Some Nigerians have challenged former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar to go beyond posting on social media and lead protests against killings in the northern part of the country.
The country’s ballooning insecurity has continued to attract public outrage with many Nigerians criticising President Muhammadu Buhari for failing to solve the problem.
The outrage became heightened recently after bandits opened fire on a commercial bus and watched as the passengers burnt to death in Sokoto.
Reacting to the incident in a Facebook post, Atiku, a former presidential candidate, said the situation in the north is due to the fact that the country has been complacent.
He added that to address the situation, the country needs leadership direction to mobilise relevant stakeholders.
He said: “The #NorthIsBleeding because we’ve been complacent. We need to wake up from our slumber and collectively acknowledge that we face an existential threat.
“We must never be shy of speaking about our challenges and then engaging to solve the problems. To #SecureNorth, we need a leadership direction that will mobilise all hands on deck.”
But in the comment section of the post, some Nigerians were quick to point out to Atiku that he should go beyond merely posting on social media and lead protests against the insecurity in the North.
Omolaiye Solace, a user wrote, “Come out and lead the protest, that is how responsible leaders do, Buhari at least did this before he won the heart of Nigerians. We don’t want media posting from your aides who handled your account.”
Najeeb Salisu Yusuf wrote, “Exactly sir. Please keep political differences aside, and join hands together to save Nigeria. This federal government seems clueless and incompetent. Nigeria is too big for them. Please do the needful sir.”
Ishaka Usman Wali noted, “We hope you will come outside to protest against insecurities in the northern and Nigeria as a whole, as Buhari did during Jonathan administration
“May God bless anybody who shows concern about the northern lives matter.”
Maazamu Amadu Katoge said, “So you should come out for protest tomorrow morning if you want insecurity to end in the north and entire nation.”