Politicians are Sponsoring Banditry, Kidnapping to Embarrass Buhari -By Obinna Akukwe

Nigerian politicians have been sponsoring kidnappings and banditry to embarrass the government of Muhammad Buhari, in preparation for 2023 polls.

I raised this alarm first in January 2020 after the murder of the Adamawa State Chairman of Christian Association of Nigeria, Lawan Indimi.

Despite the fact that government agreed to pay N50 million naira ransom for his release, we were informed by diplomatic sources that a powerful politician paid the Boko Haram terrorists to kill the Christian cleric.

In a publication of January 2020, almost three years ago, I wrote In a piece, immediately after the death of fellow Christian cleric,’ Plot to Oust Buhari, the Vultures are Gathering over Murder of CAN Chairman’ and explained thus

” The 2019 elections had come and gone, the fifth columnists have devised new strategies to send Buhari packing. Bandits were sponsored to attack the president’s home state of Katsina. The bandits earlier ravaging Zamfara State were empowered to cause more mayhem. The kidnappers along Abuja- Kaduna highway were empowered to be more ruthless, shooting at the slightest provocations”

This publication was on the 25th of January, 2020, in the fourth quarter of 2022, the situation has not changed.

The spate of politically motivated banditry continued and we kept quiet because the actors are powerful faces known to the security agencies.

In March 2022, after the ruling party APC convention for the election of party officers which led to the election of Senator Abdullahi Adamu, some terrorists attacked Abuja bound train and abducted many passengers.

We were privy to information of a planned embarrassment of Buhari to stop him bringing out any consensus candidate, but the scale and magnitude was more than we imagined. The terrorists simply embarrassed Buhari to the highest and cast him in the mould of a terrorist sponsor.

That train attack was powered by APC politicians who are against Buhari’ s consensus option.

I warned in several piece that these terrorists intend to embarrass government in FCT , attack critical infrastructure, abduct more persons, and retire Buhari in shame to Katsina. I asked security agencies to take proactive measures to safeguard FCT and environs.

I equally counselled Buhari to allow a free and fair APC primaries, to avoid multiple politically sponsored terrorism.

The APC primaries have come and gone, but the politicians transferred the franchise to another set of politicians.

This second set has been setting up the populace with sundry criminality to embarrass government.

The ruling party must be castigated and the garb of insecurity thrust on it, for interests of 2023 electoral victory.

I will not say more than these but many diplomatic sources are piqued that a nation where politicians pay terrorists and bandits to attack villages, kidnap passengers, milk abductees of life savings and enforce a bloody Sit at Home is calling the demised Queen Elizabeth murderer.
A hypocritical nation that points to the faults of others without looking at its monumental self inflicted mess is not worthy of attention of nobles.

The West is still searching for a political arrangement that will stamp out insecurity in Nigeria to prevent a failed system whose consequences on Europe and America will be massive.

The security agencies should fish out all the terrorist sponsors, bandits sponsors, kidnappings sponsors and who are tearing down the national security architecture with their sinister plot to hijack power in 2023.

Rev Obinna Akukwe is telling the nation that if the people responsible for apprehending terrorist sponsors fails in their duties, the blood of the innocent will catch up on the nation with terrible consequences.

Rev Obinna Akukwe, Columnist, Activist, @obinnaakukwe.