The reign of terror in the North East by Boko Haram last week forced the federal government to seek renewal of the emergency rule introduced in the three states of Adamawa, Borno and Yobe a year ago.
Two previous extensions sought by President Goodluck Jonathan had been approved by the National Assembly (NASS) in November 2013 and May 2014.
Going by feelers from the meeting Jonathan had with the Service Chiefs on Monday, November 17, this third leg of the emergency rule appears the most critical because of a number of factors. One, general election holds in 2015; and two, and more importantly, predictions have been made that Nigeria will break up next year.
Though the government has repeatedly brushed aside a likely break up of the country, Jonathan reportedly raised the matter at a Defence Council meeting, which shows the seriousness he is beginning to attach to the hypothesis.
“We just reviewed the state of emergency declared in the three states and the government will be requesting the [NASS] to grant the extension,” the Minister of Justice, Mohammed Adoke told journalists after the meeting.
Different events in Abuja last week are germane to the clamour or not for the extension of the state of emergency imposed in the three states.
One was a national retreat on human security organised by the National Orientation Agency (NOA), and one involved politicians under the auspices of the Congress for Equality and Change (CEC).
Another event was the drama, nay the madness, at the NASS on Thursday, November 20 that led to the closure of the place by Senate President, David Mark.
All the events should concentrate discerning minds on the relevance of extending the state of emergency declared in the three states.
At the NOA event, former Commonwealth Secretary General, Emeka Anyaoku and former Information Minister, Jerry Gana, made comments that ought to challenge the government at all levels on how to stem the growing tide of insecurity in the land.
Anyaoku explained that power sharing and religious extremism have contributed substantially to insecurity. He said what is happening in the troubled parts of Nigeria, which is affecting other parts, can be traced to the desire of one religious group to foist its belief on others.
“Whereas with Boko Haram in Nigeria, religion is a contributing factor to insurgency or conflict, we must continue to affirm the need for all religions to treat one another with mutual respect.
“Such conflicts naturally generate antagonistic memories that are sometimes hard to heal, even long after the cessation of conflict,” Anyaoku warned.
Gana felt that if we must win the war declared on us by the insurgents, a fresh strategy was imperative, not necessarily the state of emergency.
He advocated the use of the army of youths in the country to checkmate the insurgents, particularly as most of them are keen on confronting Boko Haram if empowered.
However, the views espoused by members of CEC, led by Ijaw leader, Edwin Clark, brought another dangerous dimension to the volatile situation created by insurgents.
The CEC, which comprises mainly prominent Ijaw men and women with huge interest in politics, particularly in the presidency, believe the only way to tackle Boko Haram is full scale emergency rule and the appointment of military administrators in Adamawa, Borno and Yobe states.
The CEC members acknowledged lapses in the mode of operation of the army in dealing with the insurgency and suggested a more effective strategy.
The show of force or shame at the NASS is politics at its most dangerous at a time politicians should put heads together to win the common enemy, insecurity.
The lawmakers failed to do the needful on Thursday, which was to approve or refuse to approve Jonathan’s request for extension of emergency rule in the North East.
Indications that Jonathan’s request would raise dust began to emerge on Tuesday, November 18 after Mark read out the letter in Senate and senators argued that the emergency rule that has lasted over a year has not yielded results.
Behind-the-scene deliberations and adjournments pointed to the fact that the request had run into murky waters. Anyone conversant with the speed with which both houses of the NASS approved the earlier requests and the foot dragging over the latest would quickly conclude that lawmakers have turned down the request.
House of Representatives Speaker, Aminu Tambuwal’s dimension to the saga was not only distracting, it showed an attempt to give a dog a bad name in order to hang it. The presidency and its handlers should have separated individual political interests from the insecurity debacle.
What happened at the NASS, which led to Mark shutting the place down and directing that it be reopened on Tuesday, November 25, is an attempt by politicians to further advance their personal interest.
If Jonathan did not recognise Tambuwal as Speaker, why did he write to him about emergency rule extension? And having written Tambuwal, why would anyone bar him from having access to the Chamber?
Why would anyone contemplate using the debate on the request to impeach Tambuwal? Whose interest are the planners of this mischief serving if not their personal interest?
I agree with the former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar that “the behaviour of the PDP-led government towards Tambuwal was not decent and acceptable under a president that has committed himself to uphold the rule of law” and that “the president was elected to uphold the Constitution of the country, and not to use power arbitrarily against political opponents.”
Much as I am afraid of what will happen in the North East if emergency rule is removed, I feel that emergency rule has failed to curtail the unrest and the federal government must listen and work with representatives of the people when they speak on their findings.
The security challenge has been politicised and that is polarising Nigerians more.
GulfNews.com reported that between July 2009 and June 2014 alone, Boko Haram killed more than 5,000 civilians.
The Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) claims that 11,000 of its members have been killed, no fewer than 2,000 of them in the first half of 2014.
Consortiumnews.com reported that deaths recorded by the government and Boko Haram totalled 25,322 and the Islamic sect currently occupies 20 per cent of Nigeria’s territory.
It beats the imagination that the insurgents are now more emboldened. They have in the past two weeks captured and recaptured villages in the North East, foisted their flags and killed more people through suicide bombing.
The attack on students at Government Science Secondary School, Pokistum and suicide bombings, such as the one at Azare GSM market in Bauchi point to the fact that Boko Haram is well prepared for this dangerous project.
Taking prisoners, as seen in the abduction of Chibok schoolgirls, may not be its past time any longer, as it now carries out frequent suicide bombings.
Renewal of emergency rule in the North East should be taken seriously by everyone and should be packaged to challenge security operatives to deliver on the mandate of defending Nigeria’s territorial integrity.
