The Nigerian Issue

Responding to "Profiling the northern enemy” and to the responses to this article

by I’ Shaq Modibbo Kawu in Vanguard daily of May 12, 2011

The Nigerian Issue

Is’haq’s opinionated article and the equally opinionated responses, for and against "Profiling the northern enemy” is exactly the fight the corrupt criminal leaders from south, north east and west want Nigerians to busy themselves with. As Long as ordinary citizens are fighting each other over cultural, ethnic and religious differences they would be too busy to realize the crime perpetrated against them even by their sectional leaders. Nigerians especially the youths must wakeup and take back this country before it is too late. Most people do not know the great value of a possession until they loose it. Most Nigerians do not see the great gift of a nation until Nigeria is no more. To reiterate, Nigeria problem lies at the fact that Nigerians are fighting the cheap, easy, lazy and unproductive ethnic war while ignoring the difficult but true and rewarding war of national interest. I am from the south and I care less about the president's ethnicity but about his or her honesty, vision, courage, intellect but above his or her love for the people and for the country. But my good friends and fellow Nigerians remember this; because leaders generally are inherently corrupt, good governance is assured by the governed and not by the governors. I am not ignorant nor naïve of the difficulties posed by the diversity of culture, ethnicity, and religious differences in the configuration called Nigeria. I also know that these differences if appropriately conceived are not by themselves the end but rather the necessary precursors for the construction of powerful great Nation. But only if Nigerians selflessly and lovely pursue this potential of Greatness for the general good shall Nigeria become a great nation. The two pillars of a great nation are numerousness and diversity of the people that appreciate and or respect one another under the law. Since the era of nation states no nation of few people or homogenous people has become great due to the fewness, homogeneousness, or healthiness of its citizens. But today like in the past great nation is synonymous to numerousness and diverseness of the ‘peopleness’ if you will.

There are two fundamental questions every Nigerian especially the ethnic groups must truthful answer. And the questions are: Do you for better and for worse belief in the configuration called Nigerian and if you do, are you willing to build, defend and protect this configuration? What contents you, smallness or Greatness since moderateness in nation status is a misnomer? I am a ‘tangiblenist’ if you will and objectivist and for me there exist two nation types, the small nations and greatness ones. I am a big fan of greatness and have no doubt that Nigerian was fashioned for greatness only if Nigerians can build and keep the union.

In the next national sovereign conference if there happens to be one, all ethnic groups must be present and all must plainly respond to these questions without deceit, pretense or fear. Only after all ethnic groupings have truthfully answered these two questions can we as a people begin the difficult but rewarding task of nation building or the xenophobic, cheap, easy but defeatist task of destroying that that was freely given in a platter of gold by the independent fathers? Yes, the colonist dictator for its benefit amalgamated the north and south of the Niger area to form this potential great nation called Nigeria. Truly, many call and regard this amalgamation an evil act and yes it was done for the benefit of the colonist. But no one can logically explain how the coming together of the oppressed people does not benefit the oppressed but only benefits the oppressors. In my opinion, the Niger area evil the colonist masters intended is only but a blessing in disguise only if the present Nigerians can unveil themselves the veils of ignorance, pettiness, ethno-phobia and “big-phobia” if you will. Many of the independent fathers saw the goodness in the dubious colonist intent hence the fathers fought for the independence of the whole people in the Niger area as one people who were one deprived and one oppressed people. Not even the notorious ignorant idol worshipers, Boko Haram religious sect, can deny the wisdom of the independent father when the fathers fought for the independence and preservation of the Niger area people as one people.

