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Ladesope Ladelokun
The finality of death can be terrifying. But death is the ultimate leveller. It is a debt everyone must pay regardless of age,race or class.Indeed, when the Grim Reaper calls, it respects no one.
Like a virtual friend posted on his Facebook wall,death is a sermon on our mortality.But no life deserves to be terminated abruptly, even with the certainty of death. Everyone has a right to live. This explains why the unremitting killings by Boko Haram elements,bandits and kidnappers have sparked outrage among well meaning Nigerians.
Today, no day passes without one reading chilling stories of our compatriots that are sent to early graves by the lethal weapons of the merchants of death on rampage across the land,causing many to lose sleep.Without any whiff doubt, it is crystal clear that there is a resurgence of insurgency in the beleaguered north.Like Abiku( a Yoruba word for a child that dies only to be reborn),it has resurrected after a seeming hiatus before the presidential election,depositing sorrow and tears in homes and agony in our bones.
Despite the rising spectre of violence in Nigeria, there appears to be a consensus of denial among the men of power.If President Buhari is not bragging about successes of the military in tackling Nigeria’s monstrous security challenge, his media aides are telling Nigerians why they should be grateful to Buhari because our security situation is not as bad as it used to be under former President Jonathan.
Hear Buhari’s spokesman, Mr Femi Adesina: “ We know what the situation was as at 2015 and we know what it is today despite the reversals in security,it is still not as bad ad it used to be in the country.” Oh, really? Well, right thinking Nigerians may not agree.
Inspite of the empty braggadocio about the successes the present government has recorded in the fight against insurgency and the determination to ram falsehood down our throats, available statistics show a government wallowing in self delusion. The 2019 Global Terrorism Index, for example, shows that Nigeria is the third most impacted country in the world by terrorism after Iraq and Afghanistan. Now, wait for this: Nigeria has retained the unenviable position since 2015. According to GTI,2040 died in 2018 due to terrorism,adding that the figure rose by 508 on the figure for 2017.
Only some weeks back, the European Union condemned the recent upsurge in violence against ethnic and religious communities. The body observed that “ progress has stalled in the fight against Boko Haram, ISWAP and the increased occurrence and severity of suicide attacks and direct attacks against military positions.”
But, who needs the European Union or America to tell us the grotesque realities of our situation before we know the insecurity in the land has precipitated sorrow and tears across the land,making us slaves to our fears on our roads,homes, markets, farms.Not even religious houses are spared.
Whether it is the beheading of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) Chairman in Adamawa or the murder of an 18-year-old seminarian or the roasting of 30 stranded travellers in Maiduguri or murder of over 30 humans in the president’s home state,Katsina at the weekend and more, the unremitting killings across Nigeria bear testament to a country in dire straits, giving Nigeria a semblance of a massive graveyard.And to think all these happened on the watch of a war General elected on the promise of defeating the violent extremism promoted by Boko Haram and other terror groups!Where then lies our salvation? When will this siege be over?
While it cannot be incongruous to call for the dismissal of the service chiefs owing to the worsening security problems besetting Nigeria, President Buhari must also convince Nigerians why he must continue to keep his job as the Chief Security Officer with the primary responsibility of protecting Nigerians.
With tired and unimpressive service chiefs, especially when some are overdue for retirement, it may be hard to make a meaningful headway if no room is created to accommodate fresh ideas. In a recent interview with a national newspaper, the Chief of Army Staff,Gen. Tukur Buratai, had said troops were not constrained by manpower and equipment.
“The issue of manpower is something we have always addressed as it comes. There is a difference between the 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, 1990s and now. So we would not see the issue of manpower as anything that has to do with fighting insecurity. This is because we have so many force multipliers that would facilitate whatever shortcoming we have in manpower. And that’s very important. The issue of manpower is not something you would start today, and tomorrow you say you have sufficient,” he said
Buratai added: “ People are talking about equipment and relating it to the resurgence of insecurity; they are also linking both equipment and manpower to the resurgence of insecurity.
This has always been the issue. If there are challenges that crop up at a time, people complain that equipment and troops are not enough. This has always been the trend. I am not saying that these are not the issues; they are quite cogent and important, but we have achieved so much with the present level of equipment we have.”
Buratai’s submission provokes some germaine questions: if the issues of manpower and equipment have been adequately addressed,why are we not getting desired results? Could it be failure of intelligence? But the buck stops on the table of the president – a fact attested to by his recent visit to Maiduguri where he was,to the shock of many booed by a crowd that used to give him a warm reception.
Mr President would do himself a world of good by refusing to listen to those who tell him Nigerians who booed him during his Maiduguri condolence visit were sponsored miscreants,or the one who said Nigeria was now heaven when compared to the hell it was in the days of Jonathan. He must roll up his sleeves to work to ensure we no longer have our hearts in our mouths when we ply the major roads in Nigeria. The jeers in Maiduguri should nudge him to a moment of sober reflection to work out how Nigerians can best be protected.
While it is long overdue to rejig the country’s security architecture, there must be a concerted effort by governments at all levels to fight poverty and illiteracy, especially in the north.A recent report by the world bank that the north is home to 87 percent of Nigeria’s wretched paints a pathetic picture of a war far from over,especially with over 10 million out-of-school children. While we earmark billions of dollars to kill terrorism or insurgency, we must not forget to kill the enablers – illiteracy and poverty.
Ladelokun writes via [email protected]
