Ezekwesili: It’s sad that Nigerian children now see death as common

Oby Ezekwesili, former minister of education, says it is unfortunate that children are becoming accustomed to hearing news about death.

She accused President Muhammadu Buhari of doing Nigerians “greatest disservice” by not coming up with solutions to the incessant killings.

In 2018 alone, hundreds have been killed in Nigeria in crisis situations — and this is outside the Boko Haram violence.

Crisis situations such as attacks involving herdsmen and communities/farmers, gunmen and bandits have left many dead in various parts of the country including Kaduna, Benue, Taraba, Kwara, Zamfara, Nasarawa .

Writing via her Twitter handle on Monday, Ezekwesili said her greatest pain regarding the killing is that families of the victims are usually left “on their own” to bury their deceased ones.

She also lamented the effect of the killings on Nigerian children, and the pain they are going through as a result of the crisis.

“There is nothing that gives me profound pain, as the fact that families of those of our citizens now killed daily are actually mostly left on their own to bury their dead,” she wrote.

“They are on their own while the leaders of government and rest of society carries on as though all is well.

“The second aspect of my profound pain at the killings that happen daily is the effect it has on children. The normalising of killings has fast desensitized even our little ones. There is a hard edge that is not childlike in the Nigerian children who now see death as common.

“I am afraid that our society will long pay for the deadened emotions that frequent news of killings of citizens that our children are becoming accustomed to hearing without as much as a flinch anymore.

“The greatest disservice Buhari is doing Nigerians is to not having solutions to these daily killings. The greater disservice is his coldness in the face of the killings. Buhari is by his emotional dissonance killing the childhood innocency of our Nigerian children.”

There is nothing that gives me profound pain, as the fact that Families of those of our Citizens now killed DAILY are actually MOSTLY LEFT ON THEIR OWN to bury their Dead.
They are on their own while the Leaders of Government and rest of society carries on as though ALL IS WELL.

— Oby Ezekwesili (@obyezeks) May 7, 2018

I am afraid that our society will long pay for the DEADENED emotions that frequent news of Killings of Citizens that our children are becoming accustomed to hearing without as much as a flinch anymore.

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I have been observing the children around me and this worries me much .

— Oby Ezekwesili (@obyezeks) May 7, 2018

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The greatest DISSERVICE .@NGRPresident is doing Nigerians is to not having SOLUTIONS to these DAILY KILLINGS.
The greater DISSERVICE is his COLDNESS in the face of the KILLINGS.
.@MBuhari is by his EMOTIONAL DISSONANCE killing the childhood Innocency of our Nigerian children.

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— Oby Ezekwesili (@obyezeks) May 7, 2018

She added that will do a “one-woman march” against the federal government to protest Buhari’s “seeming tolerance of the daily killings.

“I refuse to accept these killings as our new normal. No!” she said.