There is every reason to believe that the President is contemplating declaration of emergency in three states- Borno, Yobe and Nasarawa – that have been embroiled lately in orgies of violence with attendant fatalities.
First, as a Party, we condemn in strong terms these orgies of violence in these States.
Second, our hearts go out to the families of those whose lives have been cut short by these insurgencies. We commiserate with the gallant servicemen and women that paid the supreme sacrifice in Yobe, Borno and Nasarawa states while in the service of the Nation. We are sure that their labour and sacrifice shall not be in vain.
Third, we wish to alert the Nation about the sinister plot to invoke emergency rule in these states. The question is, what is the new thing that an administrator will hope to achieve given the present scenario of militarization in these states? Should this not be interpreted as another knee-jack response of this administration to situations that require out-of-the-box thinking? Is this approach not to be interpreted as a pre-meditated consequence of ineptitude of this regime? It would be recalled that no other person than the former National Security Adviser, Late General Andrew Owoye Azazi, had alerted the nation about the politics of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) being the locus of the insecurity in the Nation State. The question is, what did the Federal Government do to stymie the odiousness of the politics of the ruling party other than merely sacking the messenger?
Fourth, as a Party, we have noticed a dangerous trend that the states mainly embroiled in these spates of insecurity are mainly non-PDP states which further fuels the notion that these insurgencies are purposely orchestrated to create the ambience for the declaration of emergency rule in the states.
Fifth, On the basis of the foregoing therefore, the Congress for Progressive Change, CPC, is vehemently opposed to any declaration of State of emergency because we are convinced that it is not only puerile but meant for self-serving purposes. In this vein, therefore, we reject in its totality this intent at declaring any state of emergency and request the President, as the Leader of the PDP, to consult within his Party for the panacea to the Nation’s security nightmare.
God bless Nigeria.
Rotimi Fashakin (Engr)
National Publicity Secretary, CPC.
(Sunday, May 12, 2013)
