By KEMI KASUMU
The monarch said, “I stand with my spiritual leader, Sultan of Sokoto, His Eminence Alhaji Muhammad Sa’ad Abubakar, CFR, mni, my brother and friend, the Governor of Sokoto State, His Excellency Rt Hon Aminu Waziri Tambuwal, and the good and peace loving people of the state in this trying period, where over 30 innocent members of the state community were lost to criminal elements in the name of banditry.”
The Attah of Aiyede Kingdom Ekiti State, Oba Alhaji AbdulMumini Adebayo Orishagbemi, Arojojoye Abolokefa IV, has described the banditry in parts of the country, especially in the North West of Nigeria, as a time event that will not last forever.
The Attah gave this description in a statement issued and signed by his Media and Publicity Consultant, Prince Bashir Adefaka, and distributed to the media including The DEFENDER, dated 20 October, 2021.
The statement said, “His Royal Majesty Oba Alhaji AbdulMumini Adebayo Orishagbemi, the Attah and Paramount Ruler of Aiyede Kingdom, Ekiti State, has expressed his sympathy with the government, Sultanate and people of Sokoto State, on the death of over 30 innocent people during the unfortunate bandit attacks on Goronyo market, Goronyo Town in Goronyo Local Government Area of the state, on Sunday 18 October, 2021.
“Oba Orishagbemi, who is one of 16 Pelupelu, the most powerful traditional rulers in Ekiti State, described the attacks as a senseless, wicked, uncivilized and ungodly act that could have happened only by a people with no heart.”
Reminding the criminal elements that shedding the blood of innocent persons is an act that angers Allah and worsens social and economic life of any society, Attah AbdulMumini Orishagbemi distanced himself from any call that would be anywhere near advocacy for negotiation with terrorists and bandits whether in the North East, North West or South East of Nigeria.
According to the king, “terrorism, banditry or kidnapping for ransom should not be one of the ways to express one’s grievances. There are many ways to seek attention of government or leaders other than criminal way. To destroy public utilities and kill innocent lives and claim it is fighting for your right is not only silly but also foolish. No civilisation, race or religion, accepts that. It must be condemned in its entirely.”
He, however, warned government and leaders against non-listening or allowing the living or infrastructure conditions of people to get worse before they are attended to.
“Things like these cause unrest in society and must be looked into at all times because, the money spent on fighting insecurity caused by such worsening conditions has been found out to be far higher than what is needed to actually make people live well and not to be engaged by the devil,” he warned leaders.
The monarch said, “I stand with my spiritual leader, Sultan of Sokoto, His Eminence Alhaji Muhammad Sa’ad Abubakar, CFR, mni, my brother and friend, the Governor of Sokoto State, His Excellency Rt Hon Aminu Waziri Tambuwal, and the good and peace loving people of the state in this trying period, where over 30 innocent members of the state community were lost to criminal elements in the name of banditry.
“I pray that families of the dead will be granted the fortitude to bear the irreparable losses, that the lost souls be reposed in Al-Jannah Firdauz, while also praying for quick recovery for the wounded.
“Generally, I know for certain that this trying time will pass away and Sokoto and the entire country will know peace and development once again,” Attah Orishagbemi said.
In a morale boosting comment, the king expressed solidarity with the Federal Government, Sokoto State Government and the Nigerian Army, whose Chief, Lieutenant General Faruk Yahaya, incidentally hails from Sokoto, assuring them that, “this bad time will not last forever”.
He called on criminal members of the society, who take kidnapping, banditry, assassination, armed robbery and other criminalities as trades to stop, surrender and turn a new leaf, adding that, “there is no good in any crime except regret, disgrace and wrath of Allah”.
He appealed to President Muhammadu Buhari “to think about a welfare development commission, which will listen to people, who are pushed to the wall, for whatever reason, be it hunger as a result of joblessness or failed businesses, to avoid situation where people switch to crime due to hardship.”
To the religious and ethnic leaders, who hide behind rights to freedom of speech and association to cause insecurity in the land, Attah warned them to watch their utterances and actions, while backing the government and security forces in whatever they do within the law to ensure security in the country, and urging them to be proactive in tackling all offences and crimes before they get out of control.
