Making
recklessly unrealistic, sometimes shallow and often deliberately false
assumptions about members of the
Jama’atu Ahliss-Sunnah Lidda’awati Wal Jihad, also known as Boko Haram,
appears to be the reason the tragedy of the terror
organisation has
lingered for this long.
AS IT WAS
WITH CHIBOK
From Aso Rock insiders at that time, Sunday Vanguard gathered that
a meeting, on Friday, May 2, 2014, through Saturday, May 3, 2014, between then
President Jonathan, Governor Kashim Shettima of Borno State, Borno Police
Commissioner Lawal Tanko, Mrs. Asabe Kwambula, the Chibok school principal;
Comrade Inuwa Kubo, Education Commissioner; and the DPO for Chibok, Hezekiah,
rather than shed more light on what happened in Chibok, caused more
muddle. It was discovered that the four
actors from Borno gave different versions of the abduction incident of Monday,
April 14, 2014. A source inside the
Villa disclosed that this development threw every effort from the Presidency
into a kilter.
“Even Mr.
President could not believe what he was hearing from the Principal, the
Education Commissioner, the Police Commissioner and the DPO. Those at that
briefing listened with mouths opened wide”.
It was this sentiment that Jonathan re-echoed on national television
during his media chat on Sunday May 4, 2014 (some 20days later) that he did not
know where the abducted girls were, pleading profusely that the parents should
come to his aid. From the gesticulation of hopelessness that he displayed regarding
the insecurity in the country, what was clear was a challenge of capacity on
the part of Mr. President. A more
sensitive C-in-C would have explored other means of ascertaining what happened
in Chibok that fateful night.
DAPCHI
TODAY
In the evening of Monday, February 19, 2018, something happened at Government Girls Technical College, Dapchi,
Yobe State. As of the time of going to
press, neither the state governor, Ibrahim Geidam, the Police Commissioner,
Abdulmalik Sumonu, nor the head of the school, could give an accurate number of
those who were abducted in the Boko Haram terror attack on the school. Police Commissioner Suumonu said 815 out of
926 students were physically seen in the school as of Tuesday, February
20, after the incident. There were
reports that some students were also finding their way back to school. Some villagers in some areas claimed to have
seen some students in Hilux trucks looking despondent and may be possible
victims of the abduction. Yet, other reports said many parents
were still searching for their wards. Till date, no one has an accurate
figure. Unfortunately, just like Chibok, the first pieces of information aimed
to deny the abduction; then came stories of total rescue; before a further
apology about misinformation. As if operating from the Chibok book of horror,
the government of Yobe behaved like Jonathan. Why has Boko Haram suddenly
gained more traction in its murderous activities? Why does it appear as though this administration
is losing it? The facts on ground speak volumes. Follow this trail!
THE COMPLICITY OF ALL
We
are all guilty! Well, cruel as it may sound, comeuppance may be egregiously
playing out its hand.
No sphere of
society can be excused in the abduction of the over 200 Chibok girls.
From the media that was divided along
North/South dichotomy, to the pro-Buhari or pro-Jonathan propagandists of 2010
to 2015, the needed unity of purpose against the terrorists was missing.
Today, PDP, as opposition party, is also attempting to latch unto the
miseries of victims in attacking Buhari’s APC as not doing enough – but the
latter has done fairly better. Whereas it is generally known that Jonathan’s
approach in handling Boko Haram’s attacks in its early days was manifestly
shameful, latter day attempts by that administration to forcefully confront the
miscreants met with stiff opposition from the opposition leaders in the
country.
It was even so bad that then
retired General Muhammadu Buhari was reported to have claimed that the attacks
on Boko Haram was an attack on the North.
Not done, some opposition leaders at that time said the Jonathan
administration was engaged in genocide against the North. This, more than
anything else, allowed the terrorists the opportunity to build on and advance
its existing structures and alliances across the global terror network.
Western nations refused to sell arms to the
Nigerian government because, as was claimed, the Nigerian military was involved
in extra-judicial killings. Today, that
tag still sticks. Warnings and early signs that politicians were
playing a dangerous game with the politicisation of the war on terror fell on
deaf ears. On Wednesday, August 17, 2011, U.S. Army General Carter F. Ham,
Commander of AFRICOM, called attention to Boko Haram’s expanding ambitions,
telling the Associated Press that intelligence indicated Boko Haram had made
contact with operatives from both al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, AQIM, and al
Shabaab: “What is most worrying at present is, at least, in my view, a clearly
stated intent by Boko Haram and by al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb to
coordinate and synchronize their efforts. I’m not so sure they’re able to do
that just yet, but it’s clear to me they have the desire and intent to do
that.”
