Nigeria:The Emergence of Pakistan in Africa

Nigeria is Africa’s most populous country and the continent’s largest oil exporter. Nigeria has never had it so bad since the return of democracy in 1998. A militant uprising in the majority Christian southern delta and a Taliban style insurgency in the Muslim North. In the middle of it is the city of Jos in central Plateau state with Muslim and Christian groups coordinating deadly attacks on each other. 13 people were reported killed yesterday in the latest wave of violence to sweep through the city. This is the third major incident of violence in less than three weeks with the Federal Government in Abuja totally clueless on how to stop the fighting in a city once regarded as Nigeria’s tourism capital. The Nigerian Army, fresh from confronting militants in the Southern delta has been brought in yet again to contain the violence in Jos.
Islamic militants in the far North known as the Boko Haram have coordinated almost daily attacks on Police and Army soldiers in the North-eastern state of Borno bordering Niger Republic. The Boko Haram has embarked on almost daily slaying of security forces in Borno state. The Boko Haram is a renegade group of Islamic devotees that abhors western education and once attempted a Taliban style takeover of the Northern state of Yobe in 2004. Security forces were brought in to quell the insurgency with several of their fighters either killed or arrested. The group continued with its attacks on Police posts and the security forces. The Nigerian authorities didn’t look much into the structure of the group, funding, ideology or possible connections with outside groups. They were simply branded as criminals by the Nigerian security operatives and assumed to have been crushed or defeated. Over 700 lives were lost in renewed confrontation that ensured between the Boko Haram and Nigerian security operatives in 2009 after they regrouped and went on rampage, destroying police and customs posts across the Northern states. The group’s leader, Mohammed Yusuf in an interview with a local newspaper said the group wanted nothing other than the overthrow of democracy and the imposition of the strict Islamic Sharia law across the country. Mohammed Yusuf was captured and subsequently executed while in Police custody. Officially, he was killed while trying to escape. His execution while in police custody appears to be the motivation behind recent wave of attacks on the Police and Army across the northern states as revenge for the execution of their leader.
The city of Jos has had its own share of Boko Haram violence. Bombs went off in at least eight different locations in the city on Christmas Eve killing more than 80 People. Within 24 hours of the bombings, the Boko Haram posted a video on the internet claiming responsibility. Jos is fast becoming to the rest of Nigeria what the Waziristan is to Pakistan- a rallying point for fundamentalist Islam. With the Christmas day bombings in Jos, the Boko Haram has signified its intention to take up the responsibility of defending the rights of Muslims in trouble ridden Jos. In the video in which it claimed responsibility for the Christmas Eve blasts, the group spoke about its intention to fight for the rights of Muslims not only in Jos which it renamed Suldaniyya, but also in other parts of the country where its claims Muslims are unfairly treated.
The South of Nigeria is also in the throes of another insurgency, this time between the Security forces and Militants in the oil rich delta fighting for greater control of the regions oil wealth. Oil pipelines are often blown up and foreign oil workers kidnapped and held for ransom. An Amnesty Programme introduced by Nigeria’s late President Umaru Yar’adua was thought to have finally ended the violence in the region but the kidnappings and bombings have persisted despite the Amnesty programme.
Pakistan just like Nigeria is a former British colony. Pakistan has about the same size and population as Nigeria and like Nigeria is a Military Power in South Asia. Both countries are also regular contributors to UN peace keeping operations around the world. Economically Pakistan is South Asia’s second largest economy after India. Nigeria is Africa’s second largest Economy after South Africa. Both countries have had interludes of Military regimes resulting in very weak administrative and democratic institutions. Both run a Federal system of Government with very high level corruption and bureaucracy. Both countries also have high poverty and unemployment rates. Pakistan like Nigeria has had its own problems with fundamentalist Islam. More than 95% of Pakistanis are Muslim compared with Nigeria’s 50%. More than 95% of Nigeria’s Muslims however reside in the Northern part of the country which like Pakistan’s North-West region is currently embroiled in fundamentalist violence. Pakistan just like Nigeria has managed to keep itself in our daily news headlines due to the conflict in the North-West region of the country
