Trouble is looming for Lieut-Gen. Azubuike Ihejirika who was dropped on Thursday as Chief of Army Staff.
The Northern Elders Forum (NEF) threatened yesterday to drag him before the International Court of Justice (ICJ) at the Hague for alleged killing of defenceless civilians in Bama, Borno State by soldiers of the Joint Task Force (JTF).
Six others will face a similar charge, the NEF said, just as the Northern Traditional Rulers Council called on the Federal Government to address cases of imbalance in the country and implement the report of the report of the Presidential Committee on Dialogue and Peaceful Resolution of the Conflict in the North.
The Northern Elders accused Ihejirika of serially killing civilians in Bama and Giwa Barracks.
The forum,according to Prof Ango Abdulahi, its spokesman, came to this conclusion on the evidence of two committees of legal and security experts it set up to “investigate the details of the gruesome use of force against unarmed civilians in Bama and other parts of Borno State.”
He said: “At our meeting in Kaduna on the 15th January, 2014, we received the reports of the two committees on Security and Legal Matters, regarding extra-judicial killings by soldiers in Bama and the act of strangulating civilians in Giwa Barracks using an underground detention centre, while depositing the corpses in hospital.
“The Forum has therefore resolved to harmonise the reports of the two committees, preparatory to filing a case of extra-judicial killings by the Nigerian Army under the then Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant-General Azubuike Ihejirika and six others. The reports will be harmonised at our emergency meeting in Abuja on Wednesday the 22nd of January 2014 for further action”.
He did not name the six others the forum claimed participated in the alleged killings.
The Bama incident occurred on Tuesday May,7,2013 when suspected members of Boko Haram unleashed terror on residents, many of whom were killed.
The casualties included 13 officers of the Nigeria Prisons Service who were killed during a raid on the Bama prisons by the terrorists.
About 105 inmates of the prisons were set free by the insurgents.
The army authorities said at the time that the terrorists who carried out the attack wore military fatigue and were armed with high calibre arms and ammunition.
Twenty-one of the invaders were said to have been killed by soldiers and many others were arrested. Recovered from them were four vehicles, 14 weapons, 12 IEDS, assorted ammunition, several RPG tubes and bombs.
The army lost two of its personnel while six policemen, four civilians, including three children and a woman also died.
President Jonathan on Thursday replaced all the service chiefs 24 hours after they joined him in marking the Armed Force Remembrance Day.
Dropped with Gen Ihejirika were Admiral Ola Ibrahim (Chief of Defence Staff) and Vice Admiral Dele Ezeoba (Chief of Naval Staff).Air Marshall Alex Badeh was elevated from Chief of Air Staff to Chief of Defence Staff.
Soldiers were deployed by the military authorities on the directive of the federal government to stop the insurgency in parts of the North by the Islamic sect, Boko Haram.
President Jonathan imposed a state of emergency on Adamawa, Borno and Yobe states last May when previous efforts to check the insurgency failed.The state of emergency was to last for six months in the first instance.
It was extended in November after the acts of terrorism by the sect failed to subside.
On their part, the Northern Traditional Rulers, in a communiqué at the end of a meeting in Kaduna yesterday, said that the security of every nation is predicated on justice and fair play, pointing out that some interest groups are using religion and ethnicity to bring about divisions within the society to the detriment of the development of Nigeria.
In the communiqué signed by the Emir of Birnin Gwari, Alhaji Zubair Jibril Maigwari, the traditional rulers alleged that some “divisive elements from within and outside the North were causing animosity and distrust amongst the different communities in the North thereby weakening the hitherto strong bond of unity that existed in the region before and during the First Republic”.
They commended the government for the proposed National Dialogue describing it as a positive attempt to give Nigerians of different opinions the opportunity of coming together to chart a new course for the nation.
They stressed that no meaningful development is possible where there is prevalence of poverty, illiteracy and general insecurity amongst the people, pointing out that some sections of the North are complaining of imbalances in the political and economic opportunities given to them in relation to what obtains in other parts of the country.
The royal fathers also alleged that some interest groups are using religion and ethnicity to bring about divisions within the society to the detriment of the development of the nation, while some others are mounting undue pressure on traditional rulers to be partisan at the expense of their position as fathers to all.
