FRIDAY DISCOURSE
BY DR. ALIYU TILDE
Nigeria Cannot
Trust Jonathan
Discourse 310
aliyutilde@yahoo.com
Last week, Saharareporters published on its website an article titled
Secret Army Report Implicates NSA Azazi, Ibori, Alamieyeseigha, Henry and
Sunny Okah In Sale Of Military Weapons To Niger Delta Militants. Also,
courtesy of Saharareporters, the full report Niegrian Army Intelligence
Corp (NAIC) can be obtained at http://www.saharareporters.com/sites/default/files/uploads/Azazi.pdf.
The title of the NAIC report which was addressed to Chief of Army Staff (COAS)
was Investigation Report into the Theft and Sale of Arms to Niger Delta
Gunrunner by an Officer and Some Soldiers of the 1 Base Ordinance Depot
Kaduna.
For me the full report is a turning point. After reading it thrice, I am
left with no choice but to ask this embarrassing question: Can we,
Nigerians, afford to trust Jonathan with the presidency in 2011 in the
light of his association with the people involved in the arms theft, with
those who covered them up and, of course, his commitment to the militant
cause of Niger Delta which is increasingly becoming apparent in his
decisions and utterances since he became President? The question is
embarrassing because Jonathan is already our President. And there could
not be a situation more embarrassing than citizens seeing their President
as a security risk.
Briefly, the NAIC report contains details of how close to 7000 assorted
weapons were stolen between 2000 and 2007 from the ordinance depots in
Kaduna and Jaji. The theft was masterminded by one Maj SA Akubo, who sold
them to Niger Delta militants through Sunday Okar, the junior brother of
Henry Okar, the MEND leader. It started with the discovery of the Jaji
incident in February 2007, which renewed another inquiry into the theft
that has been taking place in Kaduna when Gen Azazi (rtd) was the GOC of 1
DIV. Investigations revealed that the two incidents were related. Maj
Akubo, Sgt Mathias, LCpl Alexander, LCpl Moses and LCpl Nnamdi were the
principal culprits in the incidents. The Kaduna theft was investigated
and suppressed by SSS when Lt. LKK Are was its DG in collaboration with
Azazi and one Maj Gen Adekhegba, then Director of Military Intelligence (DMI).
Azazi continued to cover up the case, first in his capacity as GOC 1DIV,
then later as COAS. It took the discovery of the Jaji theft in 2007 and
the tenure of another DG of SSS to mount a conclusive investigation. None
of the recommendations of the NAIC report were taken seriously except the
court-martialling and jailing of Maj Akubo and the soldiers involved.
Sunday Okar was freed and presently aiding Jonathan in the case of the
October 1 Abuja Bombings against his brother Henry.
Two former governors, James Ibori of Delta State and Dipriye
Alamieyeseigha of Bayelsa, purchased the weapons for the militants when
they were serving governors. They were never questioned or sanctioned and
no further investigation into the culpability of other politicians was
conducted as recommended by the NAIC report in order to nib in the bud the
possibility of someone among such politicians becoming a President of
Nigeria one day. NAIC also recommended, among other things, that
investigations be carried out to ascertain the conspiracy theory that the
thefts were part of the Niger Delta plan to secede from Nigeria.
To my knowledge, the Nigerian Army has not come out yet to refute the
authenticity of the report. As a citizen of a democratic society, I think
I am free to express my opinion about it.
This is a report that Nigerians must not let go. With Jonathan on the
wheels of the nation, it is my opinion that its contents has great
significance to our national security. This is also the opinion of NAIC:
“It has been suggested that this issue should be handled in a secretive
manner in order to avoid bad publicity to the NA and the government due to
the embarrassment of the extent of the theft. It is our opinion however
that this is a wrong advice. In as much as this issue deserves to be
carefully handled, we do not have the luxury to keep it under cover.”
Leaking the report could be in reaction to the appointment of General
Azazi as the National Security Adviser (NSA) with the intention of
alerting the nation to its dangerous implication.
