It is increasingly clearer that we are not getting the right handle to the degenerating security situation in the country. Even as the authorities give copious assurance of their resolve to tame the mortal danger posed by heightened insecurity, the fact on the ground is that ours is turning to a verity of the state of nature where life has at once become nasty, short and brutish.
Insecurity is perceptible from the escapades of the Boko Haram insurgents; wanton killings and kidnappings by the so-called bandits, kidnappings that are largely attributed to herdsmen on highways, armed robbery and sundry criminalities. The matter has gotten to such a head that it is now a risky venture to travel on our highways especially the ever-busy Lagos-Benin expressway.
Not unexpectedly, the rising spate of kidnappings especially in the southern parts of the country has been largely blamed on the herdsmen because of the similarity in their conduct and style of activity with those of the kidnappers. Accounts of many of those who had fallen victim of kidnapping seem to largely corroborate this suspicion.
This has brought in its wake allegations and counter allegation. Southern leaders are now pitted against their northern counterparts on the masterminds of the kidnappings and killings in the southern parts of the country. This is sequel to accusations that most of the rising criminalities in the south especially on the highways are traceable to the herdsmen. The matter appeared to have been exacerbated by the recent killing of the daughter of the leader of Afenifere socio-political group.
It was a scene of threats and counter threats as tempers flared up on account of the callous manner the lady was mowed down. The level of ethnic bitterness it raised saw some groups and individuals threatening reprisals if the killings continue without sufficient measures by the government to stem the tide. We also saw for the first time, calls from groups in the north on the herdsmen to leave the southern part of the country. Though the calls were not and not likely to be heeded, we seem to be confronted by bottled up grievances that could easily burst if nothing substantial is done to reassure the nation that there is no hidden agenda behind killings.
Even then, ethnic distrust is now at an all time high. Nigerians have never been so divided along ethnic, religious and other fault lines as they have in the last few years. The issue is not remedied by the tepid manner the government has gone about handling the challenge often living in denial on the gravity of the situation. This has tended to reinforce allegations that the government is only interested in resolving the contradiction raised by the insurgency of the herdsmen on terms favorable to them even when we have been told that many of them are foreigners.
That accounts for the strident opposition against some of the measures the government floated as solutions to the lingering insecurity. As at now, the government appears in a fix as its neutrality in the escalating crises cannot be trusted. It is confronted by a crisis of confidence such that any move it makes to evolve therapeutic responses is viewed with serious suspicion and apprehension.
The way things stand the government is constantly losing the confidence of the people on its capacity to evolve solutions that will satisfy the constituents. This conclusion can be discerned form the quick speed with which some of its programmes- Ruga settlements, grazing zones etc were shot down. The government found itself retreating from the Ruga policy albeit temporarily. But suspicions linger that it is bidding its time and may soon come about the same rejected policy through other means.
So the suspicion rages with the nationalities highly sensitized and poised to challenge any policy that will snatch their lands and hand them over to herdsmen some of whom are foreign nationals. Irredentism and ethnic chauvinism have been revved up and they are not about to peter out so soon. If the country is to overcome this ominous cloud of insecurity, it is imperative that some form of intervention is called into action by well-meaning citizens to evolve generally acceptable and lasting solutions to the lingering challenge. We need to diffuse the tension in the land arising from suspicions and mistrust among the distinct nationalities brought to the fore by the poor handling and mismanagement of the crises by the government.
Perhaps, it was with this in mind that former military Head of state, Abdulsalami Abubakar convened a security roundtable of key nationalities in Minna, Niger state last week. Presumably, Abubakar had arranged that summit to explore ways to diffuse the tension, mistrust and acrimony that have seen the nationalities in blames and counter blames.
Invited to the meeting were leaders of the Southern and Middle Belt Leaders Forum SMBLF composed of the Afenifere, Ohaneze Nidgbo and Middle Belt Forum. Also invited were Miyetti Allah cattle breeders association, Gan Allah Fulani Development Association, heads of the security forces and other notable Nigerians.
But events soon turned awry. The SMBLF was later to turn down the invitation raising serious reservations against some groups invited to the same meeting. In a letter rejecting the invitation, they seriously objected to the invitation extended to Miyetti Allah and the Gan Allah Fulani Development Association. They contended that they do not know members of the Gan Allah group while the “lumping of Miyetti Allah, a trade association for cattle breeders whose members have been accused of violation of rights, including life, across the country sends worrying signals to us”
They considered this a grave insult as “coming to a roundtable with the group would mean acquiescence to the narrative that put us in the same bracket with those wielding illegal AK-47 all over the country and inflicting terror on fellow citizens”. With these reservations, the roundtable was dead on arrival and another opportunity to diffuse the charged political atmosphere lost.
So we remain trapped in the same vicious cycle. We seem to be held up by contradictions of sorts from getting our acts right. Issues have been traded as to the propriety of the action of the SMBLF. Some have even gone ahead to suggest that they should have overlooked those issues attend the roundtable as no sacrifice will be too big in the quest to restore peace.
It is a matter of opinion. But that the group rejected the invitation on those grounds shows how seriously they felt and their distrust in the capacity of that summit to do justice to security issues that were bound to arise. It was an obvious vote of no confidence on the neutrality of organizers of the summit. It is for them to explain from where they floated the Gan Allah group and why Miyetti Allah fits into the mould of the socio-cultural groups that make up the SMBLF. This is more compelling given that in the past, the presidency had made futile attempts to categorize Miyetti Allah as sharing the same characteristics with Afenifee, Ohaneze and Middle Belt Forum.
Given the controversy that categorization generated then, Abukakar obviously underestimated how bad these nationalities felt on that issue. I guess he must have learnt one or two lessons from the development. The fact remains that there is wide suspicion that the government and its agents are not showing enough sincerity in finding lasting solutions to the security challenges that have pitched parts of the country against others.
What we find is an increasing proclivity on the part of the government and her agents to seek the resolution of the insurgency of the herdsmen on terms favorable to the herders, their sponsors and sympathizers at the corridors of power. It is hoped Abubakar is not doing the bidding of any of these interests. But as long as this jaundiced handling of the matter persists, so long will a quick return to peace and normalcy continue to be an illusion. There are quick fixes to the insurgency of the herdsmen. But will the government toe that path?