The fundamentalist violence in both Nigeria and Pakistan has similar origins though that of Pakistan appears to be in a more advanced stage. The insurgency in Pakistan is restricted to the federally administered tribal areas in the North-West of the country and close to the border with Afghanistan. Pakistani and Al-Qaeda fighters with the help of foreign fighters from Uzbekistan and other neighbouring countries have declared war on the central government in Islamabad. These fighters have similar ideology and motive as the ones in Northern Nigeria. They want the imposition of the strict Islamic Sharia law in the areas they occupy. Just like the American war on terror and the invasion of Afghanistan has provided the perfect opportunity for the Militants in Pakistan to embark on their violent rage, the situation in Jos is creating the same kind of effect in Northern Nigeria. Muslims in Nigeria’s north are beginning to see the conflict in Jos as an obligation to fight in solidarity with Muslims in Jos. The violence though coated with political and tribal undertones has a religious outlook. Muslims from Northern Nigeria are at war with the local Christian indigenes who regard the Muslims as settlers. The Nigerian security operatives though unable to contain the insurgency have been able to establish that most of the fighters participating in the violence in Jos are outsiders from neighbouring Northern states and from nearby countries like Niger and Chad, just as is the case in Pakistan- fuelled by the involvement of foreign fighters from border countries.
The situation in Pakistan is like a glance into the future of the conflict in Nigeria -an advanced Nigeria if you like. Pakistan in its current state provides a picture of where Nigeria is headed in a few years to come if the violence is allowed to continue unabated. Both countries present similar challenges-the presence of a weak central government unable to exert control. Almost all of Nigeria's northern states practise Sharia law, same with Pakistan which allows Sharia Law in Parts of its troubled North-West. With Al-Qaeda gaining ground in North Africa including Mali and Mauritania and the increasing influx of foreign fighters from Chad and Niger republics, it appears Nigeria is only a few years away from a full blown Pakistan. This Pakistan outlook for Nigeria hasn’t taken into account the insurgency in Nigeria’s southern Delta which is where Nigeria produces all of its oil. Nigeria is going to be a hotbed of even greater violence in the nearest future no doubt but the big question is if Nigeria will pose a bigger security challenge than Pakistan. The signs in the affirmative are very vivid.
Both Pakistan and Nigeria are key US allies. Islamabad is a key ally in Washington’s war on terror and in the military offensive to dislodge the Taliban in nearby Afghanistan. Nigeria is Africa’s top oil producer and wields both Military and political influence on the continent. Both Nigeria and Pakistan are regional economic powers and both are members of the Next eleven (or N-11) group of economies with a very promising forecast for investment and economic growth. Both countries have very serious security challenges which threaten their bright economic outlook. If the situation in Nigeria is allowed to degenerate to that of Pakistan’s, it will be impossible to rule out US military involvement in the nearest future as is already the case in Pakistan. A repeat of Pakistan in Nigeria will not only threaten US oil supplies from that country and will risk plunging the whole continent into crisis and creating an impossible humanitarian situation for both the West African region and the rest of the continent. It is therefore imperative that the US provides Nigeria with adequate military support in the form of training, logistics and hardware to grapple with this looming Pakistani scenario on the African continent. Greater accountability must also be demanded from the Federal Government in Abuja in areas such as the spending of Nigeria’s oil wealth and the Fight against corruption. Poverty and unemployment must be reduced if the war against terror is going to be won in Nigeria. Nigeria must not be allowed to go down the Pakistan road.

