By KEHINDE OKUNOMO

THE title of this article is not meant to embarrass government officials but rather to notify them of their perceived cluelessness, passivity and inability over the years to arrest the persistent decimation of the Christian population in Nigeria by the radical Islamists, whether in government, by traditional rulers or individuals aided by Saudi authorities or other Islamic organisations in the Arab world. They have apparently considered Nigeria their last target or a seemingly stronghold or fortress that holds the key to their overriding ambition to Islamise the Africa continent and as such Christianity in Nigeria must be destroyed through whatever means, be it openly or surreptitiously.

Their strategy in the core North, apart from “bokoharamization” and the perennial abduction of Christian girls from school and their forceful conversion to earthly seven virgins in fulfillment of their divinely orchestrated and distorted agenda; also involves secretly denying prospective Christian candidates admission into their universities or higher institutions.  In addition to that, they deliberately refused to employ indigenes from Southern part of Nigeria into their institutions, or civil services; and where it became unavoidable they were placed on contract appointment for life. They have always denied Christians the opportunity of becoming Vice-Chancellors and heads in their institutions.

The above is just a tip of the iceberg. They have never hidden their utter disdain or dislike for Christians. Just recently, a clear example of this was demonstrated when an Imam openly demanded for the assassination of the first lady with impunity; and surprisingly there was no arrest made. Imagine if a Christian had said that against Buhari’s wife. Your guess is as good as mine. His vituperation is a reflection of the destructive mindset of the people we wrongfully referred to as fellow Nigerians, because there was no iota of condemnation from his numerous apologists.

The persistent killings of Christians in the North predate the present regime. It all began apparently in Kaduna after the Zango Kataf crisis of 1992. There was this crisis between Zango  Kataf people and the Fulani which resulted in the death of hundreds of people. However, the Fulani who felt overpowered by Zango Kataf people through the support of one Gen. Zamani Lekwot waited patiently for an opportune time to exact revenge. This became possible during the tenure of El-Rufai who as a Governor of Kaduna State and the chief security officer remained neutral as his kinsmen perpetrated an unprecedented genocide on the Zango Kataf people. It was a carnage against a defenseless people who apart from being killed also were displaced from their home lands which was immediately expropriated by the invaders. The statement from the Governor at that time, which was highly contemptible, was to plead for forgiveness from his kinsmen on behalf of the Zango Kataf people as a way of placating them. It created a nauseating impression that as aggrieved persons you could take laws into your hand. One would have thought that if you feel aggrieved in a civilized society, the appropriate thing is to seek redress in a court of competent jurisdiction. The implication is that we live in a lawless society where little or no premium is placed on human lives. This is because the conflict continues unabated up till this day and the perpetrators are treated with kid’s gloves. The plausible reason for non-governmental interference is that the Zango Kataf inhabitants are predominantly Christians and animists.

Sequel to the above, in 2010 there was the Jos conflict. The genesis of the crisis remains a mystery but, as always, churches were burnt and hundreds of Christians massacred in their land by Fulani herdsmen. It was according to unauthorised sources due to the demand for some political positions by the Fulani settlers which the inhabitants considered their exclusive preserve, that led to the conflict. The crisis later spread to Benue State without any end in sight. I remember vividly that a serving Senator at the time was murdered in cold blood by the people in military camouflage who came there under the guise of resolving the conflict. The impression I have had over the years is that our successive leaders either lack the political will or are incapable of fulfilling their constitutional obligation towards these people by protecting them against their aggressors. It has become a recurring decimal in our society such that the perpetrators have this erroneous belief that they are above the law.

