By Shola Akingboye
A northern friend in an argument of tolerance and intolerance of one another in Nigeria recently reminisced on how businesses of our Igbo brothers from the South-east were protected in the aftermath of the Nigerian three years Civil War, and I was quick to joined in the remembrance foray of how the late sage, Chief Obafemi Awolowo equally ensured that all the Igbo business concerns in the South-West were kept intact and returned to the owners at the end of the civil war.
But reverse was the available records from the South-south part of the country (Edo state not inclusive). Most Igbo shops, businesses and properties were looted and some were denied access to their hard earned wealth from that part of the country.
This analogy keeps many wondering, if truly those we condemned of intolerance actually deserves the niche carved after them on account that, those the people of the South-east regarded as brothers and kins brothers in Rivers, Akwa Ibom and today’s Cross River could do such against their long term allies during the Civil War. These records are there for everyone to check.
Some of us are sometimes forced to speak up in remembrance of where we are coming from, which could help shaped where we are headed, even though we tend not to join in ethnic talks. But the current crises of herdsmen and ethno-religious killings around the country have actually exposed our weaknesses on account of emotions our brothers, particularly from the entire south; South-west, South-east and South-south including the Christian North-central attached to the issue of RUGA settlements, it baffles.
Many suffers amnesia or pretends to lost the sense of history while recants stories that set us apart than ones that weaves us together as a people.
At times I wonder if some sadists in Nigeria want this systemic problem of arm banditry, associated with herders and their menace continues in order to tag this present government as failed security test, though the unresolved crisis in the country are the making of every one of us.
I once asked myself, what wrong if any governor acquires hectares of land, declares his objection to nomadism method of pasturing in the state with attendant law enacted by the state to prosecute offenders under the law. Would anyone faults such Act that says I reject herders on my street, and says this is where I want you people to be in order to end insecurity associated with nomadism crisis for God’s sake?
Such measure definitely would be good to go in line with what the Benue state have done, even though the Benue state equally failed in its logic to provide an alternate grazing reserve for pasturing while declared its own law. The singular mistake gives room for suspicion and allegation of ethnic cleansing against the Fulani herders in Benue state.
The making of nomadism is a primitive system of pasturing, which our successive leaders have allowed to live with us, even up till the 21st century despite the paradigm shift against the trend globally.
The heighten debate the RUGA issue has generated is maddening. These individuals forgot the facts, they forgot the position of the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria that made it clear that every Nigerians reserves the right to reside, transact business and practice their religion anywhere without hindrances or interference, provided you respect the culture and tradition of the aborigines.
Though, the modern state and the attendant infrastructural developments across board also did not helped the matter; this, in no small measure has eaten up the grazing reserves in some parts of the country.
And whether we like it or not, Fulani herdsmen are Nigerians and also reserve the right to life and livelihood, albeit the quota of contribution their trade contributes to the economy of this country.
These are sacred fact we all must respect.
Having not too vast with the North, it is indubitable that, the Ibos dominated Sabongari in Kano. The environment suggests another Ibo land with 90% of the hotels in Sabongari owned by the Ibos. Same applicable to Ibo settlement somewhere in Maiduguri just for the few places I know.
I do know of many other places they called Yorubawa settlements during my business escapades in some parts of the North. This includes a place called Lagos Street in Maiduguri.
I also lost counts of Yoruba instituted Churches in any of my visit to Gombe, and I still wonder, if going by the percentage and ratings whether Hausa/Fulanis could owned more businesses than the Ibos and the Yorubas in Kaduna.
But the outbursts by some elements among my own people from the southern Nigeria are total eradication of herdsmen from the south. These individuals forgot that livestock farming has become an integral part of agricultural business upon which many nations of the world survives.
I made bold to conclude that, all the notorious arguments on Fulanisation and Islamisation being projected by some sadists and apostles of divisions in Nigeria will lead us nowhere as a nation, no thanks to former President Olusegun Obasanjo vituperations against the government of the day.
Known for his antecedents as a complex individual, with taste for downgrading other people in government other than himself in power, this leaves much to be desire of the Obasanjo’s make-belief nationalists and the much touted elder-statesman who is in pursuit of Nigeria unity.
On insecurity in the country, it is on record that same Olusegun Obasanjo as the President of Nigeria failed to quell the bloodsheds in the crisis between the Yorubas and the Hausa community in Sagamu. The ethnic fracas led to untoward killings and manslaughter among the age-long ethnic friends in Sagamu, with attendant reprisal loss of lives and properties in the North.
