Ejiofor Raises Concerns Over ‘Jihadists-Herdsmen Kidnapping Networks’ Infiltrating Igboland
By Chukwudi Ebele
Human Rights Lawyer and Social Critic, Sir Ifeanyichukwu Ejiofor Esq has raised serious concerns over Jihadists Kidnapping Networks’ Infiltrating Enugu communities and Ala-Igbo in General under the guise of cattle rearing.
In his article titled ‘ALAIGBO UNDER SIEGE: THE FORESTS MUST NO LONGER BE SAFE HAVENS FOR JIHADIST KIDNAPPING NETWORKS’ Ejiofor stressed that No criminal network should be allowed to establish a parallel authority over the people.
According to Ejiofor, HOW JIHADIST KIDNAPPING NETWORKS ARE INFILTRATING ENUGU COMMUNITIES AND ALA-IGBO IN GENERAL UNDER THE COVER OF CATTLE REARING’
“The latest security breakthroughs in Enugu State, with the arrest of the commander of a jihadist terror network of Fulani extraction in Enugu State, have once again exposed a deeply disturbing reality: jihadist terrorist networks are establishing hideouts in our forests, stockpiling sophisticated weapons and using difficult terrain as launching pads for kidnapping and other violent crimes.
The recovery of sophisticated firearms and ammunition, and the arrest of these irredentist jihadist terrorists in coordinated operations by our security agencies, should not be treated as an isolated incident. It is a warning that deserves the most serious attention.
It may surprise many who are not familiar with the level of infiltration in our various forests by these jihadist terrorists who operate under the guise of cattle rearing and consequently camp in some of our forests, where they use such locations as cover to launch attacks and kidnapping activities against unsuspecting members of the public.
In the past, this story might have been suppressed or dismissed as alarmism. Today, however, the repeated discovery of criminal hideouts and the arrest of the commander of these jihadist elements within the Garki axis of Enugu State, an area predominantly regarded as a herders’ settlement, as well as the discovery of arms caches, demonstrate that the security challenge is real and demands a sustained, intelligence-led response.
When I raised the alarm about the activities of these jihadist marauders who had gradually established themselves in some forest corridors across the South-East and other parts of the country, some doubters ostensibly undermined the seriousness of the alarm. Reality, unfortunately, has a stubborn way of defeating denial.
Kidnapping is now occurring across too many communities, and victims frequently recount encounters with armed men operating from secluded forest locations, who they always mention as Fulani herdsmen. We must confront these facts honestly, while equally acknowledging that criminality must never be attributed to an entire ethnic group or religious community. The enemy is the armed criminal and terrorist, not the innocent citizen who happens to share his ethnicity, occupation or faith.
The audacity of these criminals is particularly alarming: they have demonstrated the capacity to penetrate communities, approach vulnerable locations-like churches and marketplaces-and target ordinary citizens, including mothers, fathers and children. A forest cannot become a private republic for kidnappers simply because law-abiding citizens are afraid to enter it.
The preventive strategy must include sustained intelligence-led operations to locate, dismantle and permanently deny these jihadist terrorist networks the use of forest corridors as safe havens.
This is not a campaign against an ethnicity.
It is not a campaign against a religion.
It is a campaign for the right of every Nigerian to live, farm, worship and travel without becoming prey to jihadist criminals.
I commend the Enugu State Government and gallant security agencies for the progress recorded so far. But isolated successes are not enough.
The message must therefore be unmistakable:
No forest should be a sanctuary for terrorists.
No community should be a marketplace for ransom.
No criminal network should be allowed to establish a parallel authority over our people.
And no citizen should be compelled to negotiate with criminals for the right to live.
Our land belongs to law-abiding citizens. And the responsibility to reclaim it from criminal occupation belongs to the State.
The time for denial is over.
ALAIGBO MUST BE SAFE AGAIN”, Ejiofor said.
