On Southern Kaduna.

27-12-2016

I'm not from Kaduna and I don't live in Southern Kaduna but I can say a thing or two about the security situation there.

The current narrative in Cyberia is similar to how things went down when Agatu and Enugu were trending due to alleged attacks by gunmen described as Fulani herdsmen. Social media was littered with adopted images of armed herdsmen from Niger, Chad, Sudan as well as Kenya to represent herdsmen in Nigeria. The president in particular was accused like he is being accused now of carrying out his extermination of non-Fulanis and many have accused the Kaduna state governor Nasir El-Rufai of supervising genocide.

Like herdsmen-farmers clashes in most North-Central states, violence in Kaduna state especially Southern Kaduna didn't start last month or a year ago. Massive blood letting has characterized the region for many years now and it usually has a ethnoreligious coloration to it.

A 2014 account has it that a group of Muslims discovered that a portion of the fence to their abode was destroyed and accused Christians of the act leading to attacks and reprisals. Another account of El-Rufai's inquest has it that the current impasse stems from clashes which happened in 2011. The report has it that herdsmen who were foreign nationals got trapped in the region during the general elections and got attacked with many lives and cattle lost. They avenged their losses and the blood has not stopped gushing since.

Many have criticized El-Rufai's offer to compensate certain herdsmen for their losses and his plea to them to desist from attacking the Kaduna people. He pointed out that this was probably going to be the same method the late governor of Kaduna, Patrick Yakowa would have utilized but for the unfortunate helicopter crash which claimed his life and that of the former national security adviser General Azazi. Those who see no reason with this method ask why the herdsmen receiving compensation cannot be prosecuted instead. I actually do not know how practicable this can be especially where there may be no direct evidence implicating them and that they may in fact all be foreign nationals who have returned to their bases. However, there are still those who don't agree with the foreign herdsmen theory while a few others believe whatever compensation they got was to restock hardware to commit further murderous acts against Southern Kaduna people.

The militants in the Niger Delta get huge payments to be on their best behavior. The scheme was first introduced irrespective of whatever their crimes had been, be it destruction of oil installations, kidnapping of expatriate workers or simply murder of civilians, policemen or soldiers. The government needed peace and oil to flow uninhibited so if a government thinks that settling a certain group of hotheads could do a trick, should such a move be outrightly condemned? I am not an advocate for governments issuing freebies to anyone especially violent people. I don't care whatever name they are called; militants, terrorists, aggrieved yoots, emancipation forum or supporters club. It only reinforces laziness and perpetuates violence. However, I must understand the realities on ground and realise that feeding and providing some stipend for area boys in one's locality can go a long way in ensuring tranquility in the short term. I want to believe that Governor El-Rufai has been working on long term peace solutions in the region.

Channels TV ran a story 6 days ago about El-Rufai's visit to Jema'a local government alongside his security team. That was said to have been his second visit and his security council was there. He also paid a visit to the Emir and requested for his and the people's assistance to ensure peace. Some reports have it that his convoy was pelted with objects by an angry mob not satisfied with the government's effort to curb murders in the villages there.

It was also reported that the house of the local council chairman was burnt down by angry youths who also set alight churches, shops, vehicles and a few other structures all to vent their frustration. It amazes me that a people who are angry with the government for its seeming failure to protect them could go ahead to raze buildings and cars while evading justice. This is the reason why a curfew was effected by the governor with the approval of the president considering the fact that holidays were approaching.

Some reports have it that over 100 armed herdsmen stormed villages in the early hours of Sunday 25th December 2016, shooting and burning down buildings. One online outfit pegged the dead at 808 while two other more reputable media outlets had 8 and 10 dead. Which figure should be believed? Could 100 armed people with the intent to kill and shooting indiscriminately account for just about 10 dead? I don't know but I chose to wait for the official reports of investigations. Nigeria is on a balance and nothing flimsy should be allowed to tip her over. Why would I believe an official report you may ask, I would because the report of the clash between the Army and members of the Islamic movement of Nigeria disclosed that hundreds were killed and buried. This could easily have been covered up.

I believe the discussion in Southern Kaduna should be about finding lasting peace instead of playing politics and looking for justification of one's fantasies about 2 Fulani men waging a holy war in Nigeria. I believe there are those desperate to reignite the fires which raged in Kafanchan in the 1990s. Such are not suing for peace, they only want to win some ethnoreligious contest and say "I no talk am"?

There are those Nigerians who want to become leaders tomorrow who have prayed that El-Rufai and Mr President would bury their children and others join them to say or type amen. If you are like this, you'd do yourself a lot of good if you try to focus on the facts and history of any matter regarding Nigeria. There's a lot of illusion happening and it only takes a few minutes of patience to see through the gimmicks.

There are too many hot heads in Kaduna and also in other parts of Nigeria who need to calm down. We may be biased towards one group or another but we should realize that there's no guiltless party in all that has happened. That should be the starting point to realize peace.

God bless Kaduna state.

Good bless the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

Link to a crash course on Southern Kaduna I believe

http://books.openedition.org/ifra/761