Ikeazor Akaraiwe To Buhari: Do Not Allow Leah Sharibu To Remain In Captivity

Human Right Activist, Ikeazor Akaraiwe has written an open
letter to the President of Nigeria, President Muhammadu Buhari
asking him not to allow Leah Sharibu to remain in captivity.

According to him, it is almost one year the 14 year old was
kidnapped by terrorists, and up till now, Leah is yet to be
released by her abductors.

Mr. Akaraiwe stressed that President Buhari swore to uphold the
constitutional rights of Nigerians, and so he should do same to
Leah because she, being in the hands of the terrorists is a breach
of her constitutional rights.

Below reads the full letter

               
                 
                 
       6 February 2019

               
                 
                 
        Akaraiwe Associates,
               
                 
                 
        Plot H174,
Trade Fair Layout,
Enugu.
The President,
C-in-C, Armed Forces,
Federal Republic of Nigeria,
Presidential Villa,
Aso Rock,
Abuja,
Nigeria.

Dear President Buhari,

Leah (Liya) Sharibu

Congratulations on your various efforts to make Nigeria more
liveable for the forgotten poor. However, I am forced by conscience
to bring to your attention many forgotten girl citizens abducted by
terrorists, one of them in particular, Miss Leah (Liya) Sharibu.
February 19, 2019, 3 days after the general elections in which you
are offering yourself for re-election, will make it one year to the
day 14 year old Miss Leah Sharibu, now 15, was abducted.

Many were abducted before her, with her and after her, but
what makes her case particularly pathetic is that all her
schoolmates abducted together with her were released except for her
and about five others who died in the course of the abduction, in
her case, because it managed to get into the public domain that her
refusal to renounce Christianity for Islam is reason for her
continued incarceration!

Your Excellency, I plead Sections 34 (2), 35 (1), 38 (1),
and 42 (2) of the constitution you swore to uphold for Leah
(Liya):
S. 34 (2) – Dignity of the human person (in particular, not to
be held in slavery or servitude);
S. 35 (1) – Right to personal liberty;
S. 38 (1) – Freedom of thought, conscience and religion;
and
S. 42 (2) – Freedom from discrimination, disability or
deprivation on account of circumstances of birth.

Mr. President, you were born into Islam by virtue of it
being your parents’ religion, and as you matured, you took a
conscious decision to remain a Muslim, in keeping with your
fundamental rights. Citizen Leah (Liya) was born into Christianity
and at a yet tender age of 14 was confronted by gunmen with choices
many of us could not contemplate at that age, and in keeping with
her constitutional right, has made her choice. And to the best of
our knowledge and belief, has been deprived of her liberty for
making that constitutional choice.

Mr. President, you swore to uphold our Constitution. It is
not enough that you are doing your best, we need to see you to be
doing your best. Perception is reality. Get this child released
before election day February 16. Mr. President, you campaigned for
the presidency on the footing of security. Four years on, we ask
you to free this child who is the age of some of your
grandchildren, and younger than my four daughters, before February
16. Mr. President, give a hundred men in exchange for her life if
need be but do not allow her remain in captivity, and if she is
dead, do let us know, so we may mourn her. As commander-in-chief,
you are mourner-in-chief, so, mourn her publicly. Let us see your
tears flow, so we may know that you care for all, Muslim and
Christian, Igbo, Bachaba and Fulani alike.

Mr. President, it will be impossible for me as a citizen to
approve of your remaining President for another four years while
Citizen Leah (Liya) remains in custody. Conversely, the release of
this child who has become a metaphor for whether Nigeria is all
inclusive or not, before election day, will inspire confidence in
your commitment, Mr. President, to our multi-ethnic,
multi-religious status as a nation, a confidence which is in dire
jeopardy. Long live the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

Thank you.

Yours faithfully,

Ikeazor Akaraiwe
(Citizen)
08033334902
ikeazor@gmail.com