Promises to appeal to Mr. President to rescind his decision
The Emir of Daura, His Royal Highness, Alhaji (Dr) Umar Farouk Umar CON, has given the assurance of his support for the Nigerian Peace Corps (Establishment) Bill, just as he also promised to appeal to President Muhammadu Buhari to rescind his decision on the Bill.
The Emir, who gave this assurance when he received in audience a delegation of officers of the Peace Corps of Nigeria (PCN) led by its National Commandant, Dr Dickson Akoh in his Palace in Daura, Katsina State, commended the organization for its doggedness and for conducting itself peacefully by resorting to Rule of Law and Advocacy in pursuing its goals. He said that as a father, he would look into the demands of the Corps with a view to making the Bill see the light of the day.
The foremost traditional ruler also said that when the Nigerian Peace Corps Bill becomes law, it will serve as a platform for providing massive job opportunities for the Nigerian youths and creating the desired peaceful atmosphere against the prevailing height of insecurity in Nigeria.
Speaking earlier, Dr Akoh, who commended the Emir and the entire Daura Emirate Council for the warm reception and fatherly hospitality accorded his delegation, said that the Corps has not breached any known provisions of the laws of the land to warrant the constant harassment it has been suffering in the hands of some Security Agencies, further stressing that his organization was a mere victim of distortion of facts and misrepresentation.
Dr Akoh told his host that when it became obvious that there was a grand conspiracy to misrepresent the noble intentions of the NPC Bill before Mr. President with a view to frustrating his assent to it, the Corps, in September 2017, formally requested for an audience with Your Royal Highness, which was graciously granted, pointing out that on getting to Katsina, ''we were told that HRH was indisposed.''
''If that visit with you had held and the facts of our case laid bare before you, it would have averted this temporary setback occasioned by Mr. President vetoing the Bill. Notwithstanding, now that we are with you, we do know and very hopeful that you will use your good office to appeal to your son, our President who we hold in high esteem to reconsider his earlier stance on this all-important Bill, '' Dr Akoh said.
Dr Akoh, who likened the visit to that of a ''child in distress reaching out to his father for solution'', assured the Emir that contrary to all negative reports against the Peace Corps, the organization has remained steadfast in its obedience to the Rule of Law, even as he also submitted that evidence abounds that the organization was highly misrepresented before Mr. President.
To further buttress his point, Dr Akoh said that if the President is not convinced of the nobility of the Nigerian Peace Corps, he should set an Independent Commission of Inquiry to look into the past and present activities of the Corps, the outcome of which he assured would finally winnow the chaff from the grains of truth.
The high points of the visit were the presentation of a copy of the NPC Bill to the Emir and a special luncheon for the delegation hosted by the Emir.
Millicent Umoru
Corps Public Relations Officer
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