•Why killings returned to Kaduna, Benue, Plateau
The Chairman of Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Kaduna State, Rev Joseph Hayab, has said that the killings in Southern Kaduna, Benue and Plateau states have political undertone.
In an interview with VINCENT KALU, the CAN leader called on good Nigerians to unite to chase out evil Nigerians.
Why were religion and ethnicity on the front burner in the 2023 elections?
Governance is about service delivery, but the last administration failed in doing that. Instead, it put on the front burner, nepotism. People who certainly served in the outgoing government were from certain extraction. Many Nigerians felt that since nepotism plays a role in appointments and getting certain opportunities for a government that belongs to all of us, then they shouldn’t just fold their hands and allow anybody to become a leader without having someone to protect their interest. What was going on in this past government was that, there were certain people from certain region and religion, who seemed to be following every office and finding out when the tenure of the chief executive of that office was going to expire. Before the expiration, they had already filed in their CVs and were ready to take over. That was why when you listened to the announcement of who took over from the other person, you would know it’s people of one group because it was well planned and calculated.
So, those who were leading did not understand that Nigeria belongs to all of us; they did not understand that the country is supposed to be where everybody is a stakeholder, but they allowed nepotism to guide them in the way they appointed and shared state resources. So people became sentimental to say that we need someone from our region and also from our religion. Truly, it’s supposed not to be so. The only reason religion and region became so strong was because of nepotism and the poor management of the Nigeria’s unity and diversity by the past government.
When can we graduate to a level that religion will cease to be an issue in determining who gets elected or who gets what in this country?
Nigeria belongs to Nigerians irrespective of religion, tribal or regional identity, and Nigeria is supposed to be governed by Nigerians. What we really need from those who should govern us is not their identity or where they really come from. Unfortunately, we failed and we have been failing because leaders and those who manage our commonwealth think that our commonwealth belongs to a particular group or a particular religion. It is supposed not to be so, but they do it with impunity. When you challenge them, they blackmail you, and when you keep quiet they continue to have a field day. Some people will say that it is better they blackmail me and the people will know what is going on than to keep quiet. So, people now begin to canvass the identity of those who govern them and the identity of those who are supposed to lead them. We are still not out of it. The general election has come and gone, though not yet over before many of the issues are still in court.
Even in the choice of those who become leaders of the National Assembly, this issue of religion is beginning to take place because everybody is skeptical, everybody is afraid of where we are. Even those who think that our cries for justice, equity, fairness and balance do not matter in the general elections are beginning to sing the same song that we sang. You can see that they really know how it is and what it is. I have been in this country for a long time and I have been following events.
In 1999, when Chief Olusegun Obasanjo became the president and started appointing some people as service chiefs, the next thing we heard was that he wasn’t appointing northerners. Is someone from Benue not a northerner? Is someone from Plateau not a northerner? Is someone from Southern Kaduna not a northerner? Is someone from Taraba not a northerner? Is someone from Adamawa not a northerner? Many of those service chiefs were attacked, castigated and maligned because of their identities. Kith and kin began to seek ways to start protecting their own, to start speaking for our own. They began to ask, ‘is it only our own that would come and would be made to feel he does not belong, while on the other side, they feel they are on ground?
Nigerians have not forgotten that during the military, the appointment was also skewed towards religion. That is why in the sharing of states, they were just dashing out states, saying: ‘Where do we create new states, which town do we make the capital?’ Some of the state capitals were glorified villages because their sons were in power, and nobody questioned it. If you take a look at the Nigerian map and then see the geography of some of those states, you would wonder what is happening to this country. Creation of local governments is about whom do you know. Creation of states is about whom do you know. Appointments into offices is about whom do you know. So, why would people not start thinking of their own identity? Where do I belong and why shouldn’t my people also be there? That’s not what it is supposed to be, but the system makes it so.
Can you cite one example?
Kaduna State is a typical example. Throughout the military era, it was a deliberate strategy that a Christian cannot be appointed a governor in the state, but when there was so much agitation by our association and stakeholders, then one of the military presidents decided that there should be a deputy governor, who would be a civilian. He asked the administrator to pick a Christian deputy governor. The first military administrator when Buhari took over in 1984 was Air vice Marshall Muazu, who is from Southern Kaduna, but a Muslim. In that particular incident when the military administrator was asked to pick a Christian deputy, and a female, he picked a lady from Zaria, Pamela Saduki. It was when Pamela came that she realised that money was budgeted at every time and given to people that they were said to be praying for the government. Pastors were not even considered. If Imams were praying, are pastors not also praying? That became an eye opener to know that the reason religion is an issue is that one part of the state can be empowered economically, while the other part is impoverished. These are some of the findings, and many others that I don’t want to say here began to stir people to begin to say that we need to have a say.
In 1983, 1999, Kaduna Christians didn’t care who was the governor or the deputy governor. It was Muslim- Muslim. We just voted without caring, but as we continued to progress, we started seeing people despising us as if we don’t belong. People starting saying if governance is about us, what is wrong in us becoming a governor. When Yar’Adua passed on and Jonathan picked Sambo, the governor of Kaduna State, as the vice president, and by that decision, Patrick Yakowa became the first Christian as the governor of the state. If you see what we saw or heard. How people were cursing Namadi Sambo for accepting the offer of a vice president, asking why he would pave the way for a Christian to be the governor. When the unfortunate incident happened to Yakowa, it gave people room to read so many meanings into it. But some of us who believe in God and know that God is the ultimate, didn’t subscribe to accusing anybody of having a hand in his death.
