Northern Elders Forum, NEF, have said they were aware of alleged attempts by some politicians interested in contesting the 2023 presidential election to weaken the North on many fronts in the aftermath of #EndSARS protest.

The Forum also said it had credible information about an alleged plan to force restructuring on the North under the guise of ending the agitation against bad governance in the country.

NEF’s Director, Publicity and Advocacy, Dr. Hakeem Baba-Ahmed, in a statement on Wednesday night, said that the North was capable of identifying and protecting its own interests, and would neither be blackmailed nor intimidated into accepting restructuring as a means to higher standards of justice, better security, and progress for all Nigerians.

He said, “The Forum is aware of attempts to weaken the North by interests that believe that this is their only path to success in the 2023 elections. 

“These interests should know that the North will neither be blackmailed nor intimidated, and we are quite capable of identifying and protecting our own interests. 

“Some of these interests seek to exploit our plural nature and deepen what they see as divisions. They will fail, because northerners know that what unites us is a lot stronger than what divides us. 

“Others create the impression that the North is opposed to the country being restructured along lines that will improve the quality of our union, ensure higher standards of justice, better security and progress for all Nigerians. These too will fail. 

“The North is ready to discuss all elements of our co-existence, but will not be stampeded into submitting to other interests who feel uncomfortable with a strong and united North, or blackmailing us to adopt their versions of our future.”

NEF also said it was disappointed that last week’s meeting in Kaduna by Northern Governors, high-level federal government officials and traditional rulers barely made mention of the insecurity of communities within the region

The elders said the focus of the meeting on the potential for abuse of social media platforms and the possibility of hoodlums hijacking the #EndSARS protest in many cities of the south was uncalled for.

Baba-Ahmed said, “That meeting missed a historic opportunity to acknowledge that northern communities are in dire need of improved security, and to give firm and specific assurances that our leaders care about northern lives and will take steps to protect us.     

“We took particular note of the pivotal roles of governors and traditional rulers at that meeting, leaders who are thoroughly familiar with daily assaults by insurgents, bandits and kidnappers on northerners. 

“These are leaders who should have understood the high hopes which northerners attached to a meeting of that nature in Kaduna, and they should understand that the impression left by that meeting and the frenzy of activities in parts of the south involving some northern leaders to show sympathy for damage from hoodlums leaves only one conclusion in the mind of northerners: northern lives do not matter.”

The Forum noted the efforts of President Muhammadu Buhari to improve engagements with northern leaders, and  hoped that these will not be public relations stunts in place of real efforts aimed at improving the security of the region.

“The Forum advises the President and Governors to engage a broad spectrum of leaders, elders and the young  in the North to contribute to an appreciation of the dangers which our communities live with on a daily basis, and  enlist them as partners in the search for solutions,” the statement added.

Meanwhile, the Northern elders paid tribute to its Director-General, Dr Yima Sen, who died recently, describing his services to the Forum as invaluable.

Following being listed in the criminal complaint filed by rights activist, Kenechukwu Okeke for their role in the #EndSARS protests , some people listed have reacted via their social media pages.

Recall that Okeke on Tuesday sued Sam Adeyemi, Aisha Yesufu and seveeral Celebrities before a Chief Magistrate Court in Abuja for their involvement in the #EndSARS protests.

In the suit Okeke asked that the defendants be brought to justice for allegedly destroying his properties by enabling the protests.

Also listed in the suit are musicians Burna Boy, Tiwa Savage, Davido and Folarin Falana popularly known as Falz. Others are social media comedians, Debo Adebayo fondly addressed as Mr Macaroni and Maryam Akpaokagi also known as Taoma.

Entertainers such as Peter and Paul Okoye, Innocent Idibia, also known as TuFace, Bankole Wellington popularly known as Banky W, Tiwa Savage, Michael Ajereh (Don Jazzy) and Yemi Alade also made the list.

“Who sent this guy to file this frivolous lawsuit?” Sam Adeyemi wrote on Twitter.

Activist Aisha Yesufu tweeted: “My joy is that they got my name right and I am number one on the list. Thank you #EndSars protesters. I am honoured to be part of you all.

However, legal practitioner, Ayo Sogunro, wondered why he had not been named properly.

Dr. Chinonso Egemba, popularly known as Aproko Doctor, rubbished Okeke’s lawsuit.

Rights activist, Mike Ozekhome(SAN) has said by arresting, prosecuting and freezing the bank accounts of #EndSARS protesters, the Federal Government was defeating the purpose of setting up states’ panels of inquiry into the youths’ protests that swept across the country.

Ozekhome said by taking such steps, the government had pronounced #EndSARS youths guilty even before the panels made their findings.

In the wake of the #EndSARS protests, through which youths asked for reforms, including better welfare for policemen, security agents went after the peaceful protests’ promoters, with some saying their bank accounts were blocked by the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN.

While justifying what the government did, on Channels TV programme, Politics Today, Sunday,  Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Mallam Garba Shehu, said those who promoted the protests and allowed it degenerate into chaos must be made to face the full wrath of the law.

Shehu added that the country had been harmed by the #EndSARS protests.

His words: “Everyone witnessed the massive looting of public and private properties, particularly in Lagos, Calabar, Plateau, Taraba and some other states, even the FCT.

“Now, the laws of the country must be allowed to decide, to rule on wrongdoing on the part of just anybody.

“I am not particular about any celebrity or promoter, but this country has been harmed enormously and people should be prepared to account for what they did.”

