Archbishop Berates Government On Nigeria’s Rising Insecurity

The Archbishop of Enugu Ecclesiastical Province, Anglican Communion, Most Rev Emmanuel Chukwuma, Friday, berated governments at all levels for their inability to curtail the rising insecurity in Nigeria.

Bishop Chukwuma spoke in Enugu against the recent massacre in Plateau State where hundreds of unarmed civilians were killed by suspected bandits.

He said, “Nigeria is in a state of gunpowder. Governments continuously assure us of security, but all to no avail. Former President Muhammadu Buhari assured us of security, but still, there was no result. The killers operate unabated.

“Unfortunately, our military personnel are being promoted to Generals, and yet they cannot outwit ordinary insurgents. It seems some are benefitting from Nigeria’s insecurity situations.”

He said it was sad that despite huge sums of budgetary allocations to security, there is not much to show for it.

According to him, “There has not been a corresponding result considering huge sums of money being allotted to security in our country.”

On the call for private individuals to bear arms for self-defence, the clergyman said, “Many a time, pomp actions are impounded on our roads. Who is importing them, and what happens after they were impounded? How much have our security personnel detected insurgents before they strike? Government should justify huge amounts being allotted to security. If things continue this way, Nigerians should be allowed to carry arms to defend themselves.”

He also decried the lack of commitment by the Nigeria Police in tracking kidnappers. In his words, “There are cases that you contact police in kidnap matters, believing they will be proactive. But they are afraid. The option is the vigilante groups, who often track these kidnappers. Army does not have enough intelligence to track these kidnappers.

“Governors receive security votes. They should fund security operations in their states. That is the essence of security votes. Divisional police officers are not well funded, and they end up sending their boys to highways to extort motorists. Their vehicles are dilapidated.

“If we can win at ECOMOG, why can’t we win local insurgency? In that case, with proper profiling, individuals carrying arms for self-defence isn’t wrong. Some herders bear these arms openly.”