DESTROYING THE FOUNDATION OF BOKO HARAM – The role of the Northern Muslim Ummah

Posted on April 30, 2014 Updated on April 30, 2014

I have written a number of articles on Boko Haram crises since 2012:
1) https://sacs945.wordpress.com/2012/10/15/confronting-our-security-challenges-boko-haram-in-perspective-2/
2) https://sacs945.wordpress.com/2014/02/26/killing-in-the-name-of-god/
3) https://sacs945.wordpress.com/2014/02/07/our-common-enemy/
4) https://sacs945.wordpress.com/2012/12/
5) https://sacs945.wordpress.com/2013/10/23/woe-betide-the-killers-of-innocent-students-in-gss-mamudo/
6) https://sacs945.wordpress.com/2013/12/23/there-never-was-a-bad-peace-or-a-good-war-ben-franklin/

This may be my last!

Most of the problems we have in Nigeria were created by us. In the case Boko Haram, we were living in a relative peace in Nigeria before the Northern Muslim Ummah allowed Senator Yerima to bring in a political sharia to the country. There was an original sharia that was practiced by Sir Ahmadu Bello and Sir Abubakar Tafawa Balewa and was preached in the Northern states by Sheikh Ibrāhīm Niass (Inyass). This original sharia did not create room for extremism. The present Boko Haram began in 2001; two years after Sen. Ahmed Yerima launched the political sharia in Nigeria. We warned of the consequences of allowing a politician dictate the tune of religion but the Northern Muslim Ummah said it is the Will of Allah Subḥānahu Wa Ta’Ala. Little did they know that Sen. Yerima is a paedophile and he was only looking for a religious support for his nefarious intention. We also warned that allowing children to move about in inhumane conditions under the name of Almajiri will make them to hate themselves, the society and the Nation. It will also make terrorists to show them some ‘love’ and recruit them as suicide bombers. This assertion was later supported by Governor Rabi’u Musa Kwankwaso of Kano State. He said: “We have a situation in this part of the country where parents give birth to 20 to 30 children, chose only two out of them and send the rest away to God knows where. Children are sent to places that they don’t know. They are left to fend for themselves. We have a situation where you go round the city and find garrison of children—able-bodied youths begging …. having been abandoned by their parents, those children grow up to hate themselves, hate their parents, hate the leaders, hate the government and the society. They feel they were deprived, they feel injustice and they become enemies of the state and constituted authorities; and thereby becoming vulnerable to crime and violence.” (end of quote). It is unfortunate that these important warnings fell on deaf ears. To them, we were going against the teachings of the Holy Prophet (SWT).

Life and existence is a choice. When you keep yourself vulnerable to negativity, it is bound to befall you. Any Country (Sudan, Somalia, Afghanistan, Pakistan etc) in the world that infiltrates her original Sharia with a Political Sharia end up battling with some level of extremism and fundamentalism – It comes as one package. For instance, Iran rejected the political Sharia and they are moving head to head with world powers in terms of technological breakthrough. The sequence leading to the crisis in Nigeria is straight – Political Sharia came to the country in 1999, Religious extremism (more intense than Maitatsine) followed in 2001. So we can invariable say that the political sharia brought the insurgency we are facing today. Although Sen. Ali Modu Sheriff used the insurgents for his political tussle in 2003 and 2007 in Borno State, the foundation was laid by Sen. Ahmed Yerima in Zamfara State and extended by former Governor Ibrahim Shekarau in Kano state.

Let me refer the Northern Muslim Ummah to what the Governor of Osun State, Ustaz Rauf Aregbesola asked them to do. He said: “We must rise up and denounce the evil perpetrated by the Boko Haram sect because they are tarnishing the peace­ful religion of Islam. I call on the Sultan of Sokoto to immediately lead other sincere Muslims in a protest to denounce and totally reject the activities of the sect” (end of quote). I will like to add that a Fatwa be slammed on Shekau, the leader of Boko Haram. The truth is we of the Christian and Traditional religion cannot continue to cry more than the bereaved. The bereaved should show genuine concern and renounce this extremist group completely. I therefore call on my Northern Muslim friends to henceforth cease the aggressive agitation for the return of power to the North and channel their energy in pursuit for peace in the North. If they can use just one full month to write against Boko Haram on social and print media, Boko Haram will be history before the end of this year.

