By Ochereome Nnanna
FOLLOWING the savage bomb and gun attacks on defenceless worshippers in the Kano Grand Mosque last Friday, some misguided commentators, especially in the North have, as usual, been looking for scapegoats or fall guys to carry the can of blame. Shortly after the ugly incident that claimed the lives of dozens of innocent worshippers and injured hundreds of others, text messages started making the rounds, claiming that the President Goodluck Jonathan government “sponsored” the attack. This was obviously meant to get the people even more worked up against the president towards the 2015 elections.

Apart from this asinine insinuation, another segment of blame-mongers pointed their dirty fingers in the direction of the Emir of Kano, His Royal Highness Sanusi Lamido, Sanusi II. They faulted him for asking the people to play their own role in the war against the Islamist insurgents who are bent on overrunning the North.

The emir of Kano, Muhammadu Sunusi II (C), visits the central mosque in northern Nigeria’s largest city of Kano on November 29, 2014, a day after twin suicide blasts hit the mosque during weekly Friday prayers. At least 120 people were killed and 270 others wounded when two suicide bombers blew themselves up and gunmen opened fire during weekly prayers at the mosque, a week after the emir of Kano, Muhammad Sanusi II, of one of Nigeria’s top Islamic leaders called on northerners to defend themselves against Boko Haram Islamists that have been carrying out deadly attacks and seizure of territory in the northeast. AFP PHOTO

Actually, the Emir had told fellow worshippers in the mosque penultimate Friday to form themselves into vigilante groups in the mold of the Civilian JTF in Borno, Yobe and Adamawa states, since it has become abundantly clear that the military alone cannot do the job. I quote him: “we should not wait for the soldiers to come; before they come the carnage would have been done…”

To start with, let me admit that I am an ardent critic of this gentleman who, as the Governor of the Central Bank (CBN), often caused a lot of problems with his public utterances. In fact, it was this that led to his controversial exit from the Bank amid a cloud of estrangement with the Presidency. However, this time, I believe that the Kano monarch did the right thing and should be supported rather than being made to look like the one who brought the tragedy on his people.

Sanusi II acted with the courage that has become rare among members of his class, the Northern aristocracy. They have tended to maintain sealed lips while these bloodthirsty outlaws kill and pillage at will, seizing vast territories with defiant venom. The emir has done what the Northern leadership, including the many retired generals, traditional rulers, political leaders, the intelligentsia, the multibillionaires grown with the patronage of our common patrimony, the clerics and opinion leaders should have been doing in the past three years. If not for the self-serving cowardice or conspiratorial silence that these leaders chose to adopt; if they had come out early, like Emir Sanusi, to rally the populace against these Islamist desperados, the terrorists would have been routed long ago.

That was what happened in Abia State, when kidnappers besieged Aba and started towards transforming into a political movement. The government andpeople of the state closed ranks, and when the Federal Government brought in the military to root out the criminals, it became a mere stroll in the garden. But because some misguided Northern leaders and their supporters in the media and politicians saw the terrorists as weapons of blackmail that could be deployed to oust President Jonathan and grab power back, they gave them their tacit and sometimes open support. These guys have transformed from hit-and-run bandits into a consuming fire, and everyone – including those who used to clap every time they bombed churches – is now on the run.

Emir Sanusi has every legitimate reason to issue that call. As an Emir, he is not just a traditional ruler; he is also the spiritual leader of his people and commander of the Muslim faithful. If Boko Haram succeeds in uprooting the old Islamic order from the North, it is the throne of Emir Sanusi II’s forefathers that will be swept into the bin of history. In any case, if he chooses to cower in silence within the walls of his palace as some of his peers are doing, does it guarantee anybody’s safety? Certainly not. His predecessor, Emir Ado Bayero, a man of peace respected beyond his kingdom and the North, was nearly assassinated by these demons in spite of his refraining from openly confronting the insurgents. The Emir of Gwoza, Alhaji Muhammadu Timta and his wife were assassinated when the terrorists invaded his kingdom some six months ago. Timta was once seen as their father-figure.

Sanusi II was correct in rallying his people to be alert to their security. In these sad times of the siege of terrorists in the North, security is no longer to be left to security agents alone. In Biafra, there was this slogan on radio: “Those surrounded by enemies must guard their lives at all times. Biafrans, never go to sleep!” In every conflict situation, militias always rise to complement the military. It is always a military/civilian partnership. While the military does the shooting war the civilians assist with intelligence, reconnaissance, logistics supply, provision of relief materials to displaced persons and act as morale boosters to the fighting forces.

In any case, why should Muslims fold their hands in their places of worship and leave themselves open to attacks? Can’t they emulate what the Christians have done in their respective churches, where they have erected security barriers and screening to minimise impact in case of terror attacks? That is why attacks in the bigger churches in the bigger towns have drastically minimised.The mosques also need to be secured by their parishioners, with the technical assistance of the security agencies.

The Kano mosque attack should be a wake-up call to all Nigerians who are still slumbering: Boko Haram is a common enemy to all of us. If we join hands we will crush them. But if we continue to hide our heads in the sand like the proverbial ostrich, nobody will be able to predict the calamity that hides in wait for all of us.

We must join Emir Sanusi in vowing that never again shall we allow these demonic forces to strike fear in our hearts when we are at school, in our homes or in our places of worship.