Governor of Kaduna State , Nasir El-Rufai, has ordered the arrest of
people behind the three-month quit notice given to Igbos to leave the
North.
The issued statement signed by his spokesman, Samuel Aruwan, El-Rufai
strongly condemned, “the inciting, hate speech delivered by some
self-appointed ‘northern youths.”
El-Rufai said, ”the Kaduna State Government has directed that its
Ministry of Justice should prepare charges and prosecute the signatories
and anyone complicit in arranging this egregious assault on the rights
of fellow citizens.”
The Governor condemned the action of the groups, and assured every
resident of the state that, “nobody can tamper with their freedom to
reside where they choose.”
The full statement reads:
“The Kaduna State Government condemns in
the strongest terms the press statement by some self-appointed “northern
youths” that threatened the safety and property of our citizens of Igbo
extraction. Government assures every resident of our state that their
constitutional and human rights to live peacefully and own property
wherever they choose is sacrosanct. Even people who may feel unhappy
about irresponsible comments or actions that have taken place in other
states must know that two wrongs cannot make a right.“The Kaduna State Government believes in and will uphold the right of
every Nigerian to live safely and develop his/her full potentials
within its territory.“Reckless disregard for the rights of other citizens drips through
the press statement by these “northern youths” who have chosen to use
the discourse around restructuring to promote their own agenda of hate,
division and incitement. This sort of opportunists cannot be allowed to
distort debate, or turn it into a pretext for a barely-disguised agenda
of displacement and dispossession of some citizens.“We will not tolerate such irresponsible statements and conduct in
our state. The statement issued by the “northern youths” violates the
laws of Kaduna State. Therefore, the Kaduna State Government has
directed that its Ministry of Justice should prepare charges and
prosecute the signatories and anyone complicit in arranging this
egregious assault on the rights of fellow citizens.“Preparatory to prosecution, the police have been directed to
immediately arrest, interrogate the signatories to the statement and
investigate all the circumstances and persons that may be implicated in
the matter.“The Kaduna State Government urges all residents to ignore the
threats from the “northern youths”. We are in contact with the
leadership of the Igbo community in Kaduna, and we delighted to say that
this community, like all our other communities, believes in the
strength of the constitutional order to protect all citizens.“KDSG wishes to encourage all our people to celebrate the diversity
with which the Almighty has blessed us, to continue to shun agents of
division, and to stand firm in upholding a common humanity. Everyone has
a right to live in peace and harmony.”