Youth under the aegis of Southern and Middle Belt Allied Youths, SAMBAY, have replied their northern counterparts over the threat the Arewa Youth Forum, AYF, issued against Femi Fani-Kayode, a former aviation minister and prominent opposition figure in Nigeria.
In a statement issued on Saturday, May 20, 2017 by Fidelis Ujah (Middle Belt), Onyema Ukachukwu (South East) and Mustapha Olasubomi (South West) after an emergency meeting called by the group to discuss the threats that have not only been issued by northern elements against Chief Fani-Kayode but also against the other parts of the country in recent times as regards permutations for 2019, the group warned that nothing whatsoever must happen to the former minister.
The group said it knows that it is the AYF that is pursuing purely selfish interests by insisting that power must remain in the north when their definition of “north” has clearly over the years excluded the Middle Belt region.
It wondered why Arewa would think it can continue to deceive the Middle Belt to curry their support when it needs political power but would immediately abandon them afterwards.
“We wonder where these Arewa Youths have been all this while that their cousins the Fulani herdsmen terrorists have been killing citizens with impunity in Benue, Nasarawa, Plateau and such other states,” the group said.
“They never condemned them because they do not see people from these parts as one of them except for election purposes. Even in Southern Kaduna that is further up north, indigenes were killed without these Arewa saying anything.
“We find their silence on these issues most reprehensible and signs of deep-seated hatred for other parts of the country.
“It is based on this that we have come together to say NEVER will we allow anything untoward happen to Chief Femi Fani-Kayode who has been speaking up for us and our peoples against the tyranny and despotism of the Buhari administration and his Hausa/Fulani disciples.
“We have lost more people in the South and the Middle Belt in the two years under Buhari than we have done since 1999 to May 2015. Do we allow Arewa and their threats to those who defend and speak up for us pass unchallenged or do we stand up to them and say enough is enough? Our people have chosen the latter.
“For the avoidance of doubt, we want to make it categorically clear that under no circumstances shall we allow anyone no matter who they think they are to threaten Fani-Kayode.
“Nothing must happen to him or any member of his family. Attempts to silence him will never work. If they want the Fani-Kayode’s of this country to stop talking, then they should tell the Buhari administration to stop the bloodshed and tyranny plaguing our country.
“We call on the law enforcement agencies to take notice of such needless threats from AYF as we are more than ready to respond adequately and commensurately to any action the Arewa Youths might be planning to take.
“Enough is enough,” the e-mailed statement to The Trent concluded.
