Gyang Bere, Jos
The head of Tarayer Ekklesiyoyin Kiristi A Nigeria, (TEKAN) a conglomeration of Churches in Northern Nigeria, Rev. Caleb Ahima, has urged the Federal Government to take decisive steps to identify and deport all Fulani herdsmen who migrated illegally into the country to avert further killings of farmers.
Rev. Ahima disclosed this on Tuesday while briefing journalists after an emergency meeting of Christian leaders at the TEKAN headquarters Jos, Plateau State.
He urged the Federal Government to retrieve arms and ammunitions in possession of all persons irrespective of ethnicity or religion in the country, and to arrest herdsmen who are attacking rural communities, particularly in the middlebelt of the country.
“TEKAN observed that the Federal Government has admitted that some of the criminals killing Nigerians are illegal aliens to Nigeria. TEKAN calls on Federal Government to deport all such persons, particularly herdsmen who migrated illegally into Nigeria.” the Reverend stated.
“TEKAN calls on the Federal Government to rehabilitate and resettle all IDPs to their respective home lands. The Federal Government should ensure that all arms are retrieved from all persons who are not parts of the Nigerian Police Force. Arms should not be retrieved from few while others still keep and use theirs.”
He said TEKAN mourns daily as it has been burying its members who were violently killed by Fulani herdsmen, expressing disappointment in the handling of the crisis by the Buhari administration.
He condemned in totality the kidnapping of the female students of the Dapchi Secondary School and urged government to ensure the girls regain their freedom.
The Reverend stressed that the Federal Government should also do everything possible to recover the other Chibok Girls still in the hands of their captors, saving their parents from their present trauma.