A group, Kaduna State Patriot and Good Governance Forum, has called on citizens of Kaduna State and Nigerians to rally together over the Tudun Biri bomb mishap and find a way to support the victims rather than seek parochial gains by politicising the incident.
Reacting to the N33 billion law suit allegedly instituted by one Dalhatu Salihu against the federal government over the mishap, and a statement where the Southern Kaduna for Peace and Unity Forum berated Kaduna State government over its handling of the situation, the group’s president, Awwal Abdullahi Aliyu asked the Tudun Biri community to be careful of whom they relate with to avoid falling into the hands of those that have nothing good for them.
They also cautioned those who want to benefit from the conflict to desist, stressing, „We are aware of a law suit filed by one Mukhtar Usman, counsel to one Alhaji Dalhatu Salihu, who is claiming to have done so on behalf of the villagers in which they are demanding for apology in three national dailies and N33 billion compensation. While it is the villagers‘ right to seek legal redress.
„We wish to caution them from falling into the trap of idle lawyers who don‘t genuinely care about their predicament but rather, are more concerned about dispossessing them of the little assistance they have gotten from good-spirited individuals.
„While acknowledging the strides made in addressing this unfortunate incident by different groups and stakeholders, we want to urge lawyers and politicians to refrain from politicising the situation. It is crucial that we maintain a united front and work towards resolving these challenges collectively, rather than exploiting them for personal or political gain. They should also be wary of taking briefs from urban jobbers who don‘t have a direct connection with the victims they claim to be fighting for“.
The group said it is sad that despite concerted efforts by the state government, some individuals operating under the pseudonym of Southern Kaduna for Peace and Unity Forum, „instead of commending the government for rallying support for the community, they tagged it as ‘utterly selfish’ pressure on the Federal Government of Nigeria to rebuild the community. After listing the donations made to the community, the group asked the governor to make public what had been given to the community.
„It is public knowledge that the donation of the members of the House of Representatives to the community will be in the form of infrastructure such as classrooms, clinic, community hall, etc, and not cash. Since the characters behind the piece seem too lazy to read or listen to their radios, but are swift in making a hasty conclusion, they end up embarrassing themselves in public. Those genuinely working for peace and unity of the state, will always see injury to one person as injury to all and not resort to us over them approach. We are optimistic that the dark days of division in our state along ethnic or religious line is over.
„The effort of the governor to engage all relevant stakeholders in the state through citizen engagement has put an end to the business of ‘conflictpreneurs’. We wish to encourage all stakeholders to prioritize the well-being of the affected community and support the government‘s efforts in providing relief and assistance to those affected by the attack. It is through unity and cooperation that we can effectively tackle the root causes of such incidents and prevent their recurrence in the future,“ Aliyu said.
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