When you see religion coming in to play in the governance of Nigeria, it has a root – lack of justice, fairness, and equity. Imagine that we are siblings and we have a room, and in that room we have a small bed. You sleep on the bed in the morning, in the afternoon and in the night, and you never cared to know that your sibling also needs to sleep on the bed too, you are a wicked sibling. That is a situation that led people to agitate that their own should also be there. Sadly, that agitation has even led to us choosing the wrong people, As long as they are their own, people no longer care if the person is bad or not, so long as he is their own. That shouldn’t be at all.
On the leadership of the National Assembly, some people are saying that there has to be religious balancing, that since Number one and Number two citizens are Muslims, that the Number three and Number four should be Christians. How do you see this?
What is sauce for the goose is also sauce for the gander. Why are they speaking about it now? When we drew attention during the election about the same faith ticket of the presidential candidate and his running mate, we were accused of bringing in sentiments. If they believe that having people of the same identity, the same religion, the same region and tribe is no problem because all that is needed is good governance, this one they are bringing now is hypocrisy and has no meaning. When we drew the attention to its implication, they said it has no meaning. I don’t understand how somebody who has benefited from the system turns back to say the system should not work because of interest. That is why even some of the Christians who are coming out to vie for the senate presidency and other offices, some of us doubt their genuineness. When we raised the issue last time, they said it was about good governance, and religion should be set aside.
One thing I know is that a time would come that another group of people will have everything within one line, and I hope no one would come and make noise. Or one region will have both president and vice president. I hope no one will complain as long as they are going to deliver good governance. The reason for federal character in Nigeria was to bring togetherness. Because Nigerians are not talking doesn’t mean that they are fools; they are the most informed people in Africa. We did advise that the balance is supposed to be there for some level of acceptability, but they said it doesn’t matter. So coming back to say it matters, I don’t think I understand what they meant.
During the electioneering, there were little or no reports of killings in Southern Kaduna, Benue, Plateau states. But immediately after the election, the killings resumed. What could have been responsible?
Two things happened during this period. One, there was this angle of politicking of who was going to become what and who was going to get what. Could it be that those who were seeking office have hands in what is happening, and they asked them to mellow down? That is the question they honestly have to answer. Secondly, there was this issue of currency redesign, which led to cash crunch. This to some extent stopped kidnapping, banditry. The truth is that the criminals simply withdrew, went into the community and lived normally, even helped in campaigning for some politicians. And now that the matter is over, they are back to business.
The security agencies told us that they had neutralised them, and they would show photographs of their camps that they destroyed, and it ended there. They just withdrew and went to the villages or towns and lived normal lives. And now that politics is no longer on ground, they returned to continue their business. This poses a great challenge to the incoming administration, and we are going to see how the president brings the might of the government to tackle it because the outgoing administration sincerely failed.
In the north, bandits have a field day, asking for food from people; asking people to buy motorcycles for them and they would ride it without any challenge. Sometimes you hear that security agencies have arrested some of them, but none is yet to be prosecuted in the court. This is rhetoric gimmick to divert attention; nothing is happening. These killings that are back in Southern Kaduna, Benue and Plateau are not far from politics. It is a way of impoverishing the people and demoralising them, and put fear in the people so that they won’t talk even when the government is wrong. Knowing that the current leadership is powerless and doesn’t have the courage to stand out and show the criminals that enough is enough and is not even willing to protect the people.
What happened in Kaduna is that once you are killed, the government also indicts you for being killed; the killer is exonerated and continues to have a field day. Those who killed citizens are criminals, they are murderers and they must not be allowed to sleep. But when you speak against citizens for crying that they were being killed; when you turn to attack citizens for crying out that their homes are being destroyed, then you are telling the criminals that what they were doing is right and they should go ahead because they have the protection of the government.
More than five decades after the civil war, Nigeria has remained sharply divided along religious and ethnic lines. Are you not afraid for this country?
Of course, I’m worried and afraid. But my love for this country seems to be above the fear I have for it. I always have hope and that is why I work for an organisation that tries to promote peace. I believe that these things will not last forever; I believe that those who are masterminding these things will not go scot free. They may have had their way for one decade or more, but it would soon be over. I have travelled to every state capital of this country, and I have people virtually in every state of the federation; and I can see wonderful people, good people who want to see something good come out of Nigeria. In the last election, you could see the spirit that Nigerians have against these bad governors and evil going on in the land and that is why you saw a movement that desired change. They may not have succeeded now, but the success is not far from being achieved very soon. One day, if God spares our lives, even if we are dead, those who have caused us these pains, if they don’t pay, their children would pay. I still believe that something good is still going to happen in Nigeria; I don’t want to be discouraged because Nigeria belongs to God. Nigerians should be hopeful. I want to encourage the good Nigerians to unite. We have more good Nigerians that evil Nigerians, but the evil Nigerians are united, while the good Nigerians are standing and watching and they are not united and that is why their voices are not being heard. It will soon be over for the evil Nigerians. If a man who steals our commonwealth wants to cover his track, all he would do is to instigate brothers either from religion or region and tell them that he was being witch-hunted because of his faith and region. The brothers who are impoverished would support him. By that action, they have successfully enthroned him to continue his evil against them.
Look at the battle for the National Assembly leadership. They are playing religion and region, and I ask myself: There are 109 senators and 360 House of Representatives members. Are these people not intelligent, mature enough to look among themselves who can deliver good governance and make him the Senate President and the Speaker, and make laws that will be respected in this country? It is not the matter. It is not about making laws to improve the country, it is about who can control the resources.