DRAMA! AFTER Akpabio Said The Killers Of Soldiers May Not Be Nigerians; See How CSOs, Security Expert Reacted
Civil society organizations (CSOs) and a security expert have criticized Senate President Godswill Akpabio for attributing Thursday’ s killing of 16 military personnel in Delta State to foreign mercenaries. The troops were slain during a peace mission to the conflict- ridden communities of Okuoma and Okoloba.
Akpabio’ s remarks came during a Senate plenary session where a committee was established to investigate the circumstances surrounding the killings. He refrained from directly implicating the Niger Delta region but suggested investigating the involvement of foreign mercenaries.
Expressing dissent, Executive Director of the Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC) and Transparency International- Nigeria, Auwal Musa Rafsanjani, emphasized that criminals should be held accountable regardless of their origin. He denounced any attempt to downplay the severity of the crime.
Rafsanjani said, ” A criminal is a criminal irrespective of where he or she comes from. So, to support or to give a kind of soft landing to people who have carried out this barbaric and murder against serving security officials, is condemnable. ”
Similarly, Gad Peter, Executive Director of the CLEEN Foundation, cautioned against hasty conclusions by political leaders following such incidents. He called on Akpabio to substantiate his claim about foreign involvement to justify a potential response.
Peter said, “For Akpabio to say the people that killed those soldiers are foreigners means that he has information. So, he should provide the details of which nation invaded our country so that we can go to war with them for killing our soldiers.”
Tunde Salman, Team Lead/Convener of Good Governance Team Nigeria, condemned Akpabio’ s remarks as inappropriate and urged swift identification of the perpetrators.
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Emmanuel Onwubiko, National Coordinator of the Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA), criticized Akpabio’ s speculative stance, highlighting the need for evidence-based assertions rather than conjecture.
Security expert Haruna Garba questioned the basis of Akpabio’ s assertion, emphasizing the importance of awaiting investigation outcomes before making conclusive statements.
In essence, the consensus among CSOs and the security expert is that Akpabio’ s insinuation of foreign involvement lacks substantiation and risks diverting attention from the imperative of thorough investigation and justice for the slain military personnel. They advocate for a cautious approach by political leaders in addressing sensitive matters of national security, emphasizing the importance of evidence-based assertions over conjecture.