The level of damaged recorded in that singular upheaval was colossal due to ineptitude of Obasanjo in handling ethnic crisis in the country at the time.
It was the same scenario in the genocide between same Yorubas in Ilaje communities and the Ijaw settlers in Ondo state. Hundreds of lives already lost due to the weakness and incompetence of President Obasanjo to intervene at the material time at the time.
To further demonstrate his weakness and lack of solution to ethnic violence leading to insecurity situation in some parts of the country, Obasanjo flouted the necessary rules of engagement expected of a Commander in Chief of Armed Forces, but could only apply military myth at his disposal as he ordered soldiers to wiped out the entire people in the Odi town in Balyesab state,
In another instance, it would be recalled how Obasanjo enforced full military action against the Zaki Biam community in Benue state, the entire community were massacred and equally declared ‘shoot at sight’ against the Oodua Peoples Congress (OPC) in the troubled South-west.
All these occurred under Obasanjo’s despotic second coming, even as a democratically elected president in the 21st century.
The killer of the then Bola Ige, the Minister for Justice and the Attorney General for the Federation, who was a loyalist of Obasanjo was neither brought to book nor the gruesome assassinators of Funsho Williams, Dipo Dina, Sekibo among other politically were uncovered by Olusegun Obasanjo.
It was amazing, despite his woeful and incompetence performance on security matters in his days as the President between 1999 and 2007, Obasanjo who was widely accused of murderer of Odi and Zaki Biam communities later appeared in an helicopter to lay wreath at the mass burial accorded the victims of herdsmen onslaught in Benue in 2017.
His did that in his Oliver Twist style of stealing shows, to score cheap political point against the incumbent President Buhari, who some believes tarries in his response to the farmers/herdsmen crisis in the state.
But the disposition of the people of Benue in welcoming Olusegun Obasanjo, while at the same time loathed the incumbent President Buhari who on the other hand is a Muslim, with passion. These leaves many questions unanswered if truly the Tiv in Benue actually hated Buhari on account of his delayed response to the onslaught of the herdsmen against the farmers in the state as make-belief if not for his religion afiliation.
The ongoing Jukun/Tiv crisis in Traraba state, who are both Christians communities is a testimony to this fact, particularly on account that none of this two Buhari haters indicts Buhari and his Fulani origin on Fulanisation and Islamisation madness as Obasanjo and Theophilus Danjuma has placed in their mouths.
In fact, not a few Nigerians wondered what is expected of the Tiv dominated state in benue against Olusegun Obasanjo, a Christian and who swore over his dead body he owed no one no apology over the genocide he perpetrated against the Zaki Biam dwellers among other human right abuses in the country.
But it is on record, despite the presumed lackadaisical approach of Buhari regime to things, he did not and never ordered the killings of anyone by security operatives, neither accused of any politically motivated assassinations except for the armed-banditry which has remained a fall out of systemic problem the nation failed to address over time.
Perhaps, one would have expected the people of Benue to make use of their historic energy they are using in fighting the Jukun in Benue, and take their chance on Obasanjo, held him by his babanriga and dragged him to the mass grave of an entire community in Zaki Biam to apologize to the dead, having escaped the hands of justice through the International Criminal Court (ICC) as a result of ethnic pollution that will prevent such from happening in Nigeria. But, the criminal old man is allowed to steal shows from the menace of insecurity he joined hands in creating having ruled Nigeria twice.
Rather, Obasanjo is quick to disparage other governments after him stealing every available opportunity. His penchant to write letters out of his complexity, issues press statements of hatred, drum supports for ethnic war using delicate weapon of religion acrimonies in the land.
It is amazing and surprising as the global communities have watch and shut their eyes against the danger inherent in Obasanjo’s extremist activities in Nigeria.
The latest is his shallow Fulanisation/Islamisation contraptions, which he has sold to many gullible Nigerians, especially among the Christian communities in Nigeria and the like minds.
But wagging questions are how can Nigerians forget so soon?
Olusegun Obasanjo, the then Military Head of State introduced Operation Feed the Nation in 1976. Hundreds of people hectares of land were hijacked. This later metamorphosed into his privately owned Otta Farms spanning many states in the federation, yet no one raises alarm of land grabbing for self-enrichment against this arrogant ex-president till date. But this old devil is allows to divide us in Nigeria as a people with his anti-Fulani/Islam gospels, and funny enough this is where he has benefited as a prisoner who was catapulted from prison by the Fulani/Muslim military dominated junta in 1999, as a compensation to the South-west following Moshood Abiola’s death in the hands of the North.
