Hypocrites as leaders (1)

By Ochereome Nnanna

VERY early last Thursday, I received a number of text messages from some of my readers and friends; some of them very highly placed and respected Nigerians. It was about an article by our new columnist, Is’haq Modibbo Kawu, reacting to some of the views I have canvassed of recent about political events in our country.

Some advised me to react, but others were of the view that I should ignore it. Naturally, I was anxious to see what it was all about. So, rather than wait till I got to the office to read it from my complimentary copy I called my vendor to bring me a copy of the day’s Vanguard.

When I read what Kawu wrote, I decided to write, not necessarily to “answer back” but to clarify a number of issues which the writer misplaced deliberately and mischievously or out of innocent ignorance. I was prodded further to do this serial because of a number of violently threatening text messages, some of which might have ensued from the inciting article Kawu wrote.

I hereby run one of them from an unnamed individual with GSM number: +2348036558515. It said: You are warned to be careful with your anti-North/anti-Islam stance. A word is enough for the wise.

Compare this with Kawu’s statement in his article entitled, “Boko Haram: Even with the Bombings, There is no Alternative to Dialogue”.

Under a subhead: Hatred for the North, Kawu fumed: Unfortunately, Nnanna’s deep-seated hatred for the North and strong anti-Islam stance won’t allow him find reason in anything concerning his objects of hate.

You can see the close resemblance between the words of the text message and the columnist. It was either they came from the same source or a reader was simply  copy-catting the writer.

Before I go on, let me make it abundantly clear that in my 17 years of writing the People and Politics column, I have never wavered from holding my viewpoints. I have been accused, threatened, condemned, commended and I have equally won a lot of admirers and awards. The Lord is my shepherd and my strength, so nobody can intimidate me.

I wish to quickly debunk two pieces of “Kawu-ardly” mischief contained in the offensive write-up. Number one is that I am an “unrepentant defender of Biafranism”. The second is that I am anti-North, anti-Islam.

Kawu’s charge that I am a defender of “Biafranism” is as vacuous and baseless as his vain attempt to draw a parallel between the Movement for the Actualisation of the Sovereign State of Biafra, MASSOB, and Boko Haram. I challenge him (and anyone) to publish any article I have written defending MASSOB and calling for the establishment of the state of Biafra. There are principles behind my stance.

I know that Igbos are not separatists, should not be. The Igbo nation was in  the forefront in the fight for Nigeria’s independence. Since the civil war ended, they have also been at the forefront for national development in spite of official policies of selective exclusion (which are gradually coming to an end). The Igbos have invested more of their material wealth to build the economy than any other group, more so outside Igbo land than within. Igbos are severely geographically disadvantaged. They have one of the largest and most dynamic populations in Africa and are desirous of space.

Igbos are the only majority without direct access to an international border. They are not like their Hausa-Fulani peers who can melt into the deep Sahel (just as the people of the deep Sahel melt into them) without any cultural problems. They are not like the Yoruba who can easily sneak across the border through the many illegal routes on our western flank into Benin Republic, where they can speak Yoruba and pass just like any other Beninoise, on their way to exile in the Diaspora. The Igbo are the only majority group that have Nigeria as their only home.

I believe that ethnic separatism is not suitable as a strategic destination of the Igbo people. The only group that, some say, can feel at home with that is the Yoruba, with their natural territorial advantages. But even at that, most Yoruba  people want to live within Nigeria because they know what they have gained and still stand to gain by so doing. All that they are asking for (which I also want) is greater autonomy to enable them launch their full capacities for rapid development.

They believe that this Nigeria that we have all been forced into by the colonialists and the military stifles growth – even the growth of those it was created to “benefit” – the North (and obviously more so).

Knowing all these, I should be a fool to ask for Biafra, at least in the way that MASSOB are going about it. But at the same time, I am no longer interested in a Nigeria where some people think they have the natural right of kings to be my overlords. That is why I am tickled pink by the result of the last general election, which put that dispensation to rest for good. The outcome of these recent elections was a pan-Nigerian effort, just as June 12 was before it was annulled by the enemies of a united, progressive Nigeria.

I also want to state that there is no parallel between MASSOB and Boko Haram. MASSOB came up because they believe that Nigeria is incapable of justice. They want a country of their own where they will be free. I don’t agree with them, but they are entitled to their viewpoints, particularly as they have never threatened or harmed anyone with their agitations. More importantly, they have never threatened Northerners who live in the East in large numbers, despite repeated killing of Igbos and Christians in the North.

On the other hand, Boko Haram burst from nowhere and indiscriminately started killing Christians, Muslims, high, low, indigenes, settlers, police, army, what have you. It is an offshoot of the Maitatsine Sect (which was crushed by President Shehu Shagari). But this time around, it is linked to Jihadist Al Qaeda, and openly boasted that their “fighters” trained in Somalia are back to wreak havoc all over Northern Nigeria.

My call for the elimination of this threat to our national security cannot be a hatred of any region or religion. In the next edition of this write-up, I will explain further.