived peacefully way back then, it is possible to go back to those good old days”, he added.
The NSA also noted that the presence of various ethnic and religious groups at the meeting was indicative that all stakeholders in the State want to put the past behind them.
Governor Jonah Jang who was present at the meeting regretted that the emergency rule in the state had not achieved the intended effects. He noted that the attacks on persons and property have continued in the affected local government areas unabated despite the declaration of the state of emergency. The Plateau State Governor however said it will be difficult to dialogue with Boko Haram since the Sects’ leaders and members were not known.
He added that members of the Sect must first come out and make themselves known. “We only hear that Boko Haram claims responsibility for this and that attack but we never heard anybody coming out to say he is Boko Haram. We know the Niger Delta militants had leaders and a cause they were fighting for which made late President Yar’Adua to succeed with the amnesty programme but, who is Boko Haram?”, said Jang who added that some influential people were behind the sect going by the sophistication of their operations.
The Governor insisted that the sponsors of the group must be identified dealt with by the appropriate authority.
Bitrus Kaze, member of the House of Representatives, who was present at the meeting said insincerity and lack of will on the part of the government to implement various reports on Jos crises was responsibe for the failure to stop the sectarian crisis that has engulfed the State: “In the last 10 years, no single person has been convicted for the crisis on the Plateau.
“So what you have is a situation whereby the assailants have become hardened and continued to carry on with the attacks with impunity,” he concluded.
The stakeholders’ meeting was attended by a cross sections of traditional, religious and community leaders, heads of security services, women, youth groups, and government functionaries in the State.