By Ayo Kehinde
SMBLF Chieftains: Ohanaeze President, John Ndigo, Dr Isuwa Dodo of Middle Belt, Chief E K Clark of S/South and Chief Ayo Adebanjo of Afenifere
The Southern and Middle Belt Leaders Forum(SMBLF) has described as “illegal diktat”, the directive by the Attorney – General of the Federation, Mr Abubakar Malami SAN , that Amotekun, the South West security outfit, is illegal.
Mallami had issued a statement on Tuesday stating that security is an exclusive preserve of the Federal Government as guaranteed by the Constitution and therefore considered Amotekun illegal.
In a swift reaction, the SMBLF, issued a statement on Tuesday in which it describe the Attorney-General’s directive as illegal and undemocratic. The statement was signed by Mr Yinka Odumakin for the South-west, General CRU Iheriki for the South-east, Senator Bassey Henshaw for the South-south and Isuwa Dogo for the Middle-Belt.
According to the group; “We consider his action as an abuse of office to suppress the rights of federating units to secure themselves and in furtherance of the widely – held suspicion that sections of the country are deliberately being rendered vulnerable for herdsmen and other criminals by the Federal Government.
“We ask the Governors of the South West to ignore Malami and allow him to go to court to challenge their decision as he cannot constitute himself a court over elected governors.We are not under military rule.
“We insist that what the Governors have done is what individuals and and neighborhoods can legally do to secure their lives and property.
The right to preserve your life cannot be under any exclusive list other than the list of those who have no value for human lives.
“The ultra vire action of the AGF has further exposed Nigeria as a country under command and control and governed by a conquest mentality.
“We ask Malami to tell us what makes Amotekun illegal and Hisbah legal.
He should further explain to us what makes Civilian JTF legal in the North East where there is war and in Kaduna and Kano where there is no war, while Amotekun is his only illegal take.
This is a defining moment to decide if we are under segregation and different laws in the country.”
