_Says there’s no difference in mindset of bandits, terrorist and some citizens_
By Chimezie Godfrey
A peacebuilding think tank, Foundation for Peace Professionals also known as PeacePro has called on the federal government to articulate a national peacebuilding plan to end insecurity in Nigeria.
PeacePro said that, Nigeria cannot continue to operate like the security challenges will resolve themselves, noting that the government must be delibrate about developing and executing national peacebuilding policies that will alter the current insecurity challenges in a fundamental way.
In its international peace day statement, the Executive Director of PeacePro, Abdulrazaq Hamzat stated that, PeacePro has consistently maintained that the insecurity in the country cannot be adequately addressed solely by the force of arms or even by the popular stick and carrot approach.
According to Hamzat, Nigeria’s insecurity has attained a psychological dimension, in which some citizens are constantly in the state of battle psychologically and even if stick and carrot can address their physical state of insecurity, only a strategic peacebuilding plan can adequately reverse the mindsets of insecurity, which is the breeding ground for their physical actions.
Hamzat noted that, there’s little difference between the mindsets of bandits, criminals and terrorist causing physical insecurity in the country and some citizens on the internet.
“The same mindset which made bandits feel justified kidnapping people, which made terrorists feel justified terrorising the nation, is the same mindsets that made some citizens feel justified to constantly be at war with the country on the internet space and until this psychological battle is addressed, no progress can be made” Hamzat said.
Speaking further, Hamzat explained that, PeacePro has made similar proposal to the previous administration, with several initiatives advanced to arrest the situation, but we believe that the leadership of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu will find it worthy to adopt a more civil approach to our peacebuilding efforts.
He therefore urged the federal government to look into this proposals in its quest to end insecurity in Nigeria.
