Boko Haram: The Fate Of Jonathan And The Nigerian People

By Jonathan Ekene Ifeanyi

Watching politicians do their dirty jobs can sometimes be a source of fun rather than disgusting. Indeed, I had such a fun recently when, passing through Tafawa Balewa Square, Lagos Island, just a few days after Goodluck Jonathan came to hold his campaign rally there, and all I saw were posters of him and those of the Lagos PDP governorship candidate, Jimi Agbaje, as well as other PDP candidates, pasted all over the place.  By this time, even though Jonathan had left, there were still several security men all over the area, so the beautiful posters were all intact. However, a few more days, I passed through the same road and behold, the entire posters had been torn by APC mobs, and indeed invaded, one after another, by the relentless advance of Buhari/Osinbajo campaign posters,  and different kinds of campaign posters with various photos of Boko Haram victims. Thus PDP posters retreated as the APC posters advanced!

Later, PDP supporters regrouped, ready for a showdown, and came back with anger to bombard the area with fresh, new fantastic posters.

Now what caught my attention wasn’t really this destruction of posters of political opponents on the part of the APC—you know, politicians can do their barbaric and dirty jobs, I don’t give a damn—but the campaign posters with the photos of Boko Haram victims. The following were written on the posters: “No Equipment for Security Forces…But 4.3 Trillion Security Budget.” “Corruption over Security.” “Vote for Change!”

It is interesting, indeed, to note here that the impression created is simply that Goodluck is responsible for the Boko Haram menace and that the only person who can guarantee security for the entire nation is simply Muhammadu Buhari. Elect him and the security challenge issues are over! That is their persuasion, and indeed many Nigerians, including the “highly learned,” agree!

Accusing Goodluck’s administration of not just being a weak system that cannot fight “insurgency,” but also—in fact—of being the very brain behind Boko Haram didn’t just start today. For instance, last year, we heard of Northern Elders Forum giving Jonathan an ultimatum till the end of October 2014 to bring back the over 200 abducted school girls from the Chibok area of Borno State. The elders also “ordered” Jonathan to end the Boko Haram “insurgency” with immediate effect, threatening that failure to do so meant he was not fit to seek a re-election in 2015.  The forum alleged that the FG’s failure to put an end to the insecurity in Yobe, Borno and Adamawa States was a plot to weaken the North’s political and economic potentials ahead of the 2015 elections. Hear them:

“We are convinced that most of these conflicts are being engineered to weaken the North politically and economically by interests which intend to exploit such weaknesses for electoral benefits. In the light of our firm conviction that the insurgency and related security challenges pose threats to the 2015 elections and the survival of our nation, we strongly advise President Jonathan to bring to an end the insurgency in all its manifestations and produce the Chibok girls before the end of October, 2014.” Since then, northern leaders have been spreading the falsehood fast in the region that Jonathan’s administration is fuelling the Boko Haram “insurgency” in parts of the North to enhance his chances of re-election in the 2015 general elections. From Katsina to Kaduna, Bauchi to Kano and so on, virtually all the leaders Saturday Sun spoke to on the strong feelings spreading like wildfire that the Federal Government was conniving with some factions of Boko Haram to wreak havoc in the North, said the paper, gave the same verdict. They accused Jonathan of working clandestinely to use the “insurgency” to depopulate the North ahead of the February 2015 elections. In fact, former Commissioner of Police in Lagos State, Abubakar Tsav, accused the presidency of using Niger Delta militants to carry out the November 28, 2014 bombing of Kano Central Mosque!

Similarly, in late December 2011 we heard of the former Kaduna State Governor, Alhaji Balarabe Musa exonerating Boko Haram from the 2011 Christmas Day bombings that killed dozens of Catholics at St Theresa’s Catholic Church in Madala. For him, Jonathan is simply behind the bombings. Despite claim by Boko Haram to be responsible for the blasts, Musa argued that government’s bad policies could lead groups to act against them. Hear him: “I doubt if the bombings are done by Boko Haram. I very much doubt it. I think it is something more organised. Definitely it is something subversive.  Something directly related to the government. We are yet to know who is directly responsible for these acts. You know that the state of the nation is bad in every respect. There is protest against the government and its policies from various sources. So you don’t know which particular source is responsible for this unfortunate incident. I think when one goes through the statement of the sect and the so-called spokesman, there is no coordination. Secondly, this particular identification of churches on Christmas Day, I don’t understand it. There is no reason for any person or group to do this. The world over, there is no reason for such attack on a celebration day like this. Why should they target churches? So, I very much doubt if this is caused by Boko Haram. Some people of course can claim this is Boko Haram, but, again if you listen to their statements, you will find out that there are contradictions. So, the government has to really sit down and find out the true situation”. He further insisted: “I very much doubt if this incident is Boko Haram, I think it is something more national…The government has a problem, it has legitimacy problem, it is not performing, and the leaders are not cohesive in many ways. These are the undoing of the government we have today.”

