The Arewa Consultative Forum has just finished an emergency meeting at which it called on the Federal Government to guarantee the Sevurity of members of the ACF when they come out to dialogue with the FG. This call raises the possibility that Boko Haram's leaders are planning to negotiate with the government, a possibility when is not farfetched considering the disagreement that klee to an open fictionalization of the ACF recently which saw the emergence of a splinter group which gave it's name as “Ansarul Muslimina Fi Biladis Sudan,” meaning Vanguards for the Protection of Muslims in Black Africa or ansaru for short.



On a day that the victims of the Madalla Christmas day bombings by Boko Haram were buried the ACF which did not expressly condemn Boko Haram though it said their actions are "condemnable" however condemned calls from some quarters for the convocation of a Soveriegn National Conference to negotiate the terms of the Nigerian union. The ACF said that there is no need for such negotiations as Nigeria's union is "well defined" by the constitution.

It is very curious that the ACF wants the Federal Government to negotiate with Boko Haram but condemns the calls for Nigerians to meet at a round table to negotiate the terms of their union.

The full text of ACF's statement appears below.


PRESS STATEMENT BY THE ACF ON THE STATE OF THE NATION


1st February, 2012

An emergency meeting of the Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) took place on Thursday, 26th January, 2012, in the Conference Hall of the ACF, along Sokoto Road, Kaduna. Lt General J.T Useni, Chairman, ACF Board of Trustees, presided. And in attendance were a large delegation of members from all 19 states of the North and the FCT. The emergency meeting was called following the horrific bomb attacks on Kano on Friday, 20th of January, 2012, by the Boko Haram; attacks that caused the death of some 200 innocent people and the destruction of colossal amount of property. Other matters of concern to the North and the country were also discussed. The following statement was approved to be released:
1). Having reviewed the horrendous attacks on Kano and the spate of attacks on many parts of the North which, at the last count, have claimed the lives of over two thousand people, muslims, Christians, northerners, southerners – everyone - and an unquantifiable amount of property across the North, the meeting came to the conclusion that unless addressed quickly and decisively, the threat posed by these attacks have reached such a level that threatens national peace and order and has the potential to cause the collapse of peace, security and public order in the North in particular and the nation in general. In this regard, the ACF makes the following recommendations:

· a) The Federal Government should commit itself openly and unambiguously in guaranteeing the security of leaders of Boko Haram when eventually they come out for dialogue promised by Mr. President. Government should continue to persevere, uncover the true identity of these people, to be able to determine their demands or grievances and address those that may be genuine and in accordance with our laws.

· b) ACF calls upon all people of good conscience who may have access to members of Boko Haram to urge them to take advantage of secure channels of communication to be provided by the Federal Government towards achieving a resolution of the current bloody impasse.

· c) Similarly, ACF calls upon and enjoins the leaders and members of Boko Haram to realize that no religious doctrine permits the killing of innocent lives. It is important to point out to them that they are inflicting terror, death and destruction upon people not in anyway responsible for whatever injustice they believe have been done to them.

· d) While it is true that the actions of Boko Haram are condemnable, it is also necessary to call upon the Federal Government and all our political leaders as well as all those in positions of authority, to recall the UN resolution 1963 of 2010 which urges governments around the world to address underlying causes of civil unrest and social conflicts rather than resort to hard military power which rarely solve them.

· e)The Federal and State Governments should be seen to demonstrate fairness and justice in dealing with all issues of insecurity and infringement of the laws.

· 2) ACF notes with grave concerns some serious allegations peddled by certain people to the effect that some people from other sections of the country were conspiring to cause high level of insecurity across the country with the clear intention of making the country ungovernable. Some of these allegations go as far as saying that there are plots to assassinate the President. They also allege that southerners were not only being killed but that their attempts to flee the North were being blocked by Northerners. These allegations have been written and widely publicized in the media. Considering the gravity of the allegations bordering on treason, the Forum calls on the government, as a matter of urgency, to investigate them for the purposes of prosecution.


3). ACF notes the well advertised changes made in the Nigeria Police for better services. However, in view of the widespread ineffectiveness with which current security challenges are being tackled, the Forum calls on the government to extend similar re-organisation to all other security agencies, especially the intelligence community. We call on the government to be more proactive, more decisive and engage in less lamentations.

4). The ACF reviewed the recurring calls for a national conference, and even a Sovereign National Conference, for the purpose, the proponents say, of re-defining the terms of our union. The Forum concluded that the terms of our National Union and those by which the Nigerian Federation are run have been well defined in our Constitution. However, for the avoidance of doubt, it should be made clear that the North remains open to, and will be keen to discuss any ideas that may place Nigeria in a better position to meet the challenges of nation building and secure a better future for this and succeeding generations of Nigerians.