The most relevant part of the NAIC report to this discussion is this:
“One wonders what would happen if Nigeria ends up with a president who
does not believe in the entity of the Nigerian nation, and has a record of
involvement in cases like this.”
We now have a president - Jonathan - who was the deputy to one of the
culprits, Alamieyeseigha. One cannot imagine that Jonathan as the deputy
governor could not know anything about the arms deals which his boss was
financing. Emancipation of the Niger Delta is a regional cause and there
could be no way that a deputy governor then would not know how it was
financed or how its weapons were procured. Impossible.
Not only that, Jonathan became the governor when the flow of weapons from
Kaduna and Jaji into the hands of Niger Delta militants was still taking
place. His name could not have been mentioned in the report because it was
compiled in September 2007 when he was already the Vice President! It was
not surprising that investigation into the “many more” politicians
involved in the case was not attempted at all.
More importantly, however, is the association of Jonathan with the people
implicated in the report after he became President. Jonathan cannot claim
ignorance of the report. Yet, as Saharareporters noted, “Alamieyeseigha…is
championing the President Goodluck Janathan’s presidential election bid…
Sunny Okah has since been recruited by the Jonathan administration and is
being used to press the case against his brothers.” The most revealing,
however, is the appointment of General Azazi (rtd) by Jonathan as the new
NSA despite his multiple roles in the case that are explicitly mentioned
in the report. For this, we need to indulge ourselves in some details
about his role.
First, “the period of the arms theft that Maj Akubo masterminded at 1BODK
fall within the period of Gen Azazi’s tour of duty as GOC 1 DIV”, said the
NAIC report. This alone is bad enough. He instituted two shoddy
investigations into the theft to cover up his failures.
Secondly, he was the Chief of Army Staff (COAS) when the DSS (or SSS as we
popularly know it) investigated the 1BODK theft later. He directed, the
Director of Military Intelligence (DMI), Major General Adekhegba to
“facilitate the release of the officers to the DSS, find out why they were
looking for them and also respond on his behalf.” Adekhegba who was
ostensibly working under unwritten directives of Azazi “approved the
release of Maj Akubo with an incomplete investigation of a case that has
probable negative implications on military security without clearing from
the COAS,” said the NAIC report.
Thirdly, according to the NAIC report, the DSS completed its
investigations of the Kaduna thefts before the Jaji one was discovered
without intimating the “NA or NAIC of their findings. Neither did the NA
nor NAIC request for any feedback.” Also, “there is nothing on record to
indicate that the DSS obliged or even responded to the requests” of NAIC
to have “military intelligence officers be part of the investigations”.
DSS kept mute on its findings. NAIC report posed some questions here: “Is
there likelihood that this case was shabbily handled in order that General
Azazi command failures may remain undiscovered? Did Azazi use course mate
influence on the then DG of DSS Lt. Col. LKK Are (rtd) to ensure the case
remain suppressed? Otherwise, why did it take until now, when Are is no
more in office for the DSS to reopen the case and be willing to cooperate
fully with the NA?”
Fourthly, still on Gen Azazi, the army intelligence report had this to
say: “Gen Azazi obviously has more questions to answer regarding his roles
in this case considering the key appointment he held during the period of
the theft. Gen Azazi has already nominated Maj Gen RO Adekhegba for
national merit award, probably as a reward for his role in ensuring that
his complicity in this issue remains undiscovered.” It did not therefore
come as a surprise that the NAIC report noted that “after becoming the
CDS, it is reported that Gen Azazi’s nominee for the position of CDI is
Maj Gen Adekhegba.”
What late President Yar’adua did as a result of this report was to fire
Azazi in 2008 when he was the Chief of Defence Staff, a source told
Saharareporters. I remember that was the time when there were widespread
reports that Niger Delta militants have infiltrated the top hierarchy of
the Nigerian military and the Federal Government was just threatening to
intensify its assault on them.
