Nigerian Former Head of State, Gen. Yakubu Gowon, on Wednesday, advised Nigerian
youths to avoid anything that threatened the sovereignty and unity of
the country. Gen. Yakubu Gowon (retd), has cautioned
Federal Government and security agencies against applying excessive
force against ethnic agitators and restive youths, The Sun newspaper
reports.
Gowon, who was delivering a keynote address at the national seminar on “Unity in diversity”
organised by the Department of State Services (DSS), also advised
nationalities agitating for restructuring or outright secession to avoid
the mistake of the past, which plunged the country into a three-year
civil war.
He warned that no nation has ever survived multiple wars in its lifetime.
Notwithstanding the advice, the DSS vowed to deal with any group or
individuals pursuing divisive and separatist activities that threaten
national security.
According to the Director General of the Service (DGSS), Laval
Daura, the agency would not fold its arms and watch agitators tear the
country apart.
“I would like to restate the position of the Service that all
groups or individuals who are bent on pursuing their divisive and
separatist activities that threaten national security, to think again.
“The security and law enforcement agencies will not sit by idly
while they continue on their activities that put at risk the lives and
properties of law-abiding and innocent Nigerians. We will deploy the
full amalgam of the security infrastructure to deal with subsisting and
emerging developments capable of endangering lives and properties as
well as our corporate existence as a nation.
“Globally, the security agencies form the core of institutions
that give backbone to statehood. Consequently, every activity that
represents an existential threat to the nation is a direct challenge to
the security agencies, which must be responded to. The security sector
views the unity of this nation as a sacred trust and this task we will
do our utmost to meet,” he said.
While Gowon, who was the chairman of the ceremony lamented that the
various agitations were scaring foreign investors from coming to
Nigeria, he, however, commended the Northern Youth Forum for backing
down on the October 1 ultimatum to Igbo to leave the region.
He noted further that the various political agitations and
multiplicity of calls for regional autonomy and clamour for
restructuring of the federation or outright secession of certain region
from the country had given birth to emergency nationalist agitators.
“This call is not in the interest of democracy which recognises
the right of individuals on issues….My view is that all Nigerians and
people should love their country. Rather than needlessly heat up the
polity and scare international investors, agitators need to pause and
ponder on the implications of a strategy of threatening the country.
“We need to think of the danger our actions poses to the
innocent and law abiding citizens. Agitators or whatever name they go
by, need to read up history that no nation survives multiple civil wars.
The life of the people is worth more than whatever profit they hope to
make out of the business of hate and sheer murmuring.
“Agitators are better off not pursuing personal interest just
as the Federal Government will do well not to use any force on these
agitators except only as the last resort for and in defence of security
and the peace of the nation.”
He lauded the DSS for championing the course of the dialogue on how best to preserve the unity of the country.
“I want to say that the service has done exceptionally well.
Your operations have made it possible over the years to nip in the bud
several acts or provocations that otherwise would have led to deeper
crisis in the country. Let me reiterate that Nigeria as a nation is
stronger together than chip off the block.
“There is unity and strength in our diversity and we should be
accommodated in unity not by force but more so by reason. We must
believe in the indivisibility of this country as citizens. East or west,
north or south, we are one. We must believe in one Nigeria in order to
make it good and better for all,” he said.
He specifically charged Nigerian youths to ensure that that the nation’s unity was not jeopardized. “Let
me use this opportunity to advice Nigerian youths that the unity of
this country must prevail above some of the hard talks and
uncomplimentary remarks coming from them.
“I urge the youths not to allow the situation that happened in
the past to happen again. They should avoid anything that will bring the
suffering of innocent people because of unnecessary demands.
“Don’t forget that you are the future of this country. You must
work together to ensure you build a country that all of us would like
to see,” he noted.
Speaking earlier, DSS boss, Daura, noted that centrifugal forces
have been at work in our great nation, trying their utmost to pull the
nation apart.
“They have vainly leveraged on our ethnic, geographical and
religious cleavages (the key factors that constitute our very rich
tapestry of cultural treasure and diversity) to ignite hate speeches and
stoke ethnic cum religious tensions, nationwide.
“Sundry youth groups and individuals (with diverse subversive
agendas) have latched unto this latest manifestation of ethno-religious
divisions to afflict the national stage and consciousness with their
atavistic and retrogressive utterances as well as infantile threats.”
He remarked that hate utterances and threats have spawned
considerable anxiety among law-abiding and ordinary citizens residing in
different parts of the country.
“It is noteworthy that numerous well-meaning Nigerians of all
religious and ethnic backgrounds have weighed-in with positive messaging
to assuage the resultant anxieties of the activities of these divisive
groups.
“This notwithstanding, and given the high toxicity of ethnic
and religious evocations, the security sector has remained sufficiently
concerned with a view to evolving and developing adequate
countermeasures to deal with these threats.
“The acting president has valiantly led the charge to put the
naysayers to shame and to reassure Nigerians of their safety everywhere.
He has also sought to reassure Nigerians of the infinite possibilities
of Project Nigeria and the imperative for all Nigerians to keep faith
with the nation and in the commitment of President Muhammadu Buhari’s
administration to deliver on its socio-economic programmes.”
However, Daura identified bad governance and graft as major triggers of the ethnic agitations.
“These governance failures have been amply implicated in the
massive unemployment and very poor socio-economic conditions across the
land, which feeds and spread frustrations, anger and agitations,
nationwide.
“There is no gainsaying the fact that if we get governance
right, we will have more salutary outcomes in terms of security and
other contemporary challenges.”