A prominent northerner has disagreed with what he called the approach adopted by the Arewa Youth Forum which has called for Governor Babangida Aliyu to step down as chairman of the Northern Governors’ Forum among other demands.
AYF reportedly said today that “The North is deteriorating in all ramifications due to the guerrilla warfare and maladministration. Since the crisis began and has continued unabated, thousands have lost their lives while property of inestimable value have been destroyed, leaving the North unattractive for local and foreign investment. Businessmen of Northern extraction now prefer to invest and establish businesses elsewhere instead of the North as was recently exemplified by Dangote.”
But their position appears to have stirred the hornets’ nest .Reacting to the position taken by AYF today, a northern observer who spoke with our correspondent on the condition of anonymity said everyone knows that serious efforts are being made to tackle the challenges facing us.Yes,more work needs to be done but the approach of these so-called youth must be condemned”
Speaking generally he said “some youth have perfected the habit of blackmail especially if their targets fail to play ball.Some of these boys hang around politicians in Abuja expecting them to pay ball,which means giving them financial resources.After that they may proceed to castigate anyone they choose.This not proper and it should be condemned”, he said
He added also that part of “Their strategy is to go to northern actors and begin to make statements to draw attention.We understand they go in the guise of some nondescript NGOs or whatever.If you ignore them ,that is when they begin to blast you on the pages of the papers and on the internet”the anonymous spokesman said.
The northern chieftain who appears quite knowledgeable about what he calls this big scam said angrily “why are they not openly making moves to tackle the issue of insecurity?Why have they not appealed or urged the (Boko Haram) combatants to give peace a chance if they are so interested in the North?
“We like to caution these young men to stop this dirty game otherwise they will soon be exposed for what they are.They are political hirelings”,he concluded.