Ozekhome’s questions for FG

However, faulting the Federal Government’s moves to prosecute the promoters of the #EndSARS protests, Ozekhome said if the government had nothing to hide, it would allow the various panels of inquiries finish their work and present their findings for discussion at the national level.

Ozekhome said: “If the government at the centre is taking this kind of decision, what happens to the various panels and commissions set up by state governments?

“What will be the consequence of the findings of those commissions of inquiries? Will the government not be unduly interfering with the activities of those panels by obviously working from the answer to the question?

“Will those panels not be readily duty-bound to agree with the position of the Federal Government in a country where all governors defer to the President like in a monarchy?

“These are some of the questions that state governments have to ask before taking further steps.

“If it has nothing to hide, the Federal Government should make haste slowly and allow the various states to do their work because we are operating a federal system of government.

“At the end of the various panel sittings, when the governors meet at their state council meetings, they can then present the finding and discuss the issue at the national level.

“But if the government begins to take proactive steps such as blocking the account of the protest sponsors, arresting the protesters and arraigning them, then the government has already pronounced them guilty even before the panels make their findings,” Mike Ozekhome added.

Two members of the Coalition Against COVID-19 (CACOVID) have clarified the delay in the distribution of palliatives by state governments.

CACOVID is a private sector-led organization established to assist the government in combating the Coronavirus disease in the Nigeria.

CACOVID members, Mr Osita Nwasinobi and Dr Sola Adeduntan, in two separate documents made available to the media on Monday in Abuja, called for calm among members of the public.

Nwasinobi, in a document he authored for CACOVID members, said that the coalition had been working with the minister of the FCT and the Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF), to procure and distribute food items to Nigerians.

He said that they were working to distribute the food items for about two million, mostly vulnerable families across the 774 local government areas in the country, explaining that CACOVID members decided to procure the food directly from the manufacturers, to avoid a distortion of prices in the market.

Nwasinobi stressed: “The sheer scale of this nationwide food programme and the timing of the orders and deliveries, coincided with the lockdowns and reduced movement across the country.

“This compelled CACOVID to roll out distribution in a staggered manner, with states classified in three timed phases, to enable orderly delivery to the needy.

“The food package was designed such that each of the nearly two million vulnerable families received 10kg bag of rice, five-kilogram bag of garri/maize flour/semolina, one carton of pasta, two cartons of noodles, five kilograms of sugar and one kilogram of salt.”

He added that due to the large size of the order and the production cycle required to meet the demand, there was delay in delivering the food items and thus delays in distribution by state governments

“For instance, rice had to be milled, semolina and maize flour had to be processed, noodles and pasta had to be manufactured, and sugar had to be refined. As such, the first deliveries could not start until June.

“However, as at October 2020, a sizable portion of the items had been delivered but yet to be distributed by the governors,” Nwasinobi said.

He said that while 28 states and the FCT had commenced distribution since early August, some could not as they were yet to receive complete deliveries of the items allotted to them and so state governments had been distributing the items at various paces.

In the interest of transparency and accountability, he pledged that CACOVID would, in due course, provide the full delivery schedule and flag-off dates by each state, stressing that KPMG Professional Services and NGF external auditors were also on the verge of completing the audit of all contributions from the donors, including a full list of all medical and food items procured with the CACOVID funds before the warehouses were attacked.

“It is very unfortunate that various states, including states that have concluded the distribution of their allocations, are seeing their warehouses and other premises being raided.”

Nwasinobi called for calm to allow states to proceed with their palliatives distribution peacefully, and for the public to disregard any unauthorized sources of information regarding the procurement and distribution of the palliatives.

Adeduntan, the Chief Executive Officer of First Bank PLC, in a letter addressed to “Sigma Chief, Old Chiefs and Loyalists” urged member to be wary of information on social media, saying that CACOVID had successfully provided health facilities, diagnostic kits and medications to all the states and the FCT.

The First Bank CEO said that CACCOVID also decided to provide food to 1.7 million mostly vulnerable families across the country but the challenge was how to purchase those items worth about N15 billion without driving inflation.

“We had to contract this out to various manufacturers and that took time for them to deliver the goods to us. It was only in September and early October that we handed the goods over to the various state governments and FCT.

“It is therefore a fallacy that the state governments or Dangote have hoarded those foodstuffs,” he explained. 

Residents of Lagos state have been warned against any form of planned protest, procession, or gathering under any guise in the state.

Police Public Relations Officer in the state, Mr Olumuyiwa Adejobi, conveyed the warning Thursday in a statement on behalf of the Lagos state Police command.

He said the police would resist any protest as the government and people of Lagos still nurture the wounds of the recent violence and destruction across the state, occasioned by the #EndSARS protest.

“The command wishes to inform the general public that based on intelligence gathering from relevant intelligence agencies, some unpatriotic elements or group of people have concluded plans to orchestrate another set of violence in the state, in furtherance to the recent violence, which has been analysed as dangerous and counterproductive,” the statement said.

“Premised on this, the command, therefore, wishes to warn any individuals, group of students or any groups who might want to stage any form of protest, either peaceful or violent, or gathering whatsoever, to desist as the police and other security agencies will collectively and tactically resist any security threats or threats to public peace which might be triggered by protest or protesters in Lagos State.”

According to Adejobi, the police command warns parents and guardians to discourage their children or wards from embarking on any protest in the state.

He added that the possibility of armed hoodlums hijacking such protests to cause grieve and pains like the recent past cannot be overlooked.

Adejobi therefore, urged law-abiding residents to ignore any call for protest and go about their lawful businesses.

He assured Lagosians that measures have been put in place to maintain law and order, as well as public safety across the length and breadth of the state.