In November 2014, Musa repeated, “Some of us believe that Boko Haram is not a religious problem. It is more of a political problem. Boko Haram is a problem created by the government deliberately to destabilise Nigeria and divert the attention of the people from the failures of the government. With Nigeria destabilised, starting from the North, when the 2015 elections come, the level of insecurity will be so much that Nigerians will not be concerned with the elections. Instead, they’ll be concerned primarily with peace. That will make election rigging easy.”

Again, we also heard of the former minister of the FCT, Malam Nasir el-Rufai, having a field day on Twitter taunting the Federal Government and hurling veiled insults at Goodluck, tweeting every negative message against him by his followers on Twitter. Many Nigerians had expressed disgust that el-Rufai, who received public sympathy after the death of his own daughter, could turn around and use the deaths of innocent worshippers as propaganda to further his antagonism against Goodluck after he lost out in the power scramble after his return from exile. The same el-Rufai had earlier then called on Goodluck to negotiate with the terrorists.

Again, in August 2014, we heard of the Australian character named Stephen Davis, the so-called “crisis negotiator”, setting the media ablaze with his allegations regarding Boko Haram sponsors. Davis aroused our sleeping consciousness when he alleged in an interview with the Australian Broadcasting Company (ABC) that Islamic terrorist sect, Boko Haram, was being funded by Nigerian politicians. But this wasn’t the main news as many Nigerians were aware of that fact. In a subsequent interview with Arise TV, Davis went further to name former Borno State Governor, Modu Sheriff and former Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Azubuike Ihejirika, as sponsors of the group! Angered by this amazing allegation, the Ohanaeze Ndigbo Youth Wing threatened to label the All Progressives Congress, APC, an ‘anti-Igbo political party’  if it failed to apologise to former Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Azubuike Ihejirika, within 48 hours. The threat, which the Ohanaeze Youth Wing issued in a statement jointly signed by its National Secretary, Emmanuel Nnabuike, and Publicity Secretary, Obinna Adibe, followed the APC’s demand for Iherjika’s prosecution over alleged sponsorship of the Boko Haram sect. The APC demanded Ihejirika’s prosecution in the wake of claims made by Australian negotiator, Mr. Stephen Davies.

In the statement entitled, ‘Ongoing Attempts To Brand Gen. Ihejirika a Boko Haram Sponsor’, the Ohanaeze youths described the negotiator’s claims as “spurious.” The group expressed regrets that the APC did not bother to ascertain the veracity of his allegations before calling for Ihejirika’s prosecution. Ohanaeze youths noted that Ihejirika deserved an apology from the APC since the Department of State Security absolved him of any involvement with Boko Haram. Continuing, the group described Davies as a “fraudulent character and mercenary.” Ohanaeze youth wing added that Davies employed “cheap propaganda tactics” by naming Ihejirika alongside former Borno State Governor, Ali Modu Sheriff, who has been consistently linked with the emergence and sponsorship of Boko Haram as the sect’s sponsor in order to lend credence to his claims in the eyes of “gullible members of the public.” The group noted that Davies did not provide any evidence or motivation for Ihejirika, a Christian and an Igbo from the South East, to sponsor Boko Haram. Now anyone in this country who has been following the trend of events is certain that among all Nigerian soldiers that ever fought Boko Haram, Ihejirika is simply their number one enemy. And why? Because he was the most brave and the most brutal who really meant business in dealing with the terrorists. In fact, this was the main reason why the same northern Muslims pressurized Jonathan to remove him — despite the lies we were told.

Again, in May 2014, Buhari described Boko Haram terrorists as “mindless bigots, and not followers of God.” He said: “Over the past few weeks, the abduction of the schoolgirls at Chibok, Borno State has underscored the threat we have been facing as a nation in recent times from the actions of misguided persons masquerading as adherents of Islam. That horrific video posted on the internet is a clear manifestation of the mindlessness of the bigots. It shows them for whom they are, such men cannot threaten nor should they be allowed to violate our sovereignty. It is clear from what they profess that they are not followers of God. They do not mean well for our country and her citizens. I am a Muslim, I am versed in the teaching of Christianity and I understand both religions to seek peaceful co-existence of all humanity… We are glad that the Federal Government has accepted international support in the search for the missing girls and for an end to the insurgency in parts of the country.”

Now we recall here that Jonathan then welcomed Gen. Buhari’s call on all Nigerians to remain steadfast and work in unity to overcome “terrorists and other merchants of death, who currently threaten national security.” Consequently Buhari was attacked by Boko Haram terrorists in July 2014 for betraying Islam even publicly.

•To be continued tomorrow

•Ifeanyi writes from Victoria Island, Lagos. He could be reached via [email protected].