Lagos Can’t Be Peaceful When There’s Insurgency In Borno – Zulum

• White men, Asians, Africans, Muslims and Christians among Boko Haram

• I don’t support state police, says Zulum

Babagana Zulum, governor of Borno, says Lagos state is not impervious to the ripple devastating effects of terrorism that ravages the north eastern state.

For years on end, Borno state has find itself at the receiving end of vicious and nefarious attacks from Boko Haram insurgents with thousands killed and over two million people displaced.

Ekohotblog reports that the monstrous insurgents are seeking to establish an Islamic caliphate in Nigeria

Speaking at the 17th Gani Fawehinmi annual lecture in Lagos, Zulum said the security situation in Borno will undermine the peace in every part of the country, adding that all hands must be on deck to tackle the threat of terrorism.

Zulum also disclosed that Boko Haram gets massive support all over the world from those who are sympathetic to their cause, noting that the sect has  white men, Asians and Christians as members.

“I’m from Borno state, and many of our children are into Boko Haram. I’m not denying the fact. But again, they are being sponsored by many people across the world. Among Boko Haram, we have white men, Asians, Africans, Muslims and Christians,” he said.

“Throughout northern Nigeria, particularly Borno state, a committee is working on how to reform the Almajiri system of education. We want to streamline the non-formal and formal education sectors to avail those children basic literacy and numeracy skills so they can stand on their own. And we are not in support of street begging.

“We must stop seeing this insurgency as a problem of the north. The distance between Borno state and Lagos state is about 1,700km, but mind you if Borno state is not peaceful, other parts of the nation will never be peaceful. We have to unite and fight these insurgents. We have seen what happened in Libya, Iraq and other countries. Peace building and social cohesion are very important in strengthening the resilience of our communities.

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Zulum averred that nepotism, tribalism and exploitation of religion have impeded the progress of the country, noting that if the country does not get rid of these obstacles it will continue to run in circles and “we will not get it right in this country.”

“The constitution is very clear on the need for peaceful coexistence among all of us, which is why the principle of federal character is enshrined in the constitution, but it has been abused.”

There have been calls for the creation of state police to help strengthen security, but the governor said he is not a proponent of such advocacy, he argued that it will further divide an already polarised and fragile system and weaken national unity.

”For the sake of national unity, I will not advise the creation of state police. It’s not yet time for us to have it, but as time goes on, the idea of having state police is very good. I’m entitled to my opinion,” he said.