Arewa forum demands Kukah’s prosecution, says coup comment treasonable

The Arewa Youth Consultative Forum (AYCF) has called for the arrest and prosecution of Matthew Kukah, bishop of Sokoto Catholic diocese, over some comments he made.

Last Friday, Kukah accused President Muhammadu Buhari of nepotism.

The bishop said there could have been a coup if a non-northern president did a fraction of what Buhari has done.

But in a statement on Monday, Yerima Shettima, AYCF national president, said Kukah’s comments are inciting and a “treasonable felony against the Nigerian state”.

Shettima said the bishop is using “nepotism as a weapon of calumny against the government and people of Nigeria,” adding that it is an attempt to “set the south against the north in order to destabilize our country and further complicate matters”.

“Such a reckless statement by Kukah betrays something much more sinister against both the North and the nation as a whole because Nigeria is at a stage that it requires responsible advice for attaining peace and stability, not deliberate attempt to mischievously compound our problems,” he said.

“If Kukah wants to play politics, he should not do so in the pulpit and he should keep the bishop’s office aside and choose any Nigerian political party platform to contest for the president in 2023 and stop all the pretences.”

The AYCF president said Kukah should be reminded of the struggle to rid the country of military dictatorship.

“We will not allow opportunists who did make any contribution to scuttle the democracy achieved through the sweat and toil and the sacrifice of our liberty,” he said.