TheCable

The Northern States Christian Elders Forum (NOSCEF) has appealed to President Muhammadu Buhari to urgently address insecurity, before the country “goes the way of Somalia”.

There have been several attacks on schools and communities across the country in recent times, leading to kidnapping and killings.

Ejoga Inalegwu, chairman of the forum, in a statement on Wednesday, urged Buhari to employ every means to address the current security challenges.

Inalegwu, who said the new trend of targeting students “is most condemnable”, appealed to the president “to seek every available aid, both internal and external, to reverse the trend before we lose our beloved country”.

“The country must not be left to go the way of Somalia, ruled by warlords, with a reign of lawlessness, as we see ourselves already drifting into,” he said.

“We also condemn the attacks on the military and security outfits in various parts of the country. These weaken the institutions that still hold us together as a people, at the cost of their own lives.

“We sympathise with the families of military, police and other security personnel, who lost their lives sacrificially, in the course of their duty of defending their fatherland.”

NOSCEF also urged the military, police and other security outfits to remain undeterred in their commitment towards seeking an end to the security challenges confronting the nation.

On the efforts to mop up arms, NOSCEF called on the federal government to ensure that the excercise is “wholesome and must not be implemented with any bias that will make those who comply become even more vulnerable to criminal attacks”.

NOSCEF also urged Nigerians to continue to pray for divine intervention for the country.