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RESCUE
OPERATORS EVACUATING REMAINS OF PEOPLE KILLED IN AN UNCOMPLETED BUILDING BY
UNKNOWN GUNMEN AT APO ZONE E IN ABUJA ON FRIDAY (20/9/13
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ABUJA — SENATE President, David Mark, yesterday, assured
that nothing would be swept under the carpet in an effort by the Senate to
unravel the circumstances that led to recent killing of nine suspected
insurgents in the Apo District of the Federal Capital Territory.
Mark, who spoke at an opening session of the Senate Joint
Investigative Committee on Alleged Extra-judicial Killings in Apo, Abuja,
assured that members of the committee would not inject “biases or sentiments in
the course of their assignment.”
He said: “There will be no biases; no sentiments and we have
no preconceived ideas. All we are interested in is to get to the root of the
matter. We are approaching the matter with an open mind to get the facts so
that justice would be done.”
The Senate President therefore, appealed to Nigerians who
have facts about the Apo incident to freely volunteer information about the
killing just as he assured that the committee was not to witch-hunt anyone,
saying it was rather, purely on fact-finding to address the problem and
forestall any future occurrence.
He said: “This is not the time for blame game. It is time to
find the facts. We must hear from all sides of the divide so that we can
establish the truth and proffer solutions to the crises.”
Senator Mark regretted the ceaseless activities of
insurgence in the country and reminded Nigerians that the war against terrorism
was a collective fight of all if the battle must be won.
The Senate President noted that the current security
situation had become worrisome and intolerable given that “we are now in a
society where we do not know who the terrorists are in our midst.
“This is absurd and totally alien to us. We can no longer
understand ourselves. We need to tackle this menace headlong. The insurgents
now have international connections. That is why everybody must work hard to
tackle the menace before we are doomed.
“Let me assure you that the senate is committed to ensuring
lasting peace, peace that you could truly imagine, peace that all of us
collectively that will make us one united nation.
‘The main reason why we think that we should hold this
hearing is not just because of the outcry, not just because lives have been
lost but to truly learn some lessons, so that those lessons can become truly
useful to us.
“The current situation in the country you will all agree
with me is totally unacceptable. A situation, you don’t know who is a terrorist
anymore in our midst, amongst us. Our own brothers and sisters are the ones who
are involved, that is not an acceptable situation; it is very alien to us, it
is foreign to us. As Nigerians, that is not the way we were brought up. So we
need to tackle it headlong. We must remain very steadfast in our fight against
terrorism and the forces of darkness that threaten our people.”
“The fight against terrorism has become really complicated
locally hear because all these terrorist groups now tend to have international
connection, link to Al-Qaida, linked to Al-shabab and other terrorist groups.
When these things all started, we underrated it, articulately regarding their
international involvement. Unfortunately, they are people out there who do not
want to see the unity of the nation, who do not want to see us progress beyond
where we are now. Every Nigerian therefore must work hard to make sure that we
conclude this exercise of getting terrorism and insurgency out of this country
in the earliest possible time. We cannot just assume that it is only the NSA
that has responsibility for it, both the NSA will get information from all of
us to be able to fight it, so we need all hands on deck for this fight, it into
an exclusive preserve of those in uniform or those who are charged with the
direct responsibility,” he emphasised.
Mark continued: “The Apo killing has generated a lot of
public utterances and public condemnations. But let me urge that before we
engage in the blame game or rash conclusions, let us hear from all sides and
let us be able to analyze all the stories we have heard, let us filter where
the facts, because if we just go by the rumour, or of what we read, or by
public opinion of individuals who have access to the media, we may not get the
true stories. I urge that we exercise some form of restraints until we get all
the facts that are available.”
“As responsible representatives of the people, the Senate and
indeed the National Assembly, we will ensure that all the facts are provided so
that justice, so that people can meet freely and talk freely, because we
encourage all the witnesses to talk freely. Often, I notice that when we call
for public hearing, people who talk behind the scene, they will not come, they
will not attend, rather they will be engaged in more bickering and go to the
media men to tell them their own side of the story.
“We want the witnesses to come and tell us their own side of
the story so that we can take the right decisions. We, on our part, we are not
going to sweep anything under the carpet. Let me assure you that not a single
member sitting here has come with a preconceived idea or the belief that this
person or that person is right or wrong, we all have an open mind.
“I know that this public hearing is on the Apo killings, but
let me also use this opportunity to plead with every Nigerian that the war
against terrorism is a war that all of us must participate in. I feel very
sorry for our boys and girls in uniform who are in the north east geo political
zone of the country at the moment who are confronted on daily basis by the
terrorists and insurgents and the type of killings that happen in those areas
on daily basis are totally unacceptable. There is no way we can carry on like
that.
“We must take a decision to tackle the issue of terrorism
once and for all with all our hearts and all our minds. People must exercise
patience with those boys and girls who are exposed outside there. I accept
human rights alright, I have no problem with human right, but human rights must
be for everybody.
“No group should have a right to kill and then another group
cannot even have a right to defend itself. I read on the pages of newspapers
everyday that if they are terrorists, they should not be killed they should be
arrested and all sorts of things, they advance all sorts of reasons. But when
you are out there on the field and you are confronted with the type of
situation, it is a different ball game, ”he insisted.
Mark added: “It is an opportunity for me to say that the
National Assembly will make every effort to ensure that our armed forces and
security agencies are properly funded. This is not cheap; you are not going to
be giving information for free of charge. If our secure agents are not properly
funded and they are not properly trained, then this war is going to be an
endless war. So, I believe that our role as a National Assembly at this time is
not just to make laws but to ensure that our security services are properly
funded so that we can bring this to a quick end.”
Speaking earlier, Chairman of the joint investigating
committee, Senator Mohammed Magoro, assured that the committee would do its job
honestly, justly, fairly and with the fear God.
He said all parties in the crisis would be given fair
hearing without bias, fear or favour.
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