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Obasanjo’s Statements and Actions are Far Better than the Ethnic Cleansing Incited by Dariye and the CAN in Plateau state By Audu Zango
Sequel
to the ethnic cleansing by the Tarok murderous militia in Plateau state,
incited by the corrupt and evil government of Dariye, backed by
diabolical clergy in Plateau state, Obasanjo declared a state of
emergency and suspended the state government. Instead of sober
reflections, reconciliation, reconstruction and rehabilitation, some
individuals and groups engaged in emotional outbursts, threats,
intimidation and wasteful arguments, which would not reverse the
suspension nor help in peaceful resolution of the situation. It is
surprising that people forget our history so easily as if no state of
emergency has ever been declared by previous governments in Nigeria.
Balewa’s government declared a state of emergency in the then western
region of Nigeria during the political crisis between Awolowo and
Akintola in 1962 and Shagari declared a state of emergency in 1980
during Maitatsine crisis in Kano. The
first crisis in Plateau state started about 5 years ago when the Federal
Government appointed a Plateau state indigene who happened to be Hausa,
as secretary of the poverty alleviation committee for that state.
Some selfish individuals and the state government then
orchestrated a campaign against that officer labeling him as a
non-citizen. This subsequently degenerated in to a situation where the
state government and some diabolical clergymen in the CAN incited and
abated destruction of lives and property of those they childishly and
falsely labeled as non-citizens. In the course of arson and looting the
not only burnt business premises and houses, but stole away cattle of
some nomadic herds men, which brought retaliatory raids and killings.
This is worsened by the fact that the security agencies not only extort
money from poor Hausa farmers and Fulani herds men in the villages, but
also collude with the militia in killing them. It is also a fact that
roaming armed robbers who have being unleashing terror to many villages
in Northern Nigeria and killing people on the high ways are also
operating in Plateau state. When they strike the communities and
disappear, the Local Hausa –Fulani villagers on the Plateau are
attacked in retaliation. It
is a situation where more than two wrongs did not make a right. The
declaration of the state of emergency was a right step in the right
direction, only that it came late. I believe it was taken with good
intentions to safeguard innocent lives against a bloodthirsty militia.
The suspension of the state governor was an act of unnecessary mercy by
Obasanjo to an evil governor who had incited hatred and genocides, then
left his state burning to stash away public money abroad. He should have
been charged and prosecuted instead of mere suspension. As
of Obasanjo’s encounter with Rev. Pam, He only called a spade what it
is – a spade, albeit harshly. How ever the innocent loss of lives,
abduction of women & children who are still held hostage by the
murderers of their relatives, burning of the returnees and continues
incitement to genocides is far worse than any harsh rebuke suffered by
Rev. Pam. So Obasanjo should not apologize to him as advocated by some
people. The encounter is described in Hausa as sabo
da kaaza baya hana a yankata. Infact
the behavior of CAN leaders in general is questionable. They kept on
preaching to the folk that Obasanjo was chosen by god to lead us. They
had threatened hell fire on earth if he was not brought back to power
after his first tenure, their leaders campaigned for him and they had
told everyone who criticized the rigging in the last election to shut up
(remember the utterances of Mbang!). When the folk cried over recurrent
increase in price of fuel and general deterioration of services they
kept silent! Is it not childishness to insult Obasanjo just because he
decided to be assertive in declaring a state of emergency in Plateau
state to stop the ethnic cleansing? CAN leaders should learn the art of
constructive criticism, appreciate the importance of diversity, and
eschew bitterness & hypocrisy. They are wrong in wanting us to
believe that it is only religion that influences human behavior. The
solution to this crisis has to be multi dimensional in order to achieve
meaning full progress. Justice: Apart
from the declaration of the state of emergency, Institutions that have
facilitated the genocides among state Government officials, CAN
officials and Security agencies in Plateau state as well as the
effectors of both the Shendam and Yelwa massacres must be prosecuted,
because no meaning full reconciliation is possible without justice. The
state of emergency should continue until there is no threat to life or
property and if necessary fresh elections should be done at the end. The
