{"id":1589,"date":"2013-04-06T09:42:28","date_gmt":"2013-04-06T09:42:28","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/disnaija.com\/nigeria-news\/sultan-may-head-amnesty-committee-pdp-northern-governors-laud-jonathan\/"},"modified":"2013-04-06T09:42:28","modified_gmt":"2013-04-06T09:42:28","slug":"sultan-may-head-amnesty-committee-pdp-northern-governors-laud-jonathan","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/disnaija.com\/sultan-may-head-amnesty-committee-pdp-northern-governors-laud-jonathan\/","title":{"rendered":"Sultan May Head Amnesty Committee\u2026 PDP, Northern Governors Laud Jonathan"},"content":{"rendered":"
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The Federal Government\u2019s Amnesty Committee for Boko Haram may be headed by Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Sa\u2019ad Abubakar III, Huhuonline.com<\/em> has been told.<\/p>\n

Also reported to be on the list are former\u00a0Chief Security Officer (CSO) to Gen. Abdulsalami Abubakar, Major Abdulrasheed Aliyu; National Security Adviser (NSA), Col. Sambo Dasauki (rtd); Chief of Defence Staff, Admiral Ola Sa\u2019ad Ibrahim; Director-General of the Nigeria Intelligence Agency (NIA) and a representative of the Northern Elders Forum (NEF).<\/p>\n

Reactions to the composition of the committee have been mixed, some praising the decision and others condemning it.<\/p>\n

Secretary-General of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Rev. Musa Alake, described the amnesty offer as outright insensitivity to people who had been killed or injured and their families.<\/p>\n

At Model Primary School in Fadan Attakar, where victims of recent attacks were camped, he lamented that Northern elders could even push for amnesty rather than demand the prosecution of the criminals\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cHere are innocent people driven from their homes and separated from their loved ones for no crime of theirs. That is why I consider the Northern elders\u2019 call for amnesty for Boko Haram members as insensitive,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhile many people, some of whom are women and children are deprived of their bread winners, somebody somewhere who does not know how to live without security is saying give amnesty to some faceless individuals. It is unfair and these are the so-called elite in the North who would not even visit and see what is happening to the victims.\u201d<\/p>\n

Contrarily, Rev. Isaac Achi, the priest in charge of the St. Theresa\u2019s Catholic Church, once a victim of the sect\u2019s attacks, argued that the amnesty offer would help Nigerians to know the true opportunity of Boko Haram members.<\/p>\n

\u201cGranting amnesty to the same group we have been looking for, the Federal Government should also compensate those who were victims of their attacks; we have been waiting for peace,\u201d Achi said.<\/p>\n

Clearly, Jonathan has the backing of the hierarchy of his party. In a release issued by National Publicity Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Chief Olisa Metuh, the party commended President Goodluck Jonathan for constituting the amnesty committee.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is yet another demonstration of the president\u2019s sincerity and forthrightness in handling national issues,\u201d the release stated.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe president has shown that he is indeed a listening leader and that the unity of the country is paramount to him in line with the vision of the founding fathers of our nation.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe believe the initiative of the president in setting up the Amnesty Committee is the best decision at the moment and we are optimistic that this drive will yield the desired results in the general good and restore the unity of our nation.\u201d<\/p>\n

It argued that by giving the committee the terms of reference to consider the feasibility or otherwise of granting amnesty to the Boko Haram adherents and to collate the clamour arising from different interest groups who want the Federal Government to administer clemency on members of the religious sect and to recommend the modalities for granting amnesty if necessary, the president has again shown his humility and commitment to carrying all Nigerians along in all his actions in line with the tenets of democracy.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe assure Nigerians that the PDP remains resolute in the commitment to restoring peace in the country, especially in the North and to return the region to its lost glory as the hub of unity, investment and trade in the country and the West African sub-region.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is on record that the North is the most receptive region in the country. Indeed there is no part of the country that is more accommodating than the North, which has always been home for all people, irrespective of religious creed and tribal affiliations.\u201d<\/p>\n

PDP urged leaders of the North to take advantage of the president\u2019s initiative and pursue peace so as to return the entire North to its lost glory.<\/p>\n

Similarly, Governor of Katsina State, Ibrahim Shema and Governor of Jigawa State, Sule Lamido have commended the president for the move and implored the insurgents to reward the president with peace.<\/p>\n

\u201cI believe if a security committee is set up, it is in good faith. It is for the good of Nigeria and for the resolution to the crisis that has bedeviled most of northern Nigeria on the issue of insecurity,\u201d Shema said in a meeting with President Jonathan on Friday.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf a committee on amnesty is set up, it is done because Nigerians and leaders from the northern part of the country are yearning for a quick resolution to the matter; and the president is responding positively to this request so that our nation can go on in peace, progress and development.\u201d<\/p>\n

Similarly, Lamido described the president\u2019s gesture as a clear indication of his commitment to restoration of peace to the troubled North<\/p>\n

\u201cWisdom has prevailed,\u201d he said. \u2018It is all about what do we do to secure our country, when Nigeria becomes a country that is very secure and stable, we confront the problems of human development.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

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Posted in Nigeria News. <\/a>A DisNaija.Com<\/a> network.<\/p>\n

Source: Huhu Online<\/p>\n

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