The Gadaffi theory VS My Nigerian Theory

No President or Head of State world over generates as much controversy or draws as much attention to himself as Muammar al-Gaddafi known simply as Colonel Gadaffi, the Libyan Head of State. Everything about him just makes you cringe in some way. His looks, his dress sense, and most importantly his political views and comments. Colonel Gaddafi drew the ire of many Nigerians early last year when he called for the partitioning of Nigeria along religious lines. His 'wise' suggestion came shortly after we had another round of violence in Jos.
 Gaddafi first caught my attention some years back when he came up with the very laughable idea of creating a United States of Africa, with him as the chair. He actually believed we all would forget about our religious, ethnic and tribal differences and just collapse ourselves into a United States of Africa with an Arab Colonel as Head! Wonder what he was drinking when he thought that up!
Seriously now Gaddafi may be really good at grandstanding and all but was he really saying gibberish when he said Nigeria was better off divided along religious lines? Lots of people were quick to dismiss everything he said bearing in mind some of his past advice like the funny one about dividing Switzerland into three parts and dashing a part each to the Germans, Italians and French. Nigeria's Senate President, David Mark called Gaddafi a mad man! Does dividing Nigeria equally through the centre, north and south really sound mad?
 If you were just a loose observer of Nigeria or Nigerian politics; standing afar and looking in from a distance, splitting Nigeria along religious lines would be the best solution to all the violence we're currently facing. It would make perfect sense to someone from afar who puts on his TV everyday and hears tales about how Christians and Muslims are killing themselves in cold blood. Why not just seperate them. Wouldn't that make perfect sense? Wouldn't it be perfectly logical!
There's lots more going down in Nigeria than the Muslim/Christian thing. That's just the way the world has chosen to understand what Nigeria's problem really is, that's how foreigners have chosen to understand why every single day we hear reports of violence and death in Nigeria. Religion? That's the least of Nigeria's problems. Lets even give thought to Gaddafi's suggestion and assume someone someday would have the guts to order the split of the country into different  halves, the Muslims to the North and Christians to the South. Then the Problem with Jos is settled and no more religious violence in Nigeria. Is it really that simple? Would that really stop people from killing themselves with the slightest provocation. I Don't think so!
The truth is even if Nigeria is split along religious, ethnic or tribal lines with the Yoruba speaking people of the west, Ibo speaking people of the East and the Hausa speakers in the north allowed to rule themselves, would that bring an end to the violence and bloodshed?
One very sincere and human truth we often shy away from is that people are always going to exploit the slightest difference between other people to their advantage. We're all black African people for christ sake! Why can't we just get along?

Nigeria is too big? Ok lets split it! Igbos go your way. Yorubas go your way and Hausas too. Problem solved? Guess again! A few years down the road, the Ijebu people in Yoruba country or Yoruba republic start talking about being marginalised and say they want their own country. The Oyo people in the North of Yoruba republic say no way and then violence erupts again. Same with the Hausa in the north and the Igbos. So are we going to continue splitting and splitting and splitting till everyone is a government to himself? Is that really the solution to our problems?
Everyone keeps saying the British made a very big mistake in 1914, forcing totally different people into a union they didn't want. Is that really true? Is Nigeria a mistake?

Singapore gained independence from Britain around the same time as Nigeria. They have a population that is as diverse, or even more diverse than that of Nigeria. Instead of having different tribes or ethnic groups like in other countries, theirs is a mixture of Races. Chinese, Indians, Malays all cramped into a tiny space the size of Lagos. The Singapore economy in 2006 was rated the World's most Globalised Economy! A country the size of Lagos, packed full of people of different Races (not tribes), Chinese, indians, malays all dumped and abandoned for nothing by the British in 1963 has become the most Globalised Economy in the world Today. Was Singapore a British mistake too? While the Chinese, Indians and Malays of Singapore were busy charting the course of their destiny after independence, the Yorubas, Ibos and Hausas in Nigeria were even busier sharing looted funds and killing themselves over petty issues, issues as petty as religion! To add insult to injury, we're all black people. No notable physical differences between us compared to the Singaporeans who have Chinese, Indian and Malay people. Buddhists, Muslims and Christians all in Singapore. If Nigeria was a mistake by the British then Singapore must have been an even bigger mistake. What were the British thinking, cramping people of such diverse races into a tiny island with little or no resources?
I remember reading the autobiography of the First Prime Minister of Singapore, Lee Kuan Yew, narrating his country's story from the time of British colonial rule to recent times. How he was able to inspire is countrymen to look beyond their difference and fight their common enemies, poverty, insecurity and unemployment.
Nigerias' problem is not religion or ethnicity or tribalism. We have simply failed to identify who our real enemies are. Poverty, insecurity, unemployment. These are our real enemies. Not Muslims or Christians or Hausa people or Ibo people or Yoruba people. We need to know who or what our real enemies are as a country, as a people. That's the only way we're ever going to forge ahead as a Nation. Nigeria has the largest market in Africa. Very mobile and innovative youth, an abundance of Minerals, Plenty of fertile Land, and people still say the British were mistaken in lumping us all together? The British left Singaporeans on their own with nothing! No mineral resources or whatever. Absolutely nothing!

