•HURIWA demands immediate rescue of 176 kidnapped Kwara residents from terrorists

The Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) has called on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to declare a state of emergency “to effectively implement holistic security measures to crush the terrorists that have invaded many rural areas of Kwara State.”

The rights group argued on Saturday that “governance has invariably collapsed in Kwara State which is characterised by cocktails of bloodbath and clearly the Kwara State governor doesn't have what it takes to protect his people.”

According to HURIWA in a statement by the National Coordinator, Comrade Emmanuel Nnadozie Onwubiko, "Isn't it a big shame that the Kwara State government allegedly claimed that only few citizens were kidnapped whereas the terrorists have reportedly played video evidence to disprove this poor propaganda put up by Kwara State Government and these terrorists have claimed based on video evidence that over 176 citizens were violently kidnapped by terrorists? Are government officials both in Kwara and the Federal Government of Nigeria not ashamed that terrorists are operating freely wherever they chose to operate in Nigeria? This is tragically shameful.”

HURIWA quoting media report alleged that suspected Boko Haram terrorists, formally known as Jama’atu Ahlissunnah Lidda’awati wal-Jihad, have circulated a disturbing video showing 176 abducted victims — including women, children and a nursing mother — allegedly taken from Woro community in Kaiama Local Government Area of Kwara State.

HURIWA reacted thus: "It is so unfortunate and disgraceful that the Kwara State governor has demonstrated a lack of ideas and zero knowledge of any sort of workable modalities, strategic approaches and efficient measures to protect the good people of Kwara State. The truth is that there is no functional government right now in Kwara State.

"With the killings of over 300 citizens this year alone in Kwara State, we think it is time that President Tinubu should impose a state of emergency and put security infrastructure in place to decimate, degrade and destroy the terrorists. The most important task for President Tinubu is to ensure the safe return of the 176 citizens kidnapped by terrorists and are being kept in intolerable situation of emotional, psychological and cruel physical torture by the terrorists.

"We demand that the mass murderers and terrorists must never be allowed to go without facing the wrath of the law if Nigeria is not a failed state. Only in a failed state can you see terrorists kill citizens at will and no kind of justice is imposed to punish the killers of citizens."

HURIWA recalled that not a person was killed in Rivers State before President Ahmed Tinubu imposed a state of emergency, “leading to the illegal suspension of the governor and Rivers State House of Assembly for six months, which some incompetent and pliant justices of the Supreme Court of Nigeria okayed. So the situation is long overdue for a declaration of security emergency in Kwara State."