A former Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Theophilus Danjuma, has called on Nigerians to defend themselves against bandits or risk dying in the hands of bandits.
He also accused the Nigerian Armed Forces of complicity in killings in Taraba, Benue and other “riverine states” in the country.
Danjuma, 79, spoke on Saturday at the maiden convocation of the Taraba State University, Jalingo.
Describing his home Taraba State as a mini Nigeria, General Danjuma said he is worried that the killings can disrupt the peace not just in the state but in the country.
Hear him: “The peace in this state is under assault. There is an attempt at ethnic cleansing in this state and, of course, in all the riverine state of Nigeria. We must resist it. We must stop it. Every one of us must rise up.
“The armed forces are not neutral; they collude with the armed bandits that kill people, kill Nigerians. They facilitate their movement. They cover them. If you are depending on the Armed Forces to stop the killings, you will all die one by one.”
General Danjuma, who was chief of army staff from 1975 to 1979 and minister of defence from 1999 to 2003, warned that Nigeria risks suffering a fate such as that of Somalia if the killings are not checked.
“The ethnic cleansing must stop in Taraba State, it must stop in all the states of Nigeria; otherwise Somalia will be a child’s play,” he said.
He, therefore, called on Nigerians to rise up and defend their territories, state, and country.
“You have nowhere else to go,” he added.
Honorary doctorate degrees were conferred on Danjuma, Sen. Jeremiah Useni and Governor Darius Ishaku at the convocation ceremony.
Also honoured with doctorate degrees were chairman, Tony Elumelu Foundation, Tony Elumelu, and former executive secretary, Tertiary Education Trust Fund Prof. Suleiman Bogoro.