The recent appointment of Azazi as the NSA by Jonathan justifiably raises
doubts regarding the latter's commitment to the security of this country.
Naturally, the appointment could only be possible if Jonathan was
impressed with his record. And to be so impressed with what we have listed
above requires a mind that shares the same cause with Azazi, not only in
the past but also in the future. Here lies our concern as a nation. How
could a President, who is promising Nigerians a new future if elected in
2011 appoint as head of the entire national security apparatus a person
who was an accomplice in serious security breaches when he was a GOC, COAS
and CDF? How can he return a person fired as CDF and forcefully retired
from the army for reasons well known to the President? For a possible
answer to these questions, the NAIC report gives us some important clues.
The report suggested a “conspiracy theory” which it recommended to be
investigated. The report believes that "there is a link between the 1989
aborted Orkar coup; the 2001 Ikeja Cantonment arms depot explosions; the
arms theft at 1BODK and the militancy in the Niger Delta. It is believed
that there is an orchestrated plan by the Niger Deltans to secede from
Nigeria which is being played out over the years with every opportunity
they have. It is also believed that they took maximum advantage of the
unique opportunity they had with successive appointments of Gens Ogomudia,
Asemota and Azazi as GOCs I DIV.”
This secession theory is not the speculation of a columnist or
Saharareporters. It is a theory coming from Nigerian Army Intelligence
Corps and it must be given due recognition. If indeed they intend to
secede as entailed by their threats, militancy and weapons accumulation,
then they can do so easily in the near future, for their plan is rolling
so nicely without any obstacle. They now have the Federal Government
headed by a President of their own. He is doing everything to cover them
up and strengthen them. He has now appointed another of their own, who
collaborated with them so much before in stealing arms from Nigerian
military depots, to head the institution that oversees the Army, Navy, Air
Force, SSS, Police, etc. He now advises the President on anything
regarding these bodies. And, of course, by his antecedents, he cannot
advise him against the interest of his own people. He has also appointed
another Niger Deltan, Ita Ekpeyong, as DG of SSS. And Nigerians are simply
watching!
Equally alarming is the plan to recruit the militants as national coast
guards. Few days ago, on 2 November, 2010, Daily Trust reported that the
Vice President inaugurated a committee on the integration of the militants
as guards in an inter-ministerial/interagency meeting on human capital
development master plan for amnesty programme. “Incessant insecurity at
our coasts”, the VP noted, “is as a result of inadequate coast guards who
may give information and perfectly protect the coasts… Sustainable
security in the Niger Delta can only be achieved if there is enough
surveillance by the security agencies.” Are the criminals in the Niger
Delta the most qualified to secure our coasts? Why won't the government
also recruit Odua Peoples Congress in Lagos and Boko Haram in Borno to
achieve "sustainable security" on our borders in the southwest and
northeast respectively? In fact, aren't there enough law abiding,
able-bodied and patriotic youths in the Niger Delta to employ as coast
guards? Why resort to vandals, thieves, kidnappers, insurgents and
terrorists?
So these militants will be officially recruited, trained and armed by the
very government they have been fighting against for over fifteen years.
And the President is doing so very fast such that the militants would be
employed, trained and armed before he leaves office next April, just in
case he fails in the next elections. Thus, the committee is just given ten
days to submit its report on the modalities of the integration, implying
that the matter is already fait accompli.
Imagine how much security damage Jonathan can inflict on this country if
this trend continues until 2015. Niger Delta would have completed all
arrangements for a secession: increased oil revenues that could be used to
buy weapons; complete undermining of the military through posting agent
officers as commanders especially along the coastal area and possible
relocation of military hardware to the region; and well trained guards to
oversee the illegal activities required to achieve this goal with the aid
of Nigerian state machinery which they did not enjoy hitherto. Then, the
conspiracy theory of the army intelligence corps would not need to be
investigated into and ascertained. It would be a reality, just as would
become of the prophesy of the disintegration of the nation by 2015 that is
widespread in diplomatic circles.
