Purge Military Of Dubious Elements, Middle-Belt Forum Tells FG

The Middle Belt Forum, MBF, has urged the Federal Government to review its strategy and structure for resolving the present insecurity and cleanse the military of questionable characters to avert doomsday in the country.

The National President of the Forum, Dr. Pogu Bitrus, who said this in a statement issued in Abuja, also charged the Federal Government to shed off the toga of being seen as only interested in defending the interest of Muslims and the Fulani ethnic group.

Pogu said, ”It is clear that the discriminatory structure of our country’s security architecture has opened up our security agencies for infiltration and facilitated attacks on the nation’s elite military’s institution.

”Our security forces must be cleansed of questionable characters whose loyalty is not for the Nigerian state but to certain forces committed to the final destruction of our country.

”Despite the promise of President Buhari to crush these terrorists often labelled as kidnappers, unknown gunmen and bandits by security agencies, it has now become imperative for the government to wake up and halt the nation’s march to the precipice.

”In the face of vicious attacks on Nigerian communities that have resulted in the avoidable deaths of thousands of citizens, the Forum calls for the immediate review of the nation’s top military command structure to tackle these monsters of destruction wrecking Nigeria.”

On the issue of open grazing, the Middle Belt Forum reiterated that the adoption of ranching was the global best practice for raising cattle.

”The 19 governors of the South have already ruled out open grazing and endorsed ranching as the best policy to contain security challenges associated with open grazing.

”We call on state governors to commence, without delay, the creation of ranches in collaboration with communities so as to avoid a situation where foreign herdsmen are settled to further unleash destruction on vulnerable communities,” he added.