By Jide Ajani
Just take a look; and then imagine.
Take a very long, hard look; and then imagine that your brother, or sister or any member of your extended family had been a victim or had been lost to the insurgency in those areas marked on the face of the map of Nigeria as areas of insurgent attacks.
To understand the magnitude of the crises confronting the Nigerian nation, just imagine for how long this had gone on and the attendant magnifying spectre of extremism and criminality, as well as the increasing helplessness of many a people.
Then try to make sense of the ridiculous spat between a former military President and Commander-in-Chief in the person of Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida, and an Ijaw leader and elder statesman, Pa Edwin Clark, over who is not speaking out loud enough in condemnation or who is making a senseless statement and ask: To what extent would their show of shame solve the problem? You can add to this the seeming shambolic approach of government in containing what is turning out to be an insurgency of extremism, clearly far from politics and poverty that some people are reading into it.
Last week, the Jamaatu Ahlil Sunna Lidawati wal Jihad, otherwise known as Boko Haram, demonstrated to President Goodluck Jonathan that it can be very audacious. Having called on Jonathan to either resign or convert to Islam, the sect went to town to inflict maximum terror: an attempt on a Muslim leader, an Emir, to planting bombs in the domain of the caliphate in Sokoto, the killing of soldiers via ambushing, visiting terror on fellow Muslims during Ramadan lecture and the slashing of the throats of Christians, is President Jonathan still wondering what the insurgents are asking for. Even the dreaded Maitatsine bunch was dealt with decisively by the Shehu Shagari administration in the early 1980s.
But it must be admitted that these are different, complicated and more dangerous times.
With the advent of Al Qaeda, Al Qaeda In The Islamic Magreb, AQIM, Al Shabab and the linkages which terror groups have established and are establishing, the training received by Boko Haram members in North Africa and the increasingly glaring reality of the sophistication of the insurgency in the North, it does not need rocket science to understand that the check point approach of this administration merely fits the expectations of the insurgents – avoid the areas of checkpoints and ‘carry go’.
And to the United States of America, USA, the number one global terror policeman, Nigeria must look. In looking up to the Americans, this administration had flip-flopped between seeking assistance and condemning public terror alerts issued by the same Americans.
Well, Sunday Vanguard has been reliably informed that an ambassadorial encounter at a very high level which brought home the realization of why shambles have become this administration’s approach, “left the Americans with no option but to go public with terror alerts”.
Whatever the encounter was, with whom, where, when, why and how it happened was not disclosed by the diplomatic source. But the source maintained that “the encounter was very, very, embarrassing”.
And whereas the Americans have labeled three leaders of Boko Haram terrorists, it has refused to tag the group a FOREIGN TERROR ORGANISATION, FTO.
There are so many issues involved here. If the administration of Barack Obama has decided that it can not just intervene in Syria where an average of over 80 people are killed everyday, with strategic partnership interests at stake and likely to suffer if it makes a false move, why should it dabble into the controversy over tagging Boko Haram an FTO?
The first interest to be protected is American and America’s.
If Nigeria likes, she can continue to fiddle while insurgency takes over the entire land, why should America “give a damn”?
If the leadership of the Christian Association of Nigeria, CAN, continue to allow itself to be seen as an appendage of the presidency, but would like Nigerian Christians and peoples of other faiths in the country to see it as fighting the good cause, why should America’s Obama “give a damn”?
The leadership of CAN was in America to attend a congressional hearing where it pushed the FTO agenda. Yet, Johnnie Carson, America’s Under-Secretary of State for African Affairs, who was in attendance, and the State Department, have their logic. But the logic is grandly illogical and incongruous because how do you label three leaders of a group as terrorists and refuse to tag the group an FTO?
It is either because of the coming elections in November, or just a statement of criticism of Nigeria’s handling of the state of insecurity that has become so pervasive. By the admission of a General Officer Commanding, there are joint military operations being carried out in 33 states in a country of 36 states – this represents over 90% of the entire country.
During the congressional hearing, Carson’s understanding of Nigeria as a largely Muslim nation and that the country stands to surpass other Arab nations in terms of the faith in less than a decade, was laid bare.
Sunday Vanguard learnt that Carson had had a running against the Yar’Adua administration over some issues of national security over biometrics. He has found acceptance which verges on messianic accommodation by the present administration and, therefore, is entitled to wax pontifical about Nigeria. (READ ENCOUNTER AT THE CONGRESSIONAL HEARING)
Well, Hon. Smith, who chaired the sub-committee hearing, would not allow himself to be hoodwinked if members of Nigeria’s government engage a slavish mentality in their dealings with America. Smith sought clarity from Carson on why leaders of a group are tagged terrorists and the group is not deemed to be a terrorist organization (Details of the hearing will shock you).
Meanwhile, last week Thursday, at the State House Abuja, Secretary of State, Hilary Clinton, was in a closed door meeting with President Jonathan and his security chiefs and the main discussion of the day was centred around Boko Haram and FTO status, as well as – you guessed right – CORRUPTION. Still, there is also the increasing theft of crude oil in the South South region to the tune of hundreds of millions of dollars.
In this package, you will read the widening scope of Boko Haram’s activities and some contradictions in America’s perception of the crises in Nigeria. Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor’s plea to the Americans and the letter written to Hillary Clinton by some scholars who insist that designating Boko Haram an FTO would not solve Nigeria’s problem but would, rather, embolden and further radicalize the group – that, in fact, such a designation would be an endorsement of the might of Boko Haram; these would come up in subsequent series and would enlighten you the more. But before the next series you will also read about the carnage in Damaturu, Yobe State; and the killings in Okene, Kogi State – all by Boko Haram
This is a multi-series package that would run for a while in every edition.
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