Organisers of Southern Kaduna Peace Summit held in September, on Wednesday submitted the report of the summit to Gov. Nasir El-Rufai of Kaduna State.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the report was presented to the governor in Kaduna by the Summit Chairman, Rev. Yakubu Pam, and the traditional ruler of the area, the Agwatyap, Mr Dominic Gambo-Yahaya.
Pam said that over 200 people attended the summit, exceeding the targeted 150 people, an indication that the people desire peace in the area.
He said that the summit, which had the theme, ‘’De-escalating the crises in Southern Kaduna,’’ held from September 18 to 20.
The chairman explained that one of key recommendations is for both federal and state governments to provide amenities and security at the grassroots.
Pam, who is the Executive Secretary of Nigeria Christian Pilgrims Commission, said that the summit also advised leaders at the state and federal levels, to stop the blame game and approach issues dispassionately.
He urged the government to support the implementation committee which was set up to follow up on the recommendations of the summit.
“Peace should be everybody’s business and we should all collaborate to nurture it,” he stressed, and called for support to ensure the success of the peace building process in Southern Kaduna.
Receiving the report, El-Rufai, attributed the growing momentum for peace in southern Kaduna to the peace-building initiatives of groups like the Southern Kaduna Peace Summit.
The governor commended Pam, the Agwatyap and community leaders from the area for complementing efforts targeted at finding lasting peace in Southern Kaduna.
He also thanked them for investing their time and resources towards peacebuilding, and welcomed the progress being made in restoring peace to the area.
He noted that violent crises had lingered in the area for decades, as such it was important to urgently “put conflict entrepreneurs out of work and widen the constituency for peace.”
“Blessed are the peace makers for they shall be called the children of God,” El-Rufai said quoting from the Bible, adding that “by the Grace of God, all of you will be called the children of God when we face Him on the Day of Judgement’’.
The governor appreciated the report “for not just identifying gaps in government and community efforts, but for making recommendations so that we can remedy them.’’
He further commended the organisers, some from outside the state, for devoting their time and energy to the peace effort.
The governor, particularly appreciated the Executive Secretary of Tertiary Education Trust Fund, Prof. Suleiman Bogoro, from Bauchi state, for considering the problem sufficiently important to lend his intellectual and material resources towards peace building in Kaduna state.
El-Rufai promised that the state government will study the report and act on it.(NAN)
