REFLECTIONS ON THE CHIBOK GIRLS
By Denja Yaqub
Over ninety days since young school
girls were abducted from their school; Government Girls Secondary School,
Chibok, Borno State, north east Nigeria on April 14 2014, no success has been
glaring on efforts to rescue the girls despite global outrage and promises by
foreign governments, including global powers such as the United States, to get
the girls out of captivity.
Indeed, a former Nigerian President,
Olusegun Obasanjo was quoted in recent media reports to have said the failure
of the Nigerian security forces to rescue the girls almost instantly after
their abduction was because they never got directives to take such action since
the Presidency didn't believe the girls were truly seized until the massive
global condemnation, two weeks after.
Some organisations, including trade
unions, the news media, political parties and outspoken individuals within and
outside Nigeria have been loud in demanding for the safe rescue of these girls.
Indeed, some organisations formed the BringBackOurGirls Coalition to
sustain daily picket at the Millenium Park in Abuja. Mass protests have been
held in Lagos by civil society organisations. The Nigeria Union of Teachers
have had protest rallies across the country.
But instructively, these protests,
especially the ones held in Abuja faced attacks from security agencies; the
police whose commissioner in charge of its Federal Capital Territory Command,
Joseph Mbu, addressed a press conference to announce a ban on public protests
within the territory. Although his order was immediately disowned by the police
headquarters while the organisers of the protests are in court to seek judicial
coverage, it still meant a lot more that such order could have been contemplated
in the first instance given the fact that a Federal High Court in Abuja, in
June 2005, had given a plausible judgement declaring that the right of
association and to peaceful protests in Nigeria cannot be circumscribed by
anyone, including the police. This judgement was reaffirmed by the Federal
Court of Appeal in September 2013.
The abduction of these girls is not
just a major security breach but a scandalous exposure of our structural
ineptitude to global ridicule. This is reinforced by the over politicisation of
initial reactions to the incident, which were loathed with all sorts of
trivialities.
Sadly, our politicians have not seen
the socio economic implications of our collective security challenges,
especially the ongoing violent campaigns by the notorious cannibal called Boko
Haram, a group that obviously celebrates mass murder of innocent people under
the false and unjustifiable claim that they operate under the auspices of Islam
in propagation of its injunction for the purpose of achieving an Islamic state
authority. Of course, better informed, well respected and prominent Islamic
leaders, including the Sultan of Sokoto who is the spiritual head of the
country's Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs, have authoritatively debunked
the claims of these adventurers.
The initial attitude of our
government to this group perhaps expose official inclination to security as an
item obviously considered less important despite huge budgetary allocations,
which perhaps suggest such allocations are mere conduits for other purposes
other than arresting insecurity.
Statements such as "Boko Haram
is a faceless group" or "may be its our turn to have suicide
bombings" which are statements credited to our country's Commander in
Chief and President obviously underestimated the threats, capabilities and
realities of the dangers posed by the terror gang.
With the strength and efficiency of
Nigeria's security agencies, as attested to by the evident competencies
displayed in peace keeping activities in other countries, it is clear that
given the right directions and with non partisan commitments, perhaps terrorism
would have been nipped before it took the country hostage. The fact is that
with these attacks, the economy of the entire country is in spider speed.
The attitude of some countries to our
agony obviously underscores and also exposes our collective lacklustre
preparedness to confront terror. Terror, as against other violent hostilities,
is indeed a crime against humanity and cannot be fought without communal participation.
And sadly, key policy makers in Nigeria seem to believe foreign countries,
especially those that have been under such attacks are the ones to route
terrorism out of our country. Perhaps, not so. Some of these countries have
interests other than fighting terrorism. There are underlying political and
economic interests.
Terrorism is the worst of guerrilla
warfare because it lacks popular ideological coloration. And only popular
politics or popular political leadership or put simply, pro people governments
can attract effective communal involvement in the battle against terrorism,
which in itself is a result of bad governance or wrong attitude by governments
to public management.
Terror attacks seem more like a
response to governance. And that is perhaps why people will positively respond
in collective resistance in some countries and won't in some others. It is
worst when a government and its security forces become befuddled with partisan
views and reactions to such attacks. Obviously, this is Nigeria's dilemma. The
attacks and the reactions have been politicised or even ethnicised. This is a
major threat to our collective aspirations for a strong, united and well
governed country.
The Chibok Girls disappearance, just
like the safety of all residents, should have taken prime attention before any
other consideration by any government, no matter its political affiliation.
But, the truth is until our political leaders reason beyond the visionless
claps of hollow political supporters, even the security agencies may be seen as
aiding opposition when they do their jobs in accordance with their professional
competence.
What is required to govern a country
is not likely to include discriminative understanding of grave national
challenges by state officials. A national challenge does not bear tribal marks
or emblems of political parties. What is required is to confront the challenges
as a government while the citizens react as patriots who must see their
individual and collective stake in the struggle against those challenges.
What the public and particularly the
parents and friends of the kidnapped girls want to hear are not statements such
as "we have located the Chibok girls" as the Nigerian military was
quoted to have initially announced. Or that "we are closing in on the
location of the Chibok girls". No. Perhaps those empowered to rescue the
girls should tell us less of the location. Go quietly and bring back the girls
unharmed.
Denja Yaqub is an Assistant Secretary
at the headquarters of Nigeria Labour Congress
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