Opposition Watch Nigeria (OWN) has called on the international community to place leaders and officials of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) who oppose calls for an international investigation into the abduction of school children and their teachers in Oyo State on a watchlist.
In a statement issued on Friday by its Media Coordinator, Aisha Bello, the group expressed concern over what it described as opposition by some APC leaders to calls for an international probe into the incident.
OWN argued that resistance to an independent international investigation raises questions about the motives of those opposing the move and could undermine efforts to uncover the circumstances surrounding the kidnapping.
The group alleged that attempts to discourage international scrutiny of the incident create the impression of efforts to suppress the truth and frustrate accountability in the fight against terrorism.
“The actions of such APC leaders smack of an attempt to suppress the truth from international scrutiny and raises serious suspicion of complicity on acts of terrorism in Nigeria which has become an international concern.
“The fact that such APC leaders have chosen to fight against international intervention further exposes their party’s desperation to frustrate genuine efforts in the fight against terrorism and hold perpetrators accountable” the group stated.
According to the statement, opposition to international intervention at a time when the global community is seeking solutions to terrorism in Nigeria sends the wrong signal and weakens efforts to bring perpetrators to justice.
OWN further claimed that blocking calls for an international investigation would amount to an assault on the rights of Nigerian citizens and suggested that political considerations were being placed above the protection of lives.
“Opposition Watch Nigeria (OWN) therefor demands that the International Community, including the United Nations, the African Union, ECOWAS, the United States, the European Union, and other global partners, to place APC leaders whose actions undermine the fight against terrorism under watch.
“The world must take notice. The era of utterances and actions that embolden terrorism and obstructing justice must come to an end, ” the statement said.
