The Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) has blasted the alleged profiling, arrest and threatened deportation of some northern women by operatives of the Ondo State Security Network Agency, Amotekun.
In a statement by Board of Trustees chairman Bashir M. Dalhatu, the forum called the action discriminatory, unconstitutional and a violation of citizens’ rights. ACF said it was disturbed by a widely circulated video that appears to show Amotekun officers arresting, profiling and publicly parading a group of women identified as Hausa/Fulani northerners who live and lawfully work in Ondo.
“The attempt by officials of the Ondo State Amotekun Corps to profile, intimidate and threaten to deport fellow Nigerians to their states or regions of origin is especially alarming,” the forum said.
ACF reminded Nigerians that the constitution guarantees the right to move, reside and work anywhere in the country without discrimination. “There is no provision under Nigerian law that empowers any state government, security outfit or local authority to deport Nigerian citizens from one part of the federation to another. Every Nigerian has an equal stake in every part of Nigeria,” it stated.
The forum said the women looked to be engaged in legitimate economic and social activities and called their public humiliation unacceptable. While noting security challenges, ACF urged that criminality be tackled through lawful investigations and evidence-based policing, not ethnic profiling. “Entire communities cannot be criminalised because of the actions of a few individuals. To do so is unjust, counterproductive and a direct invitation to ethnic tension,” the statement added.
ACF warned the episode could harm national unity, asked the Ondo government to investigate and sanction any erring officials, and urged the federal government, security agencies and the National Human Rights Commission to act. “Nigeria belongs equally to all Nigerians. No citizen should ever be treated as an alien in his or her own country,” the statement said.