They asked Nigerians to remain steadfast and resist attempt by any interest group to divide them with religion and or ethnicity, and the three tiers of government to accord priority attention to the provision of sound and qualitative education at all levels, concentrate on youth and women empowerment as a way of achieving economic prosperity, and honestly confront the issue of insecurity in the country.
They advised the Federal Government to implement the report of the Presidential Committee on Dialogue and Peaceful Resolution of security challenges in the North with a view to giving Nigerians confidence in the effort to restore peace and security to the North and Nigeria as a whole.
They hailed the National Assembly for its courage in passing the bill Against Same Sex Marriage and President Goodluck Jonathan for signing same into law, in spite of International pressure against doing so.
Can igbo elders also take Gowon to world court?
ReplyDeleteNorthern elders should go and bury your heads in shame.
ReplyDeleteYou want to take the former CAS to ICJ for what? When you all obviously cannot tame the actions of your Boko Haram, a sect of Islam who has been destroying life and properties since the year of our Lord 2009.
All the muslim preachers and leaders, religious scholars, Emirs could not find a way of curbing the acts of Boko Haram and here you are talking of suing someone who in his official capacity was doing his job.
You all should truly be ashamed of yourselves, looking for someone to offload your incapabilities unto.
If It's easy, why haven't you all done something about it for the past Four years.
You all should shot the hell up and bury your heads in shame -Nonsense
Can igbo elders also take Gowon to world court?
ReplyDeleteOk, I guess the Igbos' should equally take Gowon and the corpse of Awolowo to Hague. I guess its time that this contraption called Nigeria should just disperse.
ReplyDeleteTotally agree with the Northern Elders stand in fact not only the former COAS but president Jonathan should be tried at the Hague too so as serve as a lesson to others leaders that want to abuse power.
ReplyDeleteArrant nonsense from so-called northern elders. Odi and Zaki Ibiam should take Obasanjo and his then military chiefs to Hague too. Umuechem and Ogoni should take Babangida, corpse of Abacha and their military chiefs to Hague too. Confused northern elders, these group of people were the same individuals while in power in nigeria refused to help their people. Deprived their people. Now they shifting blames to GEJ. All of them who form northern elders were former govt authorities who failed to do anything for the north. They are now crying wolf. Senseless people. Ihejirika did excellent and courageous work many general would not have achieved. Kudos to him and team.
ReplyDeleteThat's good, former chief of Army suppose to be jail.
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DeleteNaija...... going going? ur guess is as gud as mine! Northern 'elders' una gud morni ooooooooh.(by 6pm)
ReplyDeleteThose northern elders that at least enabled the creation of these muslim killers thinking they can ginger the southern president are now crying because it has blown back in their faces. Where they not part of the people that supported genocide during the biafran war in the name of one nigeria. Abi you don tire for one nigeria? The south is feeding your people that you have been supressing their development for decades and you are not even grateful.
ReplyDeletePls GENERAL SANI ABACHA should also be summon 2 come and answer querries about the innocent people he elliminated, & OBASANJO too will not be left out.
ReplyDeleteIt's also adviceable for the northern elders to summon sani abacha back from his ancestors to come and account for innocent lives he wasted during his regime as the president of our dear nation.
ReplyDeleteWho will take bokoharam to court with those ones they are killing? Uselsess people they are animals they even get mouth to talk vampires
ReplyDeleteKai it has truly confirmed the bunch of funny elders in the north.This elders are really idle
ReplyDeleteIt may be a good idea. This will bring to Hague, the so-called Northern elders and Boko Haram. Hopefully ICJ will prove the link between the two groups, find them guilty and jail there in Hague. This will end BH in Nigeria!
ReplyDeleteHaba,Elders indeed. The Patrotic,Gallant and professional officer will face war crime and Boko Haram will go free abi. Haba elders ko elders ni
ReplyDeleteNEF , for a very long time in this country you have rubbished yourself and for your information your empty threat will remain with you .The machinery you invented to make Nigeria un-governable has given you a little impact of the much other Nigerians got .
ReplyDelete