Stop the Bloodshed: Pyrates demands action from Tinubu, Kefas in Taraba

The National Association of Seadogs (Pyrates Confraternity) demanded decisive action from President Bola Tinubu and the Taraba State governor, Agbu Kefas, over the killing of at least 58 people in Binari community in Karim Lamido Local Government Area. The group also tasked security agencies to discontinue all peace arrangements that have enabled terror groups to rearm.

The NAS Cap’n, Dr Charles Meribole, in a statement entitled ‘’ The Taraba Massacre: Another Bloodbath in Our Nation, ” condemned what he called ‘’senseless killings’’ of Nigerians, noting that it was ‘’barbaric, reprehensible and must not go unpunished “ Meribole, while mourning the dead, expressed disappointment with the response of Nigeria’s political leadership and the security agencies to recurring killings, especially in Northern Nigeria.

He lamented that the over 20,000 Nigerians who have been killed since May 29, 2023, when President Tinubu assumed office, should jolt the President to rise to the full weight of his office as President and Commander-in- Chief of the Armed Forces and end Nigeria’s security crisis. ‘’President Bola Tinubu should recognise that the security of Nigerians is not a peripheral issue to be addressed when convenient or tackled with political rhetoric.

It is a central test of his administration’s responsibility to Nigerians and obligation to his oath of office. ‘’ We implore President Bola Tinubu to translate his directives to the security agencies into measurable results. His orders to dismantle criminal networks must come with clear timelines, effective monitoring and consequences for failure. Those implementing security operations must be held accountable for their performance, and any official found to have compromised these efforts must face the appropriate consequences.’’ Meribole upbraided Kefas for attending the All Progressives Congress 2027 Presidential campaign (APC) North-West campaign flag-off, noting that traumatised people of Binari deserve empathy and not empty promises.

He called on the security agencies to discharge their duties with renewed determination, stressing that since terror groups have demonstrated that they are remorseless, they should be treated with equal measure through sustained and decisive security operations. The statement read in part ‘’ President Bola Tinubu’s recent marching orders to dismantle terrorists and bandits’ enclaves, rescue kidnapped citizens and restore public confidence in the government’s capacity to protect lives and property must be pursued with sustained commitment. ‘’ There must be no retreat, no complacency and no room for compromise with those who terrorise innocent Nigerians.

Any peace arrangement that enables criminal groups to regroup, rearm or continue their heinous crimes must be urgently discontinued where it undermines public safety. Criminal groups that repeatedly exploit peaceful overtures to perpetuate violence must be confronted through lawful, effective and sustained security operations. ‘’Terror groups have demonstrated that they are remorseless; they should be treated with equal measure.

The war against terror groups must be waged with the seriousness it deserves until Nigerians can once again live without fear in their only country.’’