Declare State of Emergency in Plateau, NLC Tells Jonathan

Posted by admin Plateau, State News Thursday, January 27th, 2011

The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) yesterday called on President Goodluck Jonathan to consider the option of declaring a state of emergency in Plateau State.

The vice-president of NLC, Comrade Issa Aremu who spoke for the congress said this had become necessary in order to save the lives of the people in the state.

Aremu who spoke with newsmen in Ilorin, Kwara State capital, opined that the declaration of a state of emergency in Plateau State would not only restore peace into the troubled areas in the state but would equally prevent the spread of the crisis.

According to the NLC leader, “it is clear that we are already having an unofficial state of emergency in Plateau state right now. All you need to do is just to formalise it. We have serial bombings, silent killings of innocent citizens, and non payment of workers’ salaries.

“In fact it is a state of mutually assured violence. We have heard of some of the officials of Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) that have been killed without any reason. Even when we had the emergency rule in the state during the days of President Olusegun Obasanjo the violence was not up to this. President Jonathan should therefore confirm it to save the people and the entire nation from extinction.”

Aremu commended the governors of Bauchi, Nasarawa and Kaduna states for maintaining peace in their respective domains despite sharing boundaries with the troubled Plateau state.

Speaking on the extension of voters’ registration exercise recently granted the INEC, Aremu said the electoral body should reciprocate by providing more logistics that could accelerate the exercise.

The NLC boss equally called for the creation of special centres for the aged and the physically challenged to enable them participate in the exercise, noting that, “if those who are physically strong are passing through these rigours, what will be the fate of these categories of persons?”

-Leadershipwp_posts