On the Military angle, I advocated for the use of dialogue when this crisis began. By dialogue I do not mean talking to the miscreants/terrorists. I mean talking to their sponsors. We cannot pretend as a nation with all our security paraphernalia that we don’t know the sponsors. Since we have chosen the use of brute force, I will advise the Security Council to arm the Civilian JTF in Borno. The Americans faced the same challenge in Anbar province in Iraq – They could not enter Anbar province just like our military are finding it difficult to enter Sambisa forest. The Americans armed the civilians (Sons of Iraq) who knew the terrain and had high morale to fight; and in less than one month, Anbar province was captured. Finally, the Ministry of Defense should be probed. Nigerians should demand to know why our Military lack the Modern weaponry and logistics needed to execute the war despite the huge budgetary provision for security.

JUST FOR THE EYES OF BENUE INDIGENES – Unveiling the true state of our State

Posted on April 24, 2014 Updated on April 24, 2014

I find it difficult commenting on the politics in my state because it has been polarized by pundits into ACN (Akume) and PDP (Suswam)/ Tiv Governor and Idoma Governor – this leaves little or no room for objective analysis. Benue State is one of the states in Nigeria with the highest number University graduates (You can confirm this with the NYSC). The state also doubles as one of the states with the highest number of unemployed graduates (check the National Directorate of Employment for the statistics). It therefore means that we are faced with the herculean task of providing job to this army of unemployed youths. I was a kid when Aper Aku ruled but I read from my history books and I came to realize that he remains the best Governor Benue state has ever had. During his four years in office, he was able to record the following achievements:
**Construction of Benue State Secretariat
** Construction of Benue Brewery
** Construction of Benue packaging Company
** Construction of Otukpo Burn Bricks
** Construction of Makurdi Modern Market
** Construction of Aper Aku Township Stadium
** Construction of Taraku Mills
** Construction of Ikyo-gen Cattle Ranch
** Construction of Beer Agbum Fish Farms
** Construction of rural roads
** Construction of Benue International hotel
**Government Technical College (GTC) and numerous Teachers Colleges(TC) in the present Benue and Kogi state.
**He initiated the plan for a state University etc
The only issue with his government was the fact that teachers were not always paid their salaries when due.

We also had Rv. Fr. (Dr.) Moses Adasu who in less than two years in office gave us a University. He also gave us a College of Education at Oju which has produced thousands of teachers. Tarkaa foundation among other structures was built by him.

Fidelis Maaka and Jonah Jang though from Niger and Plateau state respectively, performed very well in the state in terms of infrastructure development as Military Administrators.

When this nascent democracy started in 1999, the Benue people expected much from aspiring politicians, considering the fact that the state is a poor state. We expected the government to upgrade the state to the national grid of 330KVA which Aper Aku started in partnership with Shagari’s government. We expected the government to establish a tractor assembling plant that will aid farmers to rent tractors at a cheap rate for mechanize farming. We expected them to build Tomato and fruit juice companies to put to an end the waste associated with these products due to poor preservative facilities. We expected them to make the rural areas as comfortable as the urban areas by providing them with clean water, good/equipped hospitals, markets/stores and to connect the whole rural areas and urban areas with good roads in order to stop our able young farmers from abandoning their farming occupation for “okada” in urban areas. We expected a fertilizer blending plant that will provide farmers with affordable fertilizer and put an end to the normal shifting cultivation that often lead to communal clashes. We expected the industrialization of the state – We expected the Igumale and Yandev Cement factory to be operational. We expected the Benue state government to team up with the Federal government to dredge the River Benue to prevent flooding of the riverine areas and open the opportunity for ferries and cargos to come in, which will make Makurdi a commercial hub in the North central. Have these expectations been met? The answer is NO.

George Akume (1999-2007) came in with hope which he encapsulated in his blueprint, the BENUE ADVANCE PLAN. This blueprint was written by Benue Technocrats. To be fair with Sen. George, he started the foundation for the implementation of this blueprint but abandoned it along the way for a new political philosophy of empowering people directly with cash. To some people, this philosophy touched their lives because they were able to build houses, buy cars and marry new wives. This philosophy would have been effective if Akume was a Governor in the Eastern state – the Easterners are good entrepreneurs; they would have invested the money into profitable businesses that would have elevated them from a low class status to a middle class status. The Benue guys that were empowered with this cash gift ended up to be poorer than they were after squandering the money on frivolous things.

