HURIWA endorses modified emergency rule extension

A top flight civil society organization, the Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria, has backed President Goodluck Jonathan’s decision to extend emergency rule in the North East states of Adamawa, Borno and Yobe, but prayed that the emergency rule be modified to make it total state of Marshal Law.
Besides, the group sees the recent decision of the administration of the Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Natanyahu, to join international military effort to end terrorism in Nigeria and rescue the over 200 kidnapped girls as salutary.
The rights group has therefore urged President Jonathan to modify his presidential request for extension of emergency rule currently before the Senate because it does not make any difference for government to adopt the same kind of emergency rule that has failed to defeat the phenomenal threats to lives and property posed by the armed Islamic extremists, Boko Haram, in the last one year.
The group said: “Adopting the same strategy and style that has failed abysmally to curb the murderous activities of the armed Islamic extremists for another six months is simply a waste of scarce national resources but what is needed is a change in strategy and nature of the war against insurgency that would be effective, efficient and result-oriented.”
In a statement by its National Coordinator, Comrade Emmanuel Onwubiko, and the National Media Affairs Director, Zainab Yusuf, HURIWA said government must change its counter-terrorism strategies and direct the hierarchy of the nation’s military to weed out the many moles within their ranks that are undermining ongoing effort to defeat terrorism.
HURIWA said there is nothing undemocratic to implement total emergency for another six months with the technical assistance of the Special Forces from the international community to rid the North East of the ravaging scourge of violent extremism.
HURIWA added: “What is the essence of democracy if the government fails to effectively provide security of lives and property of the Nigerian citizenry? The primary duty of the Government of the Nigerian state is to provide the welfare and security of Nigerians and global citizens’ resident within the territorial entity of Nigeria.
“We completely support the Federal Government’s wise decision to seek the extension by the National Assembly of the state of emergency in the North East for another six months. But we urge the President to modify his prayer so as to declare total state of emergency as one effective strategy of seeking comprehensive defeat of the atrocities committed by the violent Islamic extremists.”
HURIWA also warned against undermining ongoing court proceedings against arrested masterminds of the murderous atrocities undertaken over the couple of years by Boko Haram because anything done by the government to deny justice to the thousands of victims of these killings by the armed insurgents in the name of negotiation is unconstitutional, null and void.
HURIWA stated further: “We are by the same manner, commending the President and his federal administration for accepting the counter terrorism assistance from the State of Israel which undeniably is one of the best global anti-terrorism leaders.”