Group Vows To Restore Peace To Conflicts Ravage Communities

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By: Mayen Etim

 

KADUNA, North-West, Nigeria – The Interfaith Mediation Centre, (IMC) Kaduna has promised to restore peace to communities affected by conflicts or violence especially in the northern part of the country.

The Coordinator, Early Warning, Early Response System, of IMC, Mr. Samson Auta, stated this at a one-day project planning meeting on Community Initiative to Promote Peace, (CIPP), organized by the group and supported by the United States Agency for International Development, (USAID) in Kaduna on Monday.

He added that IMC planned to achieved this objective by working with women groups, religious groups, among others with substantial role in creating more awareness or replicating the knowledge learnt

According to him, the project known as CIPP would involve six states in the two zones of North-West comprising, Kaduna, Kano and Katsina; and the North-Central states of Benue, Kogi and Plateau.

Mr. Auta who said IMC would be working in about 24 Local Government Areas each of the six states totaling 96 LGAs; added that the project planning meeting is to identify participants from the North-West (Kaduna, Kano and Katsina) for them to understand the nitty-gritty of what the project is all about, and for participants to be part of the planning before initiating the project.

A cross section of participants at the project planning meeting.

“We want the participants to be carried along so that they see to the implementation processes and at the close out of the project, we intend to bring the same participants for them to see the impacts whether there are changes in some of those violent issues in their communities, if there are prospects in some of the new initiatives that would be created by the community members themselves so that at the end they could sustain the project after its funding has elapsed,” he explained.

Also, Secretary Christian Association of Nigeria, (CAN), Kaduna State chapter, Rev. (Dr.) Sunday Ibrahim called on the government to punish those who violate the laws of the land, because it will help in curtailing most of the excesses of violence in the country.

According to him, government does not need to use force in handling crises sometimes, but can apply the wisdom of dialogue with the people, sit down with them and try to know the causes of some of the issues.

The CAN Scribe said he believed that the issue of Boko Haram was not handled with wisdom, and what is beginning to manifest with the Islamic Movement in Nigeria, (IMN), needs wisdom; pointing out that, “there is need to dialogue with the group.”

“I think the best thing to do is sit down and dialogue and shifting grounds so that the needed peace would be enjoyed by both parties because should anything happen, the masses are always at the receiving end. I also think, that government has a larger part in maintaining peace in every society,” he said.

Rev. Ibrahim who commended organizers of the event said IMC was doing very well alongside other organizations, but there is need to see sincerity among participants in most of the workshops.

Participants at the meeting.

“I look at it that quite a number of people are not serious even as we meet, because it seems like people gather to take tea and off they go, forgetting about what they have brainstormed on.

“But I want to sincerely advocate that all components will put their heads and synergize to make sure that what we are brainstorming on would be implemented.  That the Christian clerics here will go back and talk to their people to make sure that they implement what they tell them.  Likewise the Muslim clerics will tell their people to implement what they have heard,” he added.

Similarly, Acting Director General, Kano State Sharia Commission, Mohammed Idris, said most of the crises bedeviling the country lies on family set up which is the most important unit in life, hence, there is need to have a concrete family base, and government also making proper policy.

“If the husband fails to be responsible to his family he will have a broken home and this will lead to lots of issues.”

He said there are lots of other factors that lead to societal problems currently facing the Northern states especially in the area of drug abuse, impact of social media, and peer influence among other.

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