Students protesting
- Demand a public enquiry on circumstances surrounding a supposed report on the claims of the military awareness of impending attack.
We, the Northern States Christian Elders Forum(NOSCEF) are saddened and outraged by the extension of the scourge of Boko Haram, to yet another group of defenceless and innocent young girls.
We the Northern States Christian Elders Forum (NOSCEF), demand an urgent, public and independent inquiry into the circumstances surrounding a report from Amnesty International, which claims that military commanders in Damboa and Maiduguri,were aware of an impending attack from armed men seen driving in convoy....hours before the attack on the school took place.
In addition, we demand that the government and military authorities set up a mechanism to provide the families of the abducted girls with regular updates on the status of the search. Government must also provide adequate resources for the Chibok community to rebuild and must restore security to Borno State and the other areas of North-East Nigeria affected by the insurgency.
The wide publicity given to the abduction of hundreds of girls from school in Chibok has no doubt helped to bring the suffering of millions of Christians and Muslims in North Eastern Nigeria, to the forefront of national and international discourse.
We must draw attention to the fact that Abubakar Shekau, the leader of Boko Haram restated in his latest video that Christians remain their primary targets. However, we acknowledge that manyMuslims, whether for rejecting the extremist and violent beliefs of Boko Haram or just for cohabiting with Christians, have been targeted, maimed and killed.
Every life is sacred. Everyone should be free to believe and practice their faith without fear, let or hindrance. In Northern Nigeria and across Nigeria, we must hold these beliefs firmly, live by them and use the might of government to protect the sanctity of life and freedom of worship. Therefore, we are gratified to see the outpouring of condemnation for Boko Haram and public support for the victims and their families, across the divides of faith, ethnicity and nationality. We believe that this is as it should be and as it should have been all along. In the parable of the Good Samaritan, our Lord Jesus Christ taught us that our differences do not preclude us from good neighbourliness and being our brother’s keeper.
We salute the courage and goodwill of all those who have called for the release of the girls of Chibok. We acknowledge the efforts of the organisers of various initiatives to give wide publicity to the atrocities of Boko Haram and compel government action, particularly the "BringBackOurGirls" campaign. This initiative comprising Christians, Muslims and those of other faiths or none at all, across ethnic and gender divides from all over Nigeria and abroad, shows what is possible in an atmosphere of mutual respect, tolerance and goodwill.
We call on the Government of Nigeria to leave no stone unturned in the search and recovery of the kidnapped girls, reuniting them with their families and assisting in their rehabilitation and recovery from the brutal ordeal that they have been subjected to. We also call on our President to bring the resources and might of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, with the international assistance that is now being offered by friendly nations, to bring the scourge of Boko Haram to an end.The Government must enforce the rule of law and stop Boko Haram to ensure that every Nigerian’s right to religious practice is protected equally under the law.
May God comfort all those who are in sorrow for their missing loved ones and bring them back home safely. May God hear the cry of the innocent blood that has been shed by Boko Haram in Northern Nigeria. Our God says, “To me belongeth vengeance, and recompence; their foot shall slide in due time: for the day of their calamity is at hand, and the things that shall come upon them make haste.” (Deut 32:35 KJV)
May God bless the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
Philips Olaiya is a public analyst
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