Free societies must respect single or collective aspirations of its citizens provided such inspirations does not restrict or impede the freedom of others. What Boko Haram sect is asking for is an Islamic Nigerian with Shariah legal system. Well the first mark of ignorance is when a person or a group rabidly seeks that which is humanly impossible. I have nothing against Islam and as matter of fact while in Europe I prayed with my North African Muslim brothers in their mosque. An Islamic Nigeria with shariah law is dream in many dreams. Yes, this sect is ignorant but they are human enough to understand that to seek that which have neither existed nor will ever exist is tempting the gods and therefore a sin. Boko Haram like other groups, person or persons violently seeking to Islamize Nigeria are not just by themselves an ethnic group but rather belong to an ethnic group. At the sovereign national conference these group and all other groups will within their ethnic representation present their case. At the Conference the sovereignty and integrity of Nigeria is not negotiable. But if a collection of groups closely band together, geographical situated and oriented and collectively make up a third the population of Nigeria seeks a separate society, then within ten years a referendum for independence can be conducted within the ethnic groups that seeks independence. A threshold of seventy five percent yes referendum vote for independence can start the process of granting the group semi autonomy and a full independence twenty five years latter with a second referendum. {At the end of this article are more conditions for independence for units seeking separation from the union}.

But as Nigerians wait for the conference for a perfect union there must be order and rule of law. Every citizen has the right to disagree with laws or policies of the government but no one have the right to disobey constitutionally enacted statutes. All laws however dislike but constitutionally passed must be obeyed by all even by the corrupt leaderships that have done nothing but ruined and liquidated the country. Citizens can protest, work to change the bad law but must never break the law they dislike as longer as that law have not been constitutionally repealed. Not only is Boko Haram sect breaking the law of the land they also seek to impose their will on the majority. To achieve their unattainable goal this sect is breaking local, international and universal law on the sanctity of human life. They kill in the name of their small god that lacks the power and the energy to do the least thing that even the least being could do, the taking of person’s life. The Lord is not God of confusion hence it makes no sense that the omnipotent God will subtly and indiscreetly order the ignorant, wobbling and pitiful man to destroy another God’s creature. Many religious people across the globe claim to know the mind of God, they know how to please and how to make God happy, by so thinking they equate God to human and this is the root cause of all religious evil in the world. How can a God infinitely happy and pleased in itself be made happier by the death of one of its sorry, pitiful creatures at the hands of another of the same? This is their god and not my and I new not their god because this god is so small and powerless that even a wooden god with so much carbon energy can consume this god.

But regardless of the nature of their god they must obey the law of the land. The governors and governments of the states where these religious ignoramus zealots cause pain and destruction must ensure law and order in the state. To get these governments more involved and responsible for the protection of lives and properties especially the lives and properties of the ethnic and religious minorities, these governments must at least be held financial responsible for the dastardly acts of the hoodlums in their states. The Federal government must look into the efforts the state governments make to stop violence and murder against minority, into ethnic and religious cleansing of the minority in the states. Henceforth the federal government must use the federal allocation for the culprit states to compensate the victims of ethnic and religious pogrom for human and material lose and other loses if a violence resulting to lose of lives and properties is ethnic and or religious in nature. Holding the governments of the violent states responsible for the violent acts of their wild citizens and making them financially responsible for the financial loses due to the actions of the hoodlums in their state will not only make these Government proactive in curbing this menace but it will force them to see that these vagabonds in their state are educated and tamed.

{In addition to the conditions already stated above, any section seeking independence from Nigerian must understand that it and the national government will jointly supervise the referendums. The referendums will be financed by the seceding unit without the infusion of foreign fund. From the day the date for the first referendum is scheduled the seceding unit will no longer receive federal fund allocations to the states. The national government will continue to run, maintain and manage all national security apparatus to include but not limited to police, military, customs, national intelligence, and state secret services that encompasses the seceding unit until after the second referendum. Loses and profits from jointly owned revenue sources, and costs to joint projects will be jointly shared between the national government and the seceding unit. Apart from the conditions stated here, during the entire period of quest for independence the relationship between the national government and the seceding unit must be as usual and the same as before the quest for separation until independence is achieved or defeated.}

Bawomanh