Buhari orders security agents to end attacks on Taraba communities
Mathew Dadiya
President Muhammadu Buhari has condemned the current attacks on the people of Kona in Taraba State, and ordered security forces to end the violence immediately and decisively.
The President warned that attacks on innocent people in the name of revenge or whatever motives would not be tolerated by the government.
Buhari gave the order on Wednesday through his Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu.
President Buhari warmed that no group of people has the right to surround innocent people and unleash murderous violence on them.
According to him, resorting to self-help is an invitation to anarchy which in turn will make everyone unsafe.
He noted that in a cycle of violence characterised by revenge and counter-revenge, there are no winners.
The President said that in a state of permanent hostilities, people undermine not only law and order, but also their own ability to conduct their everyday businesses in peace.
“I always wonder how people can conduct their businesses in the absence of peace and tranquility because violence ruins everything and leaves the people worse off,” he stressed.
He appealed to all Nigerians to embrace peace, adding that it was difficult to build a virile nation where hate and intolerance dominate the people’s minds.
“It’s easier to destroy than to build. People should count the economic costs of this violence to their own lives,” President Buhari added.
The President warned that a situation where community leaders abandon their responsibilities and allow thugs to set the agenda is dangerous for peace and security in the country.
He criticised leaders who publicly preach the virtues of peace, but privately promote hate and intolerance which ultimately culminate in violent destruction of life and property.
