President Muhammadu Buhari has said that only malicious people are accusing him of condoning killings being carried out by suspected herdsmen.

Buhari stated this while addressing a Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) delegation from the 19 northern states at the Presidential Villa in Abuja on Thursday.

He insisted that killings did not start with his administration, but that he was doing everything to end it.

“When some (people), for clearly political purposes, attempt to suggest that this government is doing nothing about the killings, and that I, being Fulani, must be encouraging these satanic acts, it seems to me that there is no limit to the evil in the minds of these men.

“Otherwise, how can anyone in their right minds suggest that I, as an elected President even with substantial votes in the affected areas, will for any reason do harm by an act of omission to those same people?

“Secondly, the problems in all these areas, as you all know, are historical. There is no administration that has not had to contend with killings in these same areas over the years.

“Indeed, in 2001, you may recall that after thousands were killed in Plateau State, a state of emergency was declared and a governor was replaced by an administrator.

“To suggest that our administration is doing nothing is terribly unfair. We must not forget that the same Plateau state which has been crisis-ridden for years has in the past three years been celebrated for its peacefulness. The governor’s hard work for peace and the presence of the military’s Operation Safe Haven must have had some impact,” Buhari said.