President Olusegun Obasanjo and popular Islamic scholar, Sheikh Abubakar Gumi, have recommended that communities in the country should be empowered to tackle criminality. Whistleblowers must also be adequately protected and covertly rewarded, they added.
These are part of the solutions proffered by the duo when Gunmi met the former President in the latter’s residence in Abeokuta, Ogun State on Sunday.
The meeting, focused on the causes, effects and implications of the various security threats, as well as the reactions by communities, local authorities, state governments, and the Federal Government, as well as authorities in neighbouring countries and nations within West Africa.
The two also recommended that state governments must have adequate means of providing security for their people and as chief executives and chief security officers of their states, they must have the means to ensure security for all within their states.
The Federal Government, they also urged, must be proactive, secure necessary and updated intelligence to deal with organised crimes and have a common policy for the nation.
While urging a uniform method of tackling criminality, they said, “It is not solving the problem when one state goes for negotiation and molly-cuddling of criminals while another one goes for shooting them. Nor should one state go for ransom payment and another one going against.”
Local, state and the federal governments, they said, should cooperate to put back in school the about 14million children currently out of school in the country.
Those ready to forgo criminality, the two agreed, should be weaned out of the bushes and crime, settled and rehabilitated and empowered with skills and employment.
However, hardened criminals must be hard hit and unlawful bearing of arms should be severely punished with the active collaboration of the Economic Community of West Africa (ECOWAS), they said.
Obasanjo and Gunmi also called for special courts to deal promptly with cases of banditry, kidnapping, ransom demanding and unlawful carrying of weapons.
Obasanjo and the Gunmi appealed to authorities and the people not to encourage or support criminality, noting that the security situation in the country has gone beyond tolerance.
A statement signed by both Obasanjo and Gunmi read in part:
“As part of his continued efforts to find solutions for the general insecurity in the country and particularly for the menace of banditry, kidnapping and ransom payment, Sheikh Gumi with a delegation of eight, as follows Prof. Usman Yusuf, Mallam Tukur Mamu, Dr Umar Ardo, Dr Ibrahim Abdullahi, Honourable Suleiman Gumi, Alhaji Suleiman Yakubu, and Mallam Buba Mohammed, visited Chief Olusegun Obasanjo in Abeokuta, Ogun State on April 4, 2021.
“Chief Obasanjo received Sheikh Gumi and his delegation in the presence of Oba Babajide Bakare, Agura of Gbagura, Abeokuta; Bishop Tunde Akin-Akinsanya, Chairman of Ogun State Christian Association of Nigeria; Sheikh Sa’addallah Alade Bamigbola, Chief Imam of Egbaland; Chief Kenny Martins, Chief Ola Babajide Jaiyeoba; Rev. Tony Ojeshina, Chief Imams of Oke-Ona, Gbagura, Owu and Mr Vitalis Ortese.
“…After deep, frank, and intimate discussions, the following points were arrived at and decided upon for appropriate actions as recommended:
“…Solutions must be seen and provided on short, medium, and long-term bases and must be composed of stick and carrot for the offender and the vulnerable.
“All well-meaning Nigerians have to be involved in finding solutions by desisting from blame game; desisting from ethnicising these crimes; desisting from regionalising these crimes; respecting one another individually, community-wise, locally, ethnically, religiously and socially; showing tolerance and accommodation where necessary; condemning criminal acts no matter where it is committed and by whom it is committed in Nigeria; encouraging more of carrot solution as may be found necessary; sharing information at all levels; not accepting criminality as a way of life for any individual or group in our nation.
“State governments must have adequate means of providing security for their people and as chief executives and chief security officers of their states, they must have the means at their disposal to ensure security for all within their states.
“Federal Government must be proactive, secure necessary and updated intelligence to deal with organised crimes and have a common policy for the nation. It is not solving the problem when one state goes for negotiation and molly-cuddling of criminals and another one goes for shooting them. Nor should one state go for ransom payment and another one going against.
“Wean those who are ready to be weaned out of the bushes and crime, settle and rehabilitate them, give them skills, empower them and let them have employment.
“The hardened criminals must be hard hit with the stick. Unlawful carrying of arms should be very seriously punished. Federal Government should take the issue up seriously within ECOWAS to work for a regional solution.
“Every community must be encouraged and empowered to stand firm and strong against criminals. There should be protection and reward covertly for whistleblowers against criminals living in the community.
“Special courts should be created to deal promptly with cases of banditry, kidnapping, ransome demanding and unlawful carrying of weapons.
“Let the slogan be: Security is the responsibility of all Nigerians.”
Gumi also extended an invitation to Obasanjo to visit Kaduna with a view to continuing the discourse.