Zangon Kataf crisis was solved only when the culprits were brought to
book. Similarly
in other states of the North, violent religious groups like Salafi or
Shia must be warned to follow the path of peace or else face prosecution
for any violence. Security:
The current security forces in Shendam and Yelwa must be swapped with
security forces from other units in the country, because they have been
proven to collude with the murderers. Any security officer who colludes
henceforth must be court marshaled. The Federal Government should also
reverse the unnecessary and illegal retirement of Muslims from the
security agencies, which it started since the inception of this
administration. It was a wrong signal that gave confidence to those who
have being nursing the idea of ethnic cleansing. Who
ever gave the order to withdraw police in Yelwa a day before the ethnic
cleansing must be prosecuted. It is also worth investigating why is it
that the Nigeria Police only arrives at the scenes of arson and looting
at the end and not when it is happening? In
addition the whole security situation of the country must be reviewed in
order that a meaning full blue print for solving the problem can be
outlined. The whole North is now unsafe due to the activity of roaming
armed robbers and bandits who collude with the security agencies. The
murderers who massacred people in Shendam are likely from that group. In
addition institutions and individuals who are suspected or known to have
stolen weapons from the armory or imported weapons from abroad must be
investigated and prosecuted what ever their hierarchy in a religious
order or their social standing. Socio
economic; the root cause of all the current ethno religious conflicts is
corruption, which breeds deprivation, jealousy, poverty, hatred, cultism
and genocides. Some
vulnerable groups must be targeted for rehabilitation in order that
sanity may return. Evil groups bent on ethnic cleansing as happened
recently in Plateau state used some of the retired soldiers who are not
paid their retirement benefits. They need serious measures towards
rehabilitation so that they don’t need to resort to ethnic cleansing
to survive. The Kano state government in particular should set up a
committee to find ways of solving the menace of Yan Daba hooligans who
have tainted the reputation of Kano. The
Kano state government should borrow a leaf from Marwa’s programme for
the area boys during his tenure as a governor in Lagos. Political:
The efforts of the Sultan in convening a peace conference in which
traditional rulers, religious groups, politicians, and non-governmental
organizations were invited are commendable. The attendance to the
meeting was encouraging since it reflected the diversity of the North.
Some of the groups and individuals that refused to attend are the ones
whose influence will be threatened by peaceful resolution of the
conflict and it shouldn’t deter those intent on achieving peace.
However even at that, notable and peaceful individuals like Gowon should
still be persuaded to attend while those known to incite hatred and
genocides can be ignored if they refused to attend. The
Federal Government should also prosecute governments and individuals
that categorize some indigenes of a particular state as non-citizens of
that state. The Federal character commission should be re organized,
findings of nepotism must be reported to both the executive and the
parliament. The Federal character commission offices must be established
in states also because nepotism is worse in the states. A
national conference in the future is not out of order. However it should
start from the grass roots. Each senatorial district should elect a
delegate .The delegates from each state should discuss with groups and
individuals from that state. Meetings in each of the six sub regions
should follow this before a national one can be convened. At
individual level, the PDP can arrange for Chibi Dariye to visit Governor
Makarfi for mentoring on how to run a multi ethnic state. The two are
contrasting examples of leadership qualities. Makarfi handled his state
with maturity and fairness to the satisfaction of all citizens, thereby
reaping peace and respect, while Dariye was blinded by greed, hatred and
hypocrisy, at the end he brought bloodshed to the innocent citizenry and
got himself suspended.
In
conclusion the declaration of the state of emergency was a necessity
meant to stop ethnic cleansing and retaliatory killings. Moreover it was
not the first state of emergency that was declared in this country.
Individuals and groups known to have facilitated or committed the ethnic
cleansing must be brought to book for crimes against humanity.
Pro-active measures to prevent retaliation in other states must be
taken. So called religious groups that operate like cults must be
investigated, their diabolical plans exposed and neutralized for the
citizenry to enjoy peace. Yours
faithfully, Audu Zango |