Kaduna (WorldStage Newsonline)-- Christian leaders in the Northern states on Sunday demanded the immediate removal of the three service chiefs over their complicity in the security challenges in the region.

The Christian leaders made the demand as the Kaduna State Government held a meeting with all the security heads in the state in view of the ultimatum handed down to Southern Christians resident in the North by the Islamic sect, Boko Haram.

Present at the meeting which lasted for several hours at the Sir Kashim Ibrahim House were the state Commissioner of Police, a representative of tyhe General Officer Commanding (GOC) One Div , Nigerian Army, Kaduna, State Director of the State Security Services(SSS), Commander Training Command of the Nigerian Air Force , Kaduna.

The meeting at the instance of the state governor, Mr. Patrick Yakowa was to allay fears of non-indigenes living in the state following the ultimatum handed down by the dreaded Islamic sect, Boko Haram.

According to the governor’s spokesman, Rueben Buhari, the state wanted to assured non indigene resident in the state of the safety of their lives property,

“The security heads later met with chiefs, leaders of the various tribes resident in the state where they were assured of adequate protection and urged them not to leave the state,” he said

Under the aegis of the Northern Christian Forum, the group insisted that the Federal Government should as a matter of urgency overhaul “all arms of the Nigerian security agencies by changing the heads of the security arms because their actions and inactions have misled the nation as a result of their pursuit for their own interests and not national interest.

According to the Christian leaders, the actions of the the security chiefs had proved that they “don’t have the interest of the nation at heart but their personal interests.”

Addressing a news conference on Sunday in Kaduna, spokesman of the group, Rev. Yahuda Peter Marsa noted that with the huge money voted for security in the country, there was nothing to show by the security chiefs.

“We wonder what the over N900 billion being budgeted for security is used for, maybe it is meant for their personal upkeep and not for the protection of innocent and armless Nigerians,” he said.

They also argued that the declaration of the state of emergency in some part of the North left so much ambiguity and cumbersome because there was no convincing detail why emergency rule was imposed in the local government areas, adding that “surprisingly the situation is being politicized by the security chiefs themselves with their incoherent knowledge of the insecurity ravaging the country. Some of the councils mentioned were even peaceful in comparison with some left out of the so called sledged hammer.

“As concerned citizens of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, we have been following with keen interest the security situation in Northern Nigeria, leading to the declaration of State of Emergency in some Local Government Areas of Borno, Yobe, Niger and Plateau States.

“The situation has proved the poor intelligence and policing strategy going by the recent attacks even after the declaration in Birniwa in Jigawa State, Maiduguri, Damaturu, Gombe, Jimeta, and Yola. It has proved that our international boundaries have remained porous and compromised considering the situation, and as responsible citizens we wonder if our security chiefs are really committed and conscious of the implication of compromising national security.

“ That the Federal Government must as a matter of urgency overhaul all arms of the Nigerian security agencies by changing the heads of the security arms. Because their actions and inactions have misled the nation as a result of their pursuit for their own interests and not national interest. It has clearly as we mentioned proved that we have no sound and accurate intelligence and policing.

“All these maladies have also proved a lack of professionalism and genuine patriotism in the hearts of our security personnel which has created several loopholes in their constitutional role of protecting and safeguarding the sovereignty of Nigeria considering the security challenges the country is in.

“They should be sacked and replaced with more competent and better hands considering the continuing damage meted out on Nigerians due to their poor intellect and wrong decisions on matters of national security.

“Nigerians deserve to know the criteria used in declaring State of Emergency because the ongoing security lapses despite the declaration are a source of worry or at best an indication of foul play somewhere leading to the regular attacks and series violence witch-hunting of some States.”

Story by Innocent Senyo (isenyo2005@yahoo.com)