By Sahel Reporters, Abuja
Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has expressed deep concern over the escalating violence in the North-Central region, accusing the Bola Tinubu-led administration of abandoning the zone to bloodshed.
Atiku lamented that states such as Kwara, once regarded as safe, have now become hotspots of banditry and kidnappings. He also cited Niger State, where militants have attacked military bases, killed soldiers, and even massacred worshippers in mosques.
Plateau and Benue, according to him, continue to suffer frequent mass burials while the Federal Government looks away.
The former Vice President disclosed that by May this year, barely two years into Tinubu’s presidency, over 10,000 lives had been lost in Northern states, with Benue State alone accounting for more than half of the deaths. He added that the killings have continued on a weekly basis, while the government remains indifferent.
Atiku described the development as a monumental failure in the government’s basic responsibility of securing lives and property. He accused the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) of diverting its energy into suppressing opposition voices rather than combating insecurity.
According to him, thugs, infiltrators, and hired hooligans have been deployed to break up political meetings in Kaduna, Kebbi, and Ogun states, while security forces either failed to act or unfairly blamed the victims. He alleged that the silence of the APC leadership on such incidents is evidence of complicity.
Warning against the dangers of violence in politics, Atiku stated that any politician who resorts to violence to gain power is desperate, unpopular, and a threat to democracy.
He further called on the Nigeria Police Force to remember its constitutional responsibility, stressing that the institution is funded by taxpayers, not the APC. “Your duty is to remain neutral, fair, and constitutional. Anything less is a betrayal of public trust,” Atiku declared.
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