Alhaji Aliko M. Mohammed OFR Mr. Anthony N.Z Sani
Dan Iyan Misau National Publicity Secretary
Source http://www.naijapundit.com/news/acf-to-fg-guarantee-the-security-of-boko-haram-leaders-so-they-can-come-out-to-dialogue

I think we are beginning to see the c[size=18pt]omplicity of ACF and other Northern elders in the Boko Haram insurgent. First, it was a conspiracy of silence, and it got so embarrassing that it became a topical of discussion at a forum[/size]. Now, they asking for [size=18pt]security guarantee[/size] . How can ACF ask for security guarantee for those who did not respect the sanctity of lives? Even when the sect has declared there will be no negotiation until the country is brought to her knees , implying the negotiation would only on their own terms. Does ACF expects a fruitful negotiation with such a group? The only negotiation Nigerians expect now is to decide the future of this country. We need to discuss how we want to live together, either as a [size=18pt]true Federal Republic or different independent republics[/size]

Well i am just short of word. Nigeria vs Northern elements

^^^^ Like you did not hear about GEJ suggesting dialogue and lamenting the difficulty of bring them to the table.Yet it has not occured to you probably ACF is trying to encourage such to happen in other to meet the presidents goal using carrots and stick over the BH menace.If you know better,it is also the best way to isolate cases of people pretending to be BH and carrying out there evil deeds under the name of BH.This should also bring out the moderates or less violent members!!!!Read below before you complain falsely.

 
http://www.punchng.com/news/its-difficult-to-get-boko-haram-for-talks-jonathan/
It’s difficult to get Boko Haram for talks – Jonathan …says Islamist sect must show its face, make demands
January 27, 2012 by Agency Reporter
President Goodluck Jonathan

PRESIDENT Goodluck Jonathan on Thursday said members of the violent Islamic sect, Boko Haram, were difficult to negotiate with because they lacked identity.

Jonathan said this during an interview conducted by Reuters in the Presidential Villa.

The violent Islamic sect launched coordinated attacks on Kano on Friday over killing of 186 people.

Jonathan said, “If they clearly identify themselves now and say this is the reason why we are resisting, this is the reason why we are confronting government or this is the reason why we destroy of some innocent people and their property … then there will be a basis for dialogue.

“We will dialogue, let us know your problems and we will solve your problem but if they don’t identify themselves, who will you dialogue with?” (sic)

He, however, added that talks with the group could be difficult because the Islamic sect doesn’t have a clear public figurehead that could be invited for talks.

“If anybody invited Osama bin Laden (to talks), he wouldn’t have appeared … Boko Haram, if you invite them, they will not come. They operate without a face, they operate without a clear identity, so it is difficult to interface with such a group.

“That is the greatest difference between Boko Haram … and the Niger Delta issue. There is no clear thing to say: this is what we want.”

While deconstructing the problem, the President told his interviewers that the North’s high unemployment pushed many youths into the ranks of the sect.

He said, “Military confrontation alone will not eliminate terror attacks. Our commitment is to make sure our irrigation programmes are all revitalised so most of these young people are engaged in productive agriculture and … will not be free for them to recruit.

“There is a lot of evidence, there are linkages … no doubt about that. Meetings are being held in North Africa, the movement of people in these places have been monitored and noticed. The level of involvement and probably in terms of funding and equipment, I do not know.”

Asked to comment on the recent warning by Professor Wole Soyinka that Nigeria might be headed towards a civil war, the President replied that this was unlikely.

“There is no way Nigeria will go into civil war. These are different situations,” Jonathan said, adding that violence in modern day Nigeria was conducted by “pressure groups” using it to intimidate and threaten rather than full blown armies.

As for the service and security chiefs, the President said, “They are trying. Terrorism is new in Nigeria, and since it’s new, the security services have to change their methods. You cannot change methods overnight. But we will do more.”

The journalists asked the President if he subscribed to the widespread idea that some northern politicians disgruntled at the election of a Christian southerner were trying to destabilise his government.

He said, “I will not rule out that maybe some politicians get close to some members of Boko Haram, but I will not say that Boko Haram is a political group trying to undo Goodluck Jonathan.

“I cannot say it’s because a southerner and Christian is president that the Boko Haram saga comes up.”

On the fuel subsidy crisis, Jonathan said reports of corruption in the oil ministry and elsewhere were being investigated. He, however, said that he would not sack anyone in the ministry until he saw proof of misconduct.

He said, “Nigerians are angry about certain things government has not been able to conclude very quickly … You cannot sentence a person without trial.

“I believe that before the end of February, I’m very hopeful, we’ll submit it to the national assembly.”