SPECIAL Adviser to the president on media and publicity, Mr Femi Adesina, has dismissed insinuations that killings by Fulani herdsmen in the country are rampant because President Muhammadu Buhari is a Fulani and was, therefore, condoning the acts.
In a video message he posted on his personal Facebook account on Wednesday, he argued that such killings by herdsmen predated the Buhari administration.
He, however, affirmed that ensuring the security of lives and property of the citizens was the responsibility of government, noting that the present administration was determined to fulfill this obligation.
The presidential aide said: “Something that is disturbing that I have heard about it is linking those developments to the fact that a Fulani man is president and so, he is brooking such kind of evil acts.
“I think that is very unkind. And I will try to back my position with statistics.
“In 2013, particularly, there were nine cases of herdsmen invading communities in Benue state alone and more than 190 people were killed.
“In 2014, there were about 16 of such tragic developments with more than 231 people killed. And then there was a change of government in May 2015. But between January and May 2015, there were six attacks which left about 335 people dead.
“Now,, the question is, during that period, did we have a Fulani president?
“This is showing us that the issue of herdsmen attacking settlements, attacking farmers, attacking communities is pure criminality and it is something that government must deal with.
“It is the duty of government to preserve the lives of the citizenry. It is the responsibility of government to maintain law and order and that this government is determined to do.
“Therefore, let nobody say that all this is happening because we have a Fulani president.
“We have had many Fulani presidents in the past and this issue of herders and local communities at loggerheads has predated this government.
“But I will just like to appeal to Nigerians that the Muhammadu Buhari government is determined to crack this issue, is determined to get to the bottom of it and it will get done.”
Recall that the Nobel Laureate, Professor Wole Soyinka, on Wednesday said the killer herdsmen had declared war against Nigeria and President Muhammadu Buhari must wade in to halt the murderous activities of the herdsmen without further delay.
