Nigeria's northern Christians urge President Jonathan to resign over Boko Haram

Lagos, Nigeria (PANA) - Christians in Nigeria's predominantly-Muslim north, where the Islamic sect Boko Haram has been carrying out deadly gun and bomb attacks since 2009, have called on President Goodluck Jonathan to resign over his purported comments on the sect.

Acting under the umbrella Northern Christian Association of Nigeria (Northern CAN), the Christians said in a statement reported in the local media Monday that the comments credited to President Jonathan, that he could not crush the Islamic sect because “they are our siblings and you cannot set the army to wipe out your family”, was an indication that the country was in a helpless situation as the President “does not seem to understand the aim of the sect to destabilise his administration.”

''What he is telling us now is that there is nothing he can do about it, but we know that the Federal Government has the capacity to stop the madness being unleashed on Nigerians. However, it is now obvious that the President will rather shield criminals,'' the statement said.

Recalling that soldiers, police and other security personnel are being killed by Boko Haram members on a daily basis, Northern CAN said: ''Jonathan has failed us Christians, he has failed Nigerians and he should resign because by this statement, it is very clear that he is not capable of handling the danger pose by the Boko Haram insurgency.”

According to Human Rights Watch, Boko Haram, which means 'Western education is sin' in the local Hausa language, has killed over 1,400 people since launching its attacks, aimed at establishing an Islamic state in Nigeria.
-0- PANA SEG 13Aug2012