By Shola Abayomi.
Renowned elder statesman, Chief Edwin Clark, has made stunning revelations into the administration of former president Goodluck Jonathan.
According to Clark, the deadly Boko Haram sect daringly sent a message to Jonathan to convert to Islam when he was President.
Chief Clark, who celebrated his 92nd birthday, on Saturday, hinted that President Buhari’s inability to tackle the alarming rate of insecurity in the country, was of great discomfort to him.
He further alleged that there are top-level consiprators cut across top government officials and highly placed politicians who influence the operations of Boko Haram in Nigeria.
He disclosed that service chiefs were present at the meeting when Abba Marama an abducted hostage who was later released by the insurgents, delivered the letter to the then president Jonathan.
Chief Edwin Clark in a message yesterday, urged President Muhammadu Buhari to intensify his efforts on security.
“I call on President Buhari to honestly come to terms with the stark truth, that his current efforts with his security apparatus are grossly inadequate for the task.
“I call on Mr. President to urgently convene a sober ‘National Discourse on National Security’ of former Heads of State, Presidents, statesmen and leaders, women and selected youths in Nigeria to work out a consensual and amicable resolution of this long, seemingly intractable, challenge afflicting the country since the entry of Boko Haram menace in the national psyche.
“While also pleading with Boko Haramists, herdsmen, bandits, whatever name they choose to call themselves, to please stop this dastardly act, I enjoin all Nigerians to join in praying fervently for our nation for God’s mercy. We do not have any other country to call our own.
“Nigerians should unite, be courageous and sincere to fight Boko Haram to avert the disintegration of the country, now that it is clear that the government cannot do it alone,” he said.
He consequently charged the federal government to adopt the advice of the Emir of Katsina, Dr. Abdulmumini Usman, who urged the president to ‘tackle insecurity before agriculture.’
“The issue of security has become a bane and national/international embarrassment for us as a people and a nation. Killings, kidnappings, rape, burning down of towns and villages, cattle rustling, etc, are now the order of the day perpetrated by a group, which the government has identified as ‘bandits, herdsmen.’ Yet nothing is being done to arrest them, rather it is alleged that government officials collude with the criminals.
“Now the Federal Government is putting much money into agriculture because it wants to diversify the nation’s economy. Is it aware that farmers no longer go to farm due to security reasons?
“In one occasion recently, the Emir of Katsina, Dr. Abdulmumini Usman, advised President Buhari to ‘tackle insecurity before agriculture’ when the Minister of Agriculture, Audu Ogbeh, and the Governor of Central Bank, Godwin Emefiele, paid him a courtesy visit in the course of launching one of the many agricultural schemes of the Federal Government,” Chief Clark said.