Leading Civil Rights Advocacy group, the Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA), has condemned the inability “and blatant failure of the Federal Government to secure the release of some of the eight mobilised corpers kidnapped by terrorists in Zamfara on their way to National Youth Service Corps camp from Akwa Ibom State since five months ago.”

“The only way to describe what is happening right now under the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu in which youngsters mobilised by the Nigerian State from their native state of Akwa Ibom to go to Zamfara State in the North West only to be kidnapped by terrorists and for five months this same Nigerian state simply forgot these youngsters in the deep forests with terrorists is to say that Nigeria is not just sick but has failed,” HURIWA said Sunday in a statement signed by the National Coordinator, Comrade Emmanuel Onwubiko.

“It is now a commonplace knowledge that whenever a citizen becomes a victim of organised sophisticated crime such as terrorism and kidnappings for ransom, the majority of observers of such a scenario would say that ‘Nigeria has happened’ to the person and to us in HURIWA, this phrase unfortunate as it is, represents the state of heightened insecurity in Nigeria in which government that ought to exercise the right to use controlled violence, and whose primary constitutional duty is to secure lives of the citizens, has been overwhelmed by armed non state actors.

“That the present administration would just shut her eyes on these NYSC corpers and let their parents and kidnappers to be negotiating for ransom and to let these Nigerians stay in the lawless Zamfara forests for five months and yet the Inspector-General of Police who is statutorily responsible for internal security hasn’t been queried by President Tinubu shows that this government attaches no importance to the lives of commoners. This is a crime against humanity,” the rights group added.

HURIWA equally berated the NYSC management, noting that even though it has no control over the security of the nation, “the NYSC should as a policy, stop posting corpers to all the North West states aside Kano State until the security situation improves since the Federal Government is not prepared to do whatever that is required to rescue corpers when kidnapped apparently because most of these youngsters are children from poor households.”

Continuing, the statement said: “HURIWA is also for the umpteenth time condemning the fact that heads of security institutions are not being required to be accountable and responsible for the wanton security breaches all over the country which goes to show that Nigeria is a failed state because a functional Sovereignty wouldn’t let her youngsters stay in the forests for 5 months with terrorists and yet the Inspector-General of Police has not been sanctioned by President Tinubu for his apparent gross dereliction of duty.”

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