HURIWA accuses Nigeria govt of cover-up in Owo massacre

The Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) has stated that the terrorists responsible for the deadly terror assault in Owo, Ondo State, on parishioners at a Catholic church, may never be apprehended by the federal government.

HURIWA National Coordinator, Emmanuel Onwubiko made this assertion in a statement issued on Sunday, accusing President Muhammadu Buhari’s government of a cover-up, claiming that ISWAP was to blame for the attack, despite the fact that some survivors said Fulani terrorists were the masterminds.

HURIWA also chastised the President for neglecting to visit the site of the Catholic church attack in Ondo State, and for failing to honor the victims by attending their funeral.

Onwubiko further alleged that the fact that Muslims make up the majority of the Security Council under the Buhari administration, as well as the unfortunate fact that all of the heads of internal security institutions such as the Nigeria Police Force, Nigeria Immigration, Nigeria Customs Service, Department of State Services, and the Nigeria Intelligence Agency are Muslim Northerners, mostly Fulanis, makes it practically impossible for this government to be effective.

Read also: Names, photos of Owo massacre victims released as church holds mass burial

The statement also noted that the denial of Ondo State Governor, Mr Rotimi Akeredolu, over the Federal Government’s allegation that the Islamic State West African Province was responsible for the terrorist attack clearly proves that Buhari’s government was engaged in a cover-up ploy.

It read, “The citizens must demand to know why there are no efforts by the Central government to punish terrorists but each time these terrorists attack soft targets, the Federal Government will go on overdrive attempting to spread confusion and lies so as to hide the identity of the killers.

“We must bear in mind that the Ondo State Governor Mr. Akeredolu, who noted that the Federal Government’s conclusion was too hasty, said he took the conclusion with a pinch of salt, adding that ISWAP members were known to take responsibility for their attacks.

“The Governor is such a meticulous person that also gets first-hand security reports and so what all these shenanigans by the Federal Government demonstrate is a government bent on masking the real perpetrators of this crime against humanity who were hitherto identified by the victims who survived the horrendous attacks as Fulanis, the same ethnicity as President Muhammadu Buhari.

“The painful reality is that the President has a notoriety for shielding his kinsmen from all sorts of accusations even without any forensic investigation to back up the claims by the Federal Government”.

The best method to battle these terrorists, according to HURIWA, is for President Muhammadu Buhari to reshuffle the service chiefs, particularly the heads of the internal security agencies, to shift the holders’ character from Northern Fulani Moslem to Federal Character.

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