CNG: Terrorists emboldened by huge vacuum in will to tackle them

The Coalition of Northern Groups (CNG) has reacted to the new video released by the terrorists who abducted train passengers on March 28, 2021.

In the video, the terrorists were seen flogging some of the victims while threatening to abduct President Muhammadu Buhari and Governor Nasir El-Rufai.

• JUST IN: Security forces not clueless, presidency reacts to terrorists’ threat
• Terrorists threaten to abduct Buhari, flog train victims in fresh video

Reacting in a statement on Sunday, Abdulazeez Suleiman, spokesman of CNG, said criminals were taking advantage of the “Vacuum in the will of government to act”.

“We are extremely worried by the latest twist in Nigeria’s security situation which has exposed the glaring failure on the part of our government to check growing national threats.

“Conclusively, in the face of the latest development, Nigerians would be right to resort to self protection because the obviously the bandits and insurgents have sensed a huge vacuum in the capacity and political will to challenge them. It is this vacuum the criminals exploit with ease and at will while government, which is supposed to be the first responder, appears to be either living in perpetual denial or totally ignorant of the reality of the situation.

“We have viewed the video clip and assessed the contents and find it disturbing to realize that Nigeria has final come to terms with the reality that it has completely lost control of its forests, land borders, highways and to some extent, the airways and seas to insane bandits and insurgents in the North, deadly armed separatist armies in the East, pirates and other assortments of criminal gangs in the far South and the West. The audacious violence shown in the video released by the terrorists and the open threats to abduct the President and sitting governor proves the extent to which the country has lost out to the bandits.

“Having come this far, we’re no longer in doubt that the only remaining option is the hard way that involves communities apparently abandoned to the mercy of deadly insurgents and sundry criminals must immediately mobilize to protect themselves, their homes and their families.

“No people would tolerate to continue to live under such conditions while being led by a government that appears to run from threats and incapable and lacking in the political will to challenge the threats. Whether anybody wants to admit it or not, the current administration has failed in the vital area of providing security of life and property to its citizens.

“All the signs of imminent failure or perhaps complete failure of state have manifested in Nigeria as its government has failed to maintain a monopoly on the legitimate use of physical force within its borders.”