The Coalition of Northern Group has said President Muhammadu Buhari will be held responsible if Fulani herdsmen in the Southern part of the country are killed.
The group said this in reaction to President Buhari’s directive that Fulani herdsmen should ignore the call by the Northern Elders Forum and CNG for them to return to the North in the wake of the tension that followed the killing of Funke Olakunrin, daughter of Afenifere leader, Pa Reuben Fasoranti, by suspected herdsmen.
The position of the group was contained in a statement by their spokesman, Abdul-Aziz Suleiman, on Thursday.
The CNG had in conjunction with the NEF called for the return of herdsmen to the North in the wake of the tension.
The statement by Suleiman on Thursday said: “Recall that on July 11th 2019 in response to reactions that trailed our earlier submissions, we issued a statement acknowledging the committed concern of the Northern Governors Forum and the Northern Elders Forum in bringing an end to the tensions instigated around the farmers’/ herders problems.
“In that response, we indicated our acceptance of the invitation for discussions by the leadership of the two forums as a result of which a meeting with the Northern elders was fixed for Tuesday, 15th July 2019.
“We went to the meeting with a prepared position which we presented to the leadership of Northern Elders Forum in which we highlighted the utterances made by the southern leaders including decisions taken by some notable political, religious and cultural leaders of the South.
“We capped our submission by pointing out the dangerous war bells sounded by the southern leaders that tended to instigate violence against the herders living in the South following the killing of the daughter of the Afenifere leader, Mrs. Olakunrin Fasoranti.
“We then politely called the attention of the elders to the imminent attack the Fulani were exposed to in the South while the federal authorities remained silent on the matter.
“We made a request to the elders by precisely saying that based on the our observations and the fact that the instigation of hatred against the Fulani persists, we feel obliged to advice the leadership of the Northern Elders Forum to consider calling on the Fulani to forego their right to live and flourish anywhere in the south and relocate to their various states in the north to ensure their safety noting the inherent return value of such denial.”
Suleiman said the Chairman of the Northern Elders Forum, Prof. Ango Abdullahi, responded by acknowledging the concern, saying: “We are worried about their wellbeing. If it is true that their safety can no longer be assured, we rather have them back in areas where their safety is guaranteed.
“The bottom line is that their safety is far more important than their stay there. This is a country we all wish to keep together and not at the expenses of other sections.”
He added: “Surprisingly, barely 24 hours after the story was published, two events took place almost simultaneously. Leaders of southern groups such as PANDEF, Afenifere, Ohanaeze Ndi Igbo and a certain Middle Belt Forum issued a joint statement tending to deny having made inflammatory remarks capable of instigating violence against the Fulani in the South or that the security of the herders in the South was not in danger as to have warranted concern from the North.”
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