The Federal Government, governors of the South-East states, sociopolitical, religious and traditional leaders have reaffirmed their commitment to peace, unity and stability of the country.
This was disclosed after a closed-door meeting held by a delegation of the Federal Government led by the Minister of Defence, Maj. Gen. Bashir Magashi (rtd), the governors and other stakeholders on the security challenges confronting the South East and the nation held at the Government House, Enugu.
Addressing newsmen after the meeting, the defence minister, disclosed that the delegation will relay the commitment reached at the parley and other outcomes of the consultation to President Muhammadu Buhari. The defence minister who was accompanied by the Minister of Interior, Rauf Aregbesola and the service chiefs, explained that they were in Enugu for a consultative meeting with leaders of the South-East zone on the issues of instability and criminality, at the instance of President Muhammadu Buhari. He added that the meeting agreed that there were fundamental issues that needed to be addressed in the South East region, stating that one of the issues is the farmers/ herders conflict, which will be given the necessary attention in the national interest.
Magashi revealed that the second issue the meeting discussed was the problem of marginalization, stressing that further discussions will continue after the governors of the South-East had articulated the grievances of the region for further discussion with President Buhari.