One thing that analyst say affected Akume’s government was the invasion of displaced TIV people who were affected by communal clashes in Nassarawa and Taraba to Benue state. Another issue was the Zaki Biam massacre and its lingering effect. His major achievement apart from the philosophy of cash donation was his strong interest in Benue state university which saw the opening of a new college – The Benue State University College of Health Science. He also opened up new layouts in Makurdi town. Prominent among the layouts are Judges Quarters along Gboko road and Owner Occupier along Otukpo road. His wife’s women empowerment programme was another achievement of his government. If I will rate his administration base on his blueprint and in comparison to Aper Aku, I will give him 25%.

Gabriel Suswam (2007 – Present) came into government as a young man in his early forties. He came in with his own blueprint called OUR BENUE, OUR FUTURE. His plan was to complete AKume’s blue print and also build on his own. He came up with a popular adage – ‘I will not share money, but I will use it to develop the state’. Although I didn’t vote for him in the 2007 election, I however supported his government because of those words. His administration started like the miracle at Canaan where water was turned into wine. In less than hundred days in office, his achievements were exceptional and excellent. He even won Thisday award for his work on Infrastructure as the best governor in the country. He also performed well in terms of security in his first tenure and he completed the Benue State University teaching hospital which was initiated by his immediate predecessor. That was the last thing the Benue people saw in his blue print. He then abandoned the state affairs for national politics at the detriment of the poor state. He like his immediate predecessor did little or nothing to reduce the alarming unemployment rate in the state. Neither did their governments build industries or created an enabling environment for the private sector to come in. The Governor is a young man and it is not too late for him to go back to his blueprint and implement the pact he signed with the good people of Benue state.

Those living in the state will agree with me that the level of thuggery activities is at its peak and most of our young and ambitious girls are lured into the illicit business of prostitution under glorified names like ‘runs’ or ‘see Aristo’. Hotel business is now the only booming industry in the state. These thugs who are empowered by politicians with guns bought with tax payer’s money now operate in a mafia kind of arrangement, deciding who get what in the state. The most annoying thing is that these thugs own and drive the best of cars while intelligent and hardworking young men and women in the state walk the streets jobless. Another group of people feeding fat on the state monthly allocation are some poverty stricken elites who go by the name PARTY MEN and ELDER STATEMEN. The only work they do is to disturb public office holders for money. This group of people are responsible for the failure of Local Government administration; they ensure that their puppet is made Chairman then they turn the Local government treasury to their personal ATM.

The truth is that the voice of reason and conscience is dying in the state. I remember during my undergraduate days at BSU, I had friends we shared similar philosophy and ideology. We stood on podiums/platforms/pinnacles, using the power of oratory to articulate these ideas. We vowed to defend the truth and promote justice at all times for the sake of the poor, vulnerable and the disenchanted members of the society. These ideas were devoid of any religious or ethnic affiliation – they were however based on our strong and uncompromising principles. We agreed not to succumb to the pressure of quick money or dubious political appointments meant to dwindle our collective resolve. The last time I checked, I discovered that most of them are now tamed with appointments like Personal Assistant and Special Assistant by some politicians impoverishing our people. Being an SA or PA with a portfolio is good but being a PA just to be tamed or to be used as a pimp is an insult to the youths. My advice to the youths is that only God has the power to dictate their destinies not any corrupt politician. At God’s appointed time, you will eat from the table of our common wealth without compromising or settling for droplets from the table of a corrupt few. As my Dad will always say: “Money is something but money is not everything, a good name is better than Silver and Gold”.

The last thing I will like to urge the youths is that they should desist from the use of violence in their agitation for a better life. Let me mention some politicians that are successful in life without violence but hard work. Professor Iyorwuese Hagher, Professor David Iornem, Professor David Ker, Professor Daniel Saror and Professor Ode Ojowu can always return to the class after politics; so they won’t be too desperate as to use violence to achieve their goal. They have achieved their present societal status out of hard work. Chief Audu Ogbe will always go back to his farm after politics and Chief David Attah will go back to consulting, using the power of his pen. To the best of my knowledge, I have never heard that these gentlemen encourage the youths to take up arms. Youths who want to venture into partisan politics should emulate these gentlemen.