The threat to Christianity became more pronounced during the government of Jonathan and Buhari where Christians and their places of worship were targeted to undermine the regime of the former. A particular incident occurred in Kogi State in which a place of worship belonging to the Deeper Life Bible Church where Christians holding vigil were ruthlessly murdered by Islamic terrorists which was unprecedented in the state. However, the crisis assumed a higher dimension during the regime of Buhari.   His predecessor, Jonathan, having been inundated with security report concluded within himself that the blood of innocent Nigerians should not be sacrificed on the altar of his personal political ambition. This eventually propelled him in an unprecedented manner to graciously concede defeat to the chagrin of his opponent. The latter having now obtained the mantle of leadership on a platter of gold was in a quandary on what to do with his foot soldiers. His cluelessness left his mercenaries no other option than to resort to kidnapping, abduction, maiming, raping, etc, for which the Christians became their primary target. The painful outcome is that, for the first time in Nigeria, our forests, farms, houses, communities were invaded; women abducted and raped, farmers killed mercilessly which contributed greatly to the food insecurity and hardship bedeviling this country at the moment.

What further exacerbated the situation was that there were at that time, terrorist sympathizers who infiltrated the government and were providing invaluable intelligent information to these aggressors, thereby weakening or frustrating the effort of the government to degrade them. 

The terrorists are therefore emboldened to attack military formations, occasionally ambushing the soldiers and killing them at will. It appeared government was incapacitated. When the atrocities became rampant, some Governors, especially from the South-West formulated strategies to checkmate them by establishing a security outfit code named “AMOTEKUN”. The operatives of the security outfit will assist police, other security agencies and traditional rulers in combating terrorism, etc. 

What contributed greatly to the spread of these atrocities, is that, it has become a veritable source of generating revenue where the abductees or kidnapped victims would be required to pay huge ransom running into millions of naira before regaining freedom. Often times the government comes to the rescue where it involves large numbers. Furthermore, the incessant crises have also led to the clamor for State Police with the modus operandi being worked out presently to avoid constitutional crisis.

It is against this backdrop, I am passionately advocating for the establishment of National Christians Army, that will be saddled with the singular responsibility of protecting Christians against internal aggression all over Nigeria. To actualize this objective, we will approach or contact United Nation or Non-governmental organization for support where necessary. This is not an attempt to undermine the sovereignty of Nigeria but rather to complement the effort of the government with a view to ensuring peaceful co-existence among all ethnic groups and adherents of various religions. The Christians in the National Assembly should be mandated to introduce a bill to the house to that effect.

It is very imperative that we remind ourselves of several atrocities perpetrated against Christians in the past based on frivolous allegations of blasphemy. For example, Gideon Akaluka, Kemi Akinwande, an Igbo woman alleged to have desecrated the Quran, Redeemed pastor’s wife, and very recently, Deborah Samuel were all grievously murdered in the name of religion, while to the amazement of the Christians, the perpetrators were deliberately let off the hook or not apprehended at all even in the face of incontrovertible evidence as attested to by CNN reporters recently. Therefore, these National Christian soldiers will be empowered to guarantee the security of Christians nationwide whenever there is perceived or real threat to their existence, homes and places of worship.

I have had the privilege of travelling to different parts of Nigeria and I have never experienced where Muslims were subjected to any form of harassment or intimidation, or burning of their places of worship most, especially in the South, which is a regular occurrence in the North against christians. They have always exercised their right of freedom of worship without any fear of intimidation, harassment or molestation. The point is this: why can’t this aatitude of accommodation be embraced or reciprocated in the North. How on earth would an innocent Kemi Akinwande deliberately desecrate the Quran? How would she have been able to differentiate between the Quran and other books in an examination hall? The problems are the political leaders that are indirectly fueling the conflict for their self-aggrandizement and that is totally unacceptable. They profit regrettably on the educational backwardness of their people through perpetual denial of every sense of rationality or objectivity. Why must Christians be killed at the slightest provocation and sometimes unprovoked attacks are launched against our people? 

Let me say those who may want to oppose this bill by citing unconstitutionality of it. It must be made unmistakably clear that if Sharia implementation and the establishment of Hisbah police in the North in a supposedly secular country are not unconstitutional then the proposed Christian Army must never be deemed unconstitutional. 

•Okunomo, a public affairs commentator, wrote from Asaba, Delta state

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