We have finally stumbled on why Jonathan is desperate to continue beyond
2011. He has not convinced us on any manifesto. He has not achieved
anything so far to impress us. His only argument is he is anti-zoning. To
achieve his ambition, he has resorted to using primordial sentiments of
religion, regionalism and whatever the PDP crooking machine has perfected.
And the nation is buying it, hook, line and sinker. It is really a pity.
Nigerians cannot trust Jonathan. They can only do so at their own peril. I
am not keen about the origins of a good President whom all of us can
trust. But I am baffled at how the entire southern part of the country has
shied away from fielding other aspirants in addition of Jonathan or in his
stead. The South is undoubtedly blessed with hundreds of such competent
people. Everything is left on the shoulders of the traditionally maligned
North, a situation which Jonathan, his co-militants and their sponsors are
cashing on to orchestrate a victory in 2011.
That is how calamity creeps into a nation, as it did in Germany. It is
aided most by the conspiratorial silence of the majority who sees it as a
distant speculation. That majority preoccupies itself with daily
stereotyping of some groups. In Germany it was the Jews. It fails to
listen to the voices of wisdom; in fact, it penalizes them. Until it is
too late, at the cost of unimaginable number of lives and the suffering of
millions, the nation fails to heed to the warnings coming from such
discernible minds. We once had that fateful experience too. The Nigerian
civil war: A million killed; three million deliberately starved; millions
others injured; many more rendered homeless; and an entire region had to
start life again from the scratch. The nation was watching sheepishly as
the events were unfolding, starting with the belief in the propaganda that
led to the January 1965 coup and subsequent events. Is not that enough a
deterrent for Nigerians to stop the Niger Delta secession plan with the
benefit of hindsight? How can we afford to be so blind?
For me, the beginning of wisdom is to start questioning every step of
Jonathan. For example, why are the suspects of the Abuja Bombing tried
secretly despite protests from the civil society? What are Jonathan and
Azazi afraid of? Are they afraid that the suspects might tell the public
all the dirty secrets of their past and present sponsors? There are also
complaints from all regions about the lopsidedness of recent postings in
the military. More such postings are coming within the next two weeks.
Such things must be challenged nationwide, including the appointment of
Azazi and many of his boys. Then the recruitment of terrorists as coast
guards must be resisted. Their previous actions disqualify them ab initio
from becoming employed in the defence establishment. Besides, MEND is
still active. Even this morning, another bomb blast was reported.
Next is that instead of contemplating a post-2011 Jonathan, I would rather
implore competent Nigerians from every corner of the nation and in any
party they may be to please come forward and contest for the Presidency.
Let us dump Jonathan because so far he has proved that there is enough in
him to scare us. In my estimation, he has become a security risk.
The National Assembly and the National Council of State must come on
board. Their members must open their eyes to this plan. They must stop
being rubberstamps of the Presidency on issues regarding the Niger Delta.
We wre not helping our brothers in that region by according them the
luxury of preferential treatment. A spoilt child always courts disaster
for its family.
However, my loudest call goes to the intellectuals and elders of Niger
Delta. Politicians on many occasions are no better than thugs in their
thought and could be more brutal in their conscience. For some time now
politicians in the region have been under the mercy of its thugs. The
nation has toed their line too by adopting appeasement as a solution to
their criminal actions. But there does not seem to be an end to their
demand until they engulf us in another tragedy. We need to hear voices of
reason from that region while we do the little we can which is often
received with hesitation. There could be consequences for going against
the tide but their sour taste would pale before the avoidable sufferings
of a nation.
Finally, as I depart for Hajj, I am closing this article with the now
familiar warning in the NAIC report: “One wonders what would happen if
Nigeria ends up with a president who does not believe in the entity of the
Nigerian nation, and has a record of involvement in cases like this."
If...if... That was a possibility. Now it is a warning.
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