Gaddafi's theory on Nigeria may sound very wise on paper and to foreigners or outsiders but the truth still remains that Nigeria is way bigger than religion or ethnicity or tribalism. What we need is sincerity and honesty in identifying our real enemies. Poverty, Insecurity, Unemployment, Ineffective leadership. Lets know who our real enemies are and muster the will and courage to engage them in a fight for liberation. Liberation not from ourselves and our collective values and traditions, not from our diversity and our collective heritage. but from those things that threaten to tear us apart.
That is my Nigerian theory.......

Jos, Jos, Jos and more of Jos....

Yea, Jos on fire again. Like anyone's surprised. What's surprising is that it keeps happening again and again, people killing each other just like that and no one knows how to make them stop. Its really incredible!
We're supposed to have a special military unit there to stop these people from killing themselves and yet even they can't do anything. Its absolutely incredible! So what do you do if you're a government and you can't exert any power over a particular section of your domain. You just don't know how to stop people from killing themselves. Forget the reason for the violence, religious, political, social, whatever. What do you call a Head of State or a Commander in Chief who has maybe by choice or ineptitude, absolutely no control over his domain.
Why exactly are the people over in Jos killing each other? I hear its a Muslim/Christian thing. Others say its local politics. You hear all sorts, like someone said its part of an Islamic plot to take over Nigeria starting with Jos, or that its part of an Al-queda plot to make Nigeria ungovernable. I once listened to Goodluck Jonathan's take on the Jos issue on CNN and it was really disappointing. He just sat there blabbing and talking  like an educated illiterate with absolutely no idea of what's really going down in Jos. The interviewer knew more about Jos than the so-called President did. Its been going on for years now but this time around its taken a very dangerous twist with the violence and killings going on almost everyday, and lately with the introduction of bombs! Maybe the arsonists have seen what every other Nigerian has seen in Goodluck Jonathan and have decided to go all out this time with everything in their arsenal. We all know Jonathan is the weakest President we've had in our history, even weaker and less assertive than Shagari was. It really would be surprising if this regime had any clue on how to stop the violence in Jos. I think we all just need to get used to having people die in Jos everyday because Jonathan is almost certainly going to win another term in office and continue with his ineptitude and incompetence. The guy strikes me as a totally confused person, thrust into national politics only because a certain ex-president needed someone he could manipulate with his puppet strings so he could continue with his third term.
Something tells me this is going to be the first of many posts on Jos, I have a feeling its just the beginning. Another four years of Jonathan and the violence may even spread to other parts of the North or worse the whole country!
Any solution in sight? Can't see any sadly! So many administrative panels have been set up over the years. Jonathan even joined the fray and set up his own advisory panel with the usual feasting and politicking that accompanies such jamborees and of course the  recommendations which everyone is very quick to forget. The recommendations or resolutions or whatever always end up somewhere in someone's file cabinet. Then the violence dies down a little, we all pretend like it never happened and move on. Then someone else is killed, we make the usual noise, people remember there was panel and start asking questions, the President comes out and says the same ol gibberish about bringing the perpetrators to book and he probably sets up another panel again just so people will stop making noise and to make it seem like he's doing something. The cycle goes on and on and on till those really causing the violence start to wonder if they're really getting the attention of the Government with their violence.
Government everywhere else is all about Providing water, Food security, Sound education, good roads, Security of lives and Property. Here in Nigeria, you provide your own food, send  your children to private schools, have to make do with bad roads, provide your own water, generate your own electricity and yet still you'd think they'd have a little sympathy on you and at least guaranty your safety but hell no! They just can't guaranty you that or even worse, the people who are supposed to protect you end up "accidentally discharging" you. So what exactly is our government doing with all that oil money? Really amazing country Nigeria! No wonder we have so many Universities everywhere studying Nigeria. Nigeria is a real case study.
Sadly this is one of many posts I'm going to make about Jos. Have no idea when or how its going to end. Will probably end with the demise of Nigeria. Seriously, hope it does!

      Here's Jonathan's disgraceful CNN interview where he exposes his ignorance on the crises in jos

The very First!

My very first post. What on earth do I talk about? So much to say!. Decided on writing this blog in the first place becauseI thought I had lots and lots to say. Now I've started and have absolutely no idea what to say!
Feels more like idly talking to myself with nobody listening. Love to talk about Sports, News, Politics, everything  hot topic under the Sun.