Killing of woman in Kano: Northern govs, Ohanaeze, Okorocha, APC chairman meet

Governor Rochas Okorocha, his Kaduna and Bauchi States’ counterparts, Mallam Nasir El Rufai and Alhaji Mohammed Abdullahi Abubakar, and the National Chairman of All Progressives Congress, APC, Chief John Oyegun, met yesterday, with leaders of Ohaneze Ndi-Igbo led by its President-General, Chief Gary Igariway in Owerri. Vanguard gathered that the discussions centred mainly on the beheaded Igbo woman in Kano State, the issue of herdsmen and the unity of the country. All of them harped on the need for the government and all patriotic Nigerians to see those behind these unlawful acts as criminals and common enemies of the nation and her people. In his contribution, Governor Nasir El Rufai said that “the Northern governors totally condemn the murder of the Igbo woman in Kano, stressing that the matter should be treated as a case of murder, while those responsible must be brought to face the wrath of the law”. Continuing, El Rufai said: “We will not accept a situation where people, either Christians or Muslims, hide under the umbrella of religion to commit crime. If someone had insulted God, the person should be left for God to take care of. I have advised the Kano governor to publicly deal with the people involved to serve as a deterrent to others.” FILE: MEETING—GOVERNORS FORUM: From left: Zamfara State Governor, Abdul’aziz Abubakar Yari; Kastina State Governor, Aminu Masari; Imo State Governor, Rochas Okorocha; Kwara State Governor, Abdulfatah Ahmed; and Borno State Governor, Kashim Shettima; during the President’s meeting with Nigerian Governors Forum, at the Presidential Villa Abuja, yesterday. Photo: Abayomi Adeshida.FILE: MEETING—GOVERNORS FORUM: From left: Zamfara State Governor, Abdul’aziz Abubakar Yari; Kastina State Governor, Aminu Masari; Imo State Governor, Rochas Okorocha; Kwara State Governor, Abdulfatah Ahmed; and Borno State Governor, Kashim Shettima; during the President’s meeting with Nigerian Governors Forum, at the Presidential Villa Abuja. Photo: Abayomi Adeshida. He commended Ohaneze Ndigbo for choosing the path of peace and unity, pointing out that people are now using religion as a tool to divide and even defraud people. “That necessitated the introduction of religion bill in Kaduna so that people can be stopped from using divisive languages in the name of religion”, El Rufai said. Addressing the issue of herdsmen, the Governor said “it is a problem that is affecting the whole nation, adding that it is not a case of Fulani invading other tribes but a criminal activity that must be nipped in the bud”. Speaking also, the Bauchi State Governor, Alhaji Abubakar said “the killing of the woman in Kano was an evil act, pointing out that he had liaised with the Kano governor and he assured that arrests had been made and those responsible will face the full weight of the law.” On the herdsmen problem, he said, the problem has been in the North over the years and its occurrence in the South should not be seen as an act of invasion, but a criminal act that must be treated as such, adding that the traditional Nigeria Fulani herdsmen are not known to be criminally minded, but because of the country’s porous borders, herdsmen from other African nations, especially after the fall of Libya, entered Nigeria. The APC National Chairman, Chief Oyegun in his contribution said there were proofs that most of these crimes are being committed by foreigners and gave an instance of a Catholic priest in Benin, who was kidnapped and out of the number of those involved in his abduction only one was a Nigerian. “The nation has to rise to face these challenges squarely. I commend the leadership of Ohanaeze for their maturity in handling some of these sensitive issues,” Oyegun said. Earlier in his speech, the President-General of Ohaneze, Chief Igariway, expressed satisfaction with the way the governor of Kano State is handling the case of the Igbo woman beheaded in his state, and cautioned against inciting statements from leaders, even as he commended the goodwill demonstrated by the Kaduna and Bauchi State governors. Governor Okorocha said the killing of the woman in Kano State was an outright case of murder and has nothing to do with tribe or religion because what is criminal is criminal and must be treated as specified by law.