An alleged deportation threat of Northern women from Ondo is irking the Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF), and it is speaking out in protest.
The forum has issued a statement in which it credited operatives of the Ondo State Security Network Agency, popularly known as Amotekun as behind it.
The forum said the women were being singled out for profiling, arrest and threatened deportation.
Issued by the Chairman of its Board of Trustees, Bashir M. Dalhatu, the forum described the action as discriminatory, unconstitutional and a violation of the rights of Nigerian citizens.
“The attempt by officials of the Ondo State Amotekun Corps to profile, intimidate and threaten to deport fellow Nigerians to their states or regions of origin is especially alarming.
“There is no provision under Nigerian law that empowers any state government, security outfit or local authority to deport Nigerian citizens from one part of the federation to another. Every Nigerian has an equal stake in every part of Nigeria”, the statement said
Instead, the Nigerian Constitution guarantees every citizen the right to move freely, reside and conduct lawful activities in any part of the country without discrimination based on ethnicity, religion, language or place of birth, the ACF stated.
According to the forum, the women targeted in the alleged profiling appeared to be women engaged in legitimate economic and social activities, describing their public humiliation as unacceptable in a democratic society.
On the link of the alleged deportation to escalating security breaches in the South West, the statement stated, that criminality should be addressed through lawful investigations, intelligence gathering and evidence-based law enforcement rather than ethnic profiling.
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“Entire communities cannot be criminalised because of the actions of a few individuals. To do so is unjust, counterproductive and a direct invitation to ethnic tension,” the statement added.
Such actions could threaten national unity and peaceful coexistence, the forum stated, noting that thousands of people from the South-West live and conduct businesses across northern Nigeria without harassment.
Calling on both the federal and state governments as well as security agencies and the National Human Rights Commission to look into the alleged deportation of Northern women, the AGF said it had raised concerns about the ongoing debate on state police.
“Nigeria belongs equally to all Nigerians. No citizen should ever be treated as an alien in his or her own country,” the statement said.
