“We have symptoms of semi-terrorism in the country,” says Jonathan

By Armstrong Bakam

February 11, 2011 06:04AM

The endless security challenges in the country may soon be a thing of the past, as President GoodLuck Jonathan promised to punish perpetrators of violent crimes.

The President said at the PDP Presidential flag-off for the North-East Zone which took place at the IBB Square, Bauchi that, ‘‘One thing we will take seriously is the issue of security of lives and properties. We have symptoms of semi-terrorism in the country and I want to assure all of you that government will do everything possible to address these issues.” He said his administration will go after those behind these acts. “We will pursue them until we arrest them and punish them no matter how influential or highly placed they might be, The days of impunity are now over. The days when one will commit a crime in this country and get away with it are over.’’

He promised never to be biased if elected as president for the next four-term, “I will run a transparent government in which all Nigerians, irrespective of religion, ethnicity, tribe, or political affiliation will be treated equally. We will work together so that we can get to where we want to go to.’’ President Jonathan, who reiterated his commitment to the development of Nigeria, pointed out that power, agriculture, water, wealth creation, and construction of Kafin Zaki Dam among other policies.

Earlier in his speech, Vice President Namadi Sambo, said that their victory at the recent PDP primaries was as a result of the confidence the delegates have in the Jonathan-led administration saying that ‘‘it was not just a choice but a wise decision from the delegates’’ Mr. Namadi, who said government is poised to develop the education sector in the country, added that the federal government has set out a plan to ensure that the over 9.5 million ‘almajiris’ or urchins in the country were educated both formally and ‘Islamically.’

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