Former Minister of Education, Obiageli Ezekwesili, has asserted that the recent spate of killings in Plateau state is indicative of what happens in a society that has lost its soul.
Ezekwesili, a former World Bank executive, made the comment while speaking in an interview with Arise News on Thursday. She expressed concern over the lack of consequences for those responsible for the heinous crimes.
Addressing the issue, she emphasized the presence of underlying religious intolerance and the prolonged farmer-herder crisis contributing to the violence.
Ezekwesili stated, “We have a Nigerian state that is in total collapse, where there is no consequence for people who are culpable for these heinous crimes.
“But one thing that people really agree on is that when things happen around religious seasons, then there is something to it. There is an underlying issue of religious intolerance that is going on there.
“There is also the point of the farmer-herder crisis that we know to be a problem that has been protracted. Frankly, it is a matter of contest for resources. Land as a resource has created room for competing demands.”
Characterizing the situation in Plateau state as a society that has lost its soul, Ezekwesili mourned the loss of over two hundred citizens and attributed the recurring incidents to the government’s failure to address the root causes.
“What is going on in the plateau state is the description of what happens in a society that has lost its soul. More than two hundred of our fellow citizens died for nothing but the fact that the Nigerian state has continued to play with the lives of our fellow citizens. This is a curse upon our land, and we need to end it,” she added.
“Today, accountability for what has happened in the plateau state rests squarely on the government that is in office. So, what it means is that when a government takes over, it needs to have read all of what it refers to as the many reports that have been submitted. The Plateau state situation is one that is really offensive to the spirit that it happened again.
“It is almost like an accident that was announcing itself and yet happened and happened in a gruesome manner where we have lost hundreds of our citizens and all because there has been a consequence for the killings of the people in the villages of Plateau state.
“They almost sit like dogs just waiting to be slaughtered, and the government just carries on with visits and sometimes, no visits at all until the next episode occurs.”
Calling for citizen involvement, Ezekwesili urged Nigerians to demand accountability from the government. She emphasized the importance of prioritizing human capital over natural resources, expressing concern that the government seemed more interested in the latter