They have since gone beyond
that. In August 2011, one week before the U.N. office bombing in Abuja,
Nigerian authorities arrested two Boko Haram militants. The detainees, who were
still in custody after the U.N. bombing, allegedly told Nigerian investigators
that another Boko Haram member, Mamman Nur, had led the attack. Nur reportedly
had links to al Qaeda and was known to frequent Somalia. In September 2011,
European Union Counterterrorism Coordinator, Gilles de Kerchove, warned of
collaboration between the two groups: “There is still nothing structural. There
are efforts at contacts, and small transfers of money. It seems that some
members of Boko Haram and al Shabaab were trained by AQIM.” Greater than the
threat of any two of these groups collaborating would be the threat of all
three collaborating together. General
Ham also warned about the potential for a transnational terrorist network to
develop in Africa if the rising threat potential of these three groups is left
unchecked: They were left unchecked, at least, in Nigeria, especially on the strength of the
then opposition that played politics with terrorism. Worse still, on Monday, May 21, 2012, a three-page letter
surfaced at the State Department in America.
The content showed the hands of Boko Haram sympathizers were on their
way to buying time for the terrorists.
The letter was sent to then Secretary of State, Hillary Rodham
Clinton. Received at her State
Department, 2201 C Street, NW, Washington, DC 20520, it read: “Dear Secretary
Clinton: “As scholars with a special interest in Nigeria and broad expertise on
African politics, we are writing to urge that you not designate Boko Haram a
Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO). We are acutely aware of the horrific
violence perpetrated by Boko Haram, including attacks on both Muslims and
Christians in Nigeria, whether government officials or civilian targets. We
share your concerns about the impact of extremist violence on Nigeria’s
democratic progress and security in general. “However an FTO designation would
internationalize Boko Haram, legitimize abuses by Nigeria’s security services,
limit the State Department’s latitude in shaping a long term strategy, and
undermine the U.S. Government’s ability to receive effective independent
analysis from the region. “An FTO designation would internationalize Boko
Haram’s standing and enhance its status among radical organizations elsewhere.
Boko Haram’s recent tactics, including the use of suicide bombers and
improvised explosive devices, raise questions about their foreign links. The
network’s focus has been overwhelmingly domestic, despite an August 2011 attack
on the United Nations office in Abuja. Rhetorically, some of Boko Haram’s
critique of northern underdevelopment and elite corruption is within the realm
of mainstream political discourse. But there are clear indications that their
tactics and targets have turned most Nigerians against them, including local
populations in the north.
“An FTO designation would potentially shift the
organization’s posture towards the US and validate the more radical factions’
analysis of outsider influence in Nigeria. It would also undermine the Nigerian
government’s ability to address the problem through law enforcement and thereby
improve rule of law. “An FTO designation would give disproportionate attention
to counter-terrorism in our bilateral relations, and increase the risk that the
US becomes linked – whether in reality or perception – to abuses by the
security services. An FTO designation would effectively endorse excessive use
of force at a time when the rule of law in Nigeria hangs in the balance. There
is already evidence that abuses by Nigeria’s security services have facilitated
radical recruitment. This was made unequivocally clear in 2009 following the
extrajudicial murder of Mohammed Yusuf, which was broadcast across the
internet.
That incident was immediately followed by Boko Haram’s
radicalization, splintering, and increased propensity for large scale violence.
Moreover, the routine use of the military for domestic law enforcement is a
cause for alarm in a country with a deep history of military rule, and where
formal declarations of states of emergency have historically led to broader
political instability. “In publicizing this letter, it is also our hope that
the Department of Defense and other concerned agencies will reaffirm the
limitations of their roles: informing or implementing policy rather than making
it. Accurately understanding and properly addressing the issue of Boko Haram
will require a diplomatic, developmental, and demilitarized framework. The
State Department and its civilian developmental partners must be in the lead.
“The FTO list system has its origins in Executive Order 12947 in 1995, which
was designed to prohibit transactions with organizations that interfere in the
Middle East peace process. Congressional legislation the following year
codified a process for making such decisions under the Effective Death Penalty
and Anti-Terrorism Act.
Once the State Department makes an FTO designation and
that entity is added to the Specially Designated Nationals (SDN) list managed
by the Treasury Department, it is illegal for U.S. citizens to have any
interactions with that entity unless they apply for a license. At least 1.1
million individuals and entities are also on secret lists, according to an
audit by the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Inspector General. Lack of
information about the criteria for being listed makes it impossible to be
removed and encourages selective enforcement”.
Endorsed by some 25 scholars
from reputable academic institutions in the United States of America, USA, the
passionate letter insisting that an FTO status for Boko Haram should never be
contemplated, the time wasted while this
lasted, is partly responsible for the growth, spread and audacity of the terror
group. Today, even as this administration continues to deny any monetary
involvement in the release of some of the abducted Chibok girls, some people
insist that funds were involved and that such funds have enabled the terror
group acquire more arms and, thereby, gain more traction.
In the sphere of politics, anything, just
about anything is possible. There already exists a school of thought
that whereas the latest abduction has created an ambience of horror
for some families, Nigerians should not be surprised if, close to
election time, stories of heroic rescue of abducted Dapchi students take over
the public sphere. This becomes even more plausible when the Yobe governor,
Police Commissioner and head of the Dapchi school cannot with certainty
clarify the number of those abducted, just as the earlier false
information was pushed out by the state government of the rescue of some of the
girls. The hope is that Dapchi would
not become another Chibok, which became a political tool for some people; and
it also became a money spinner for dubious negotiators. Young, innocent girls’ lives are at stake; families are in agony; a
nation is in pain.
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