Now, our present political office holders should please use the remaining year of their tenure to touch the poor state positively:
1) Sen. David Mark should ensure that the $3bn concessionary loan the Federal government got from China at a minimal interest rate (which encapsulates the dualisation of Nassarawa, Makurdi to Enugu road) be well utilised. He should also present the case for the dredging of River Benue.
David Mark’s advisers should tell him that it is better to establish an Industry in Otukpo that will employ thousands of graduates than to give family and friends Federal jobs under the guise of empowering the Idomas
2) Sen. Akume George should try and see that the Wannune Tomato factory is resuscitated.
3) Sen. Gemade should think of any cottage industry he can bring or establish at Tse-Agberagba
4) I would have advised Comrade Abba Moro to think of an industry that will package and bottle the palm wine produced at Ogbadibo and Okpokwu for export but for the recent NIS aptitude scam, I will advise him to resign and save the state further embarrassment.
5) I don’t think completing a part of Makurdi – Gbajimba road will be too much for Ortom as his personal contribution to Guma LGA
6) Suswan should go back to his blueprint (Our Benue, Our Future) and see what he can do within this remaining period of his tenure.
7) All other elective office holders should think of investing in any venture in the state that will generate employment instead of littering our town with hotels.
8) Benue sons and daughters who are blessed with wealth should also invest in the state.

As peace gradually returns, we hope to see rapid development!
Benue will be great, this I believe!

MAN’S INHUMANITY TO MAN (The rising of a second Jihad in Nigeria)

Posted on April 22, 2014

There was a dispute between the Tiv farmers and Fulani herdsmen. I wrote an article (https://sacs945.wordpress.com/2014/02/21/tivfulani-crisis-the-quickest-solution/), urging both parties in the dispute to sheath in their swords and allow peace to reign. I have been reluctant to accept that the Fulanis are responsible for the recent guerrilla attacks and annihilation going on in Benue state, where people are massacred on a daily basis while those who survive the attacks are sacked from their ancestral homes. These invaders normally mount a flag with Arabic/Islamic inscription and then shout “Allahu Akbar” after capturing a village.
Prior to now, I had two thoughts about the attacks:

1. I thought they were either politically orchestrated to divide the North
OR
2. Some fleeing Islamic extremists from Mali and Central African Republic who came into our country through the porous Northern border are desperately looking for new settlement.

But with the Sultan of Sokoto, Lamido of Adamawa, Emir of Kano and other Muslim ummah in the North keeping mute and turning a blind eye to the Massacre going on in Benue state (only to complain when ‘soldiers’ attack some ‘Fulani herdsmen’ in Nassarawa state), clearly shows that there is a deliberate plan to complete the 1804 – 1808 Usman Danfodio Jihad (called Damkor in Tiv) which consumed the Hausas and Kanuris but was vehemently resisted from reaching the Middle-Belt, South East and South-South by the Tiv people.
Within this period of attacks:
• Over 2000 Benue people including women and children have been killed. A lot of the women were raped. There seems to be an organized approach to eliminate the productive group.
• Over 200, 000 displaced people are without food, water and medical supplies.
• Hundreds and thousands sleep in open places; relations and well-meaning Benue people shelter some and others find themselves in primary schools.
• Economic loses: at least N10 billion loses in terms of food crops, economic trees, and properties and still counting. Even in the next 10 years the economy of Benue cannot recover from this shock.
• There is impending food crisis, as the farmers are not even able to farm.
• These figures are conservative because hundreds of Tiv and Idoma people are still missing.
• Helicopters have been cited in Benue dropping armed mercenaries.
• Chemical weapons have been used on Tiv people (NAFDAC confirmed this)

I therefore call on the ‘Core’ Northerners to immediately end the attacks in Benue State/Tiv nation and direct their cattle to graze within their own perimeter area (up North). The Grazing Reserve Bill sponsored by Senator Zainab Kure should not be read for the third time in the Senate. ‘Core’ Northern State Houses of Assembly should adopt the bill and pass it in their respective states. The government should do everything within the law to chase out these murderers. If they can’t protect they Benue people from this external aggressors, they should allow the Benue people to import arms and ammunition to do the job. You will recall that the first description of a Tiv man by the British Encyclopaedia is that he is a Warrior, and Benue State has the highest number of ex-service men in Nigeria. The Benue people are law abiding that is why there is no proliferation of arms in the State. If the Benue people are allowed to import arms and protect their territory, this group of Jihadists will be completely chased out of Benue and the whole of Middle Belt. I call on well-meaning Nigerians to support the fight against this external aggressors so that Benue people will live in peace and continue to produce food (Tiv account for over 90% of the yams; over 80% of the rice and benniseed, 100% of soya beans, and 80% of citrus produced in Nigeria) to feed the Nation.

*Today (22nd April, 2014) is the 24th Anniversary of MAJOR GIDEON GWAZA ORKAR Revolutionary activity.
*We speak with confidence today because you (Orkar) spoke yesterday.
*May your soul continue to rest in peace our Martyr and Hero.