Boko Haram, Before And By June, That Promise!
The only way to keep the opposition, especially the ones without alternatives, quiet is to perform more than creditably. Top-notch deliveries are like pregnancy -- can't be hidden. Ndubisi Victor O
The modus operandi for the Boko Haram click has changed; bombings may have reduced considerably depending on who is reeling out the statistics.
In Kano it is police stations, security institutions or the mosque, these days the force tasked with protecting citizens have been trigger happy. While Gombe has been hotels, churches and the odd mosque. In Yobe, it's security operatives, Custom, SSS, institutions and churches. Yobe was safe until late last year the onslaught began.
In Adamawa, it was Igbos and the governor's account, then police stations and markets too. In Bauchi, barracks, banks, churches, and police station. In Kaduna it has been barracks, markets, near the mosque and the Easter Sunday blast and a rare bank attack in Saminaka.
In Jos, Plateau, it has been just churches, and new voyages to viewing centers. In Niger state, it has been Suleja all through, Maddala Xmas Bomb and others. The Christ Embassy and some very unimaginable ones like the self-confessed Igbos manufacturing bombs.
Kogi state has entered the fray, with prison breaks, and bomb making centers. But for some shadow boxing, Abuja has been relatively safe after the Police Headquarters and UN building bombs.
Despite all the threats, Sokoto has remained safe but for the Hostage release drama that went sour. Kebbi is clean, Zamfara too, so also Katsina, Jigawa inclusive. Only the initiated can proffer any logical explanation.
In Taraba, only the capture of Kabiru Sokoto in the state is a mark. Than that, the state is clean. In Borno, BH has done almost a full circle...From churches, Christians, local politicians, and Islamic scholars/clerics, security agents, schools (without pupils though), markets, wedding--name it.
From local IEDs to bombs, gunmen that raid victims from motorcycles, bombs that missed targets and bomb makers killed by their wares.
There are has been several arrests, including the Senator that fingered or alleged that the Vice President was aware that he had contacts with BH. One spokesman yet to go on trial, while another one is still having conference calls with Journalists.
The security agents have made several arrests and killings. Comparatively in some states they seem to have the upper edge. But fact remains that...it's a long way.
Political, economic, criminal, militant, religious and government boko harams are the few typologies we have seen so far--Those that want to negotiate but do not trust government. Those blowing up Banks, those killing other faiths and those that have made sure that more Muslims are killed and then those too that have become Christian Boko Haram and government conspirators...
The fact that attacks have continued where there are curfew and cache of arms and rocket launchers move around these region despite its military state tells you its far from June.
Demands keep changing, from sharia request, to the president being asked to convert. To revenge for the Jos praying ground killings to requesting that Southerners leave the North and recently BH's own ultimatum to the President.
It's interesting to note that in most of the affected areas Boko Haram has greatly changed the way of life. Many believe it is a Northern problem. Yes, for now maybe but how long--till June according to Mr. President.
Mutual suspicion, mistrust, half-truths and outright lies and purposeful misinformation exists about the face of Boko Haram.
Who are the sponsors of BH, big ones, small and medium ones? Why is it that no top government functionary has been victim...being a den of Haramites.
There is a growing cell structure, international complexity, do we dialogue, on what terms, with which group, is it justified, are they faceless, no, at least not on the experience of these writer. Are they exploiting a weak leadership?
How many has to die before June, our hate quotient is on the red level. Innocent Nigerians of different faith and creed killed in bestial manner for things they least understand. Not totally justifiable but at the heart of all these is a leadership that has long neglected its responsibility to her people in terms of social justice, economic empowerment, political stability via electoral process, and ethno-religious tolerance systems.
Have we looked at Borno the central actor from the underlying perspective of a battle for supremacy along the divide of Islamic schools of thoughts, so much intellectual disagreements and banana academic peels? The security experts are faced with underage and gullible boys, on another hand very sophisticated schooled and doctrinated young men armed to the teeth. While many do not know even the real BH detest being referred to as Boko Haram, universities have not been attacked and strangely in all states of concentration the elite residential areas have been spared not necessarily more protected.
When a police station is attacked officers of both major faith and pagans are killed. We are almost confronted with a bad diagnosis leading to bad therapy. And it is in these lights that I conclude by saying that I doubt if the president knows half of these... He may be the CEO of Nigeria and get all the security briefings but he doesn't know much when he says in public there is BH in his government.
He knows very little when he makes the same comments he made at the Force Headquarters, at the UN, at the Catholic Church. It is very "un-leader-like" to further tell us exactly when this would all be over in manner of fact that says talakawas can die till June.
Before and by June the only way to keep the opposition, especially the ones without alternatives, quiet is to perform more than creditably on this matter of security of the Nigerian life. Top-notch deliveries are like pregnancy -- can't be hidden. So far Jonathan and the leadership of the North, right from the Vice President, the governors and traditional and religious leaders have failed to put a stop to all these unnecessary deadly pursuit of the hungry Cheetah and the Antelope that needs to survive.
Like the end of one of those SSS commercials that cost Nigerians millions it says we are Nigerians not terrorists...WHAT WE ARE--time will tell.--