This same Obasanjo, when he introduced FESTAC 77 in 1977, bringing all the evil idols together from across Africa and call it Art and Culture, not a few among Nigerians took their accusations against Obasanjo with the proclamation that in celebrating FESTAC 77, Nigeria was “handed over to strange gods”. These set of critics raised alarm, they insist that Obasanjo invited different African tribes and ethnic nationalities to bring their idols to Nigeria in order to “glorify them”.
Obasanjo, who himself, a confirmed member of the Ogboni confraternity was unstoppable. Many Christians in Nigeria went to sleep. No one says Obasanjo wanted to Orisanised (idolnate) Nigeria with his Babalawo tendencies.
But Obasanjo is allowed to heating the polity, accusing Buhari’s government on Fulanisation/Islamisation over a spill-over crisis of herdsmen and armed banditry he (Obasanjo) government failed to address over his two term tenure, particularly in his second coming between 1999 and 2007.
Perhaps, this same Obasanjo, in his second coming in 1999 later re-introduced Fadama project. A project which ceded large proportion of people’s lands for farming activities, every Nigerians embraced it.
Funnily, Fadama is the Hausa name for irrigable. The Fadama concept is an old tradition in Hausa, where flooded land is used for growing a variety of crops and small-scale irrigation. But no one criticized the language used way and manner Obasanjo misled gullible Nigerians on RUGA as Fulani language to invade peoples lands.
Among various states that have benefited from FADAM is Ondo state in the South-west. About 50,000 households have benefited from the project. Veterinary clinics, roads, small bridges and 174 kilometers of rural roads have been constructed, but this same man (Obasanjo) is today inciting Nigerians farmers against fellow Nigerians in the name of Islamisation and ethnic pollution, pitching the South against the Northern part of the country.
Without prejudice to herdsmen attacks in the country however, it is high time all of us wake up to the reality that we have a systemic problem created over the years at hand to solved head-on without castigating any government or individuals.
I want to believe the issue of RUGA suspended for any reasons or call it any name in disguise, is one of those measures we must all sit round the table to discuss on how best we can get the herdsmen off the street, particularly to embrace the modern way of livestock farming. It is high time Nigeria join the committee of advanced nation in doing things, rather than allowing unnecessary emotions to rule over our sense of reasoning as a people.
I recall how Oladipo Diya, then as Ogun state Military Governor in a bid to eradicate indiscriminate roadside Motor-Mechanics, acquired hectares of land across the state and call it Mechanic Villages. This measure did completely eradicated auto-mobile works from Ogun state metropolis. Till date, these Mechanic Villages exists and people find the best auto-engineers in these places which equally helped in eradicating roadside mechanics.
What stops us if governors get rid of herdsmen from street through this measure, call it RUGA, Kara or what have you in your own native language, who cares? Provided the menace associated with herders/farmers is challenged by all?
I also recall, it was Governor Babatunde Fashola in his bid to eradicate the menace of arms-begging in Lagos state relocated these individuals back to their various states, including those from Yoruba states of Oyo, Ogbomoso, North etc.
But it was only Governor Peter Obi, the then Anambra Governor who politicized the matter. He was quick to challenge the policy and turned it to an ethnic agenda. He incited my Ibo brothers against Fashola and Lagos state, citing what the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria says about nationalities, free living and freedom to associate everywhere in Nigeria. Alas! He won. Fashola was defeated and apologized.
But it baffles that many among our Ibo brothers, who hailed the action of Peter Obi against Fashola, including the Ohaneze of this world now joined their cohorts in the South-west, South-south in calling for total eradication of herdsmen from the South.
The big question: what is the people’s definition of nationality, particularly as the team-up against the herders’ heathens on account that the incumbent president is a Fulani man?
But beating around the systemic problem associated with the menace of herders will not help all of us, neither allowing ourselves to a further division by the likes of Olusegun Obasanjo, who in his days failed woefully in solving insecurity situation we battles today.
The need to join hands with the government in finding a lasting solution out of our troubles that predated the present administration, is now
In words of Pastor WF Kumuyi on crisis at stake, he said on quote:
“All killings are bad, reprehensible and condemnable. But it shouldn’t be deliberately turned into an ethno-religious propaganda tool for mischievous political ends.”
“There are certain persons or groups who would rather have the country go up in flames than to have the country focusing on how much they stole and ruined the country.”
“These killings benefit only them. We don’t fall for their antics”.
Shola Akingboye is a Journalist, Political analyst based in Abuja – can be reached on: 08138323101