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Tension in the North

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7 years ago

June 8, 2017

Olu Emmanuel

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Leaders rise to reassure Nigeria’s unity

By SUNDAY ODIBASHI

Since unveiling of the Kaduna Declaration by the Coalition of Northern Youths (CNY) in Kaduna, on Tuesday, ordering the Igbo to vacate the North in three months, the North has been engulfed with palpable tension over counter-threats from other parts of the country to abandon northern leaders in the instance of outbreak of war or outright disintegration.

Northern leaders have, in the last 24 hours, become worked up over the Kaduna Declaration which as perceived, on the one hand, could give impetus to sudden actualization of the Sovereign State of Biafra; and on the other, could exacerbate the fragile security situation in Nigeria that could precipitate civil strife. They have been working assiduously calm nerves in the North and other parts of Nigeria.

The prospects of security breakdown is being conceived to be interlocked in the serial violence the herdsmen from the North have unleashed on host communities which the Federal Government was perceived to threat with prejudice. Trailing the decline in the serial violence of the herdsmen, at the time of redoing the Boko Haram capacity for violence, there were reports of interception of arms and ammunitions at several ports, Thereafter, the insinuation of coup followed.

These phenomena made the threat of breakdown of law and order security in Nigeria become obvious. They reveal that groups or micro segments in the polity have surreptitiously been preparing for war.

It is an irony that about 48 hours northern groups made such a bold disintegration statement that is tantamount to treason, the federal government has merely been ‘supervising the national debate’ on the issue than detailing security operatives to apprehend the actors or even conduct elementary investigations in the national interest.

Perhaps, the Federal Government of Nigeria may, at this point, apologise to Chief Obafemi Awolowo, of blessed memory, for incarcerating him over treason charges. The Kaduna Declaration by the northern youths contains more subversive instigation than whatever Chief Awolowo had done to send him to prison, yet about 48 hours, no arrest had been made beyond simplistic political expressions.

The compendium precipitates fundamental political questions under the All Progressives Congress (APC) Federal Government dominated by the northern oligarchy -: “has the Buhari administration compromised the unity and territorial integrity of Nigeria? Will subversive statements be tolerated because they emanate from northerners?”

However, beyond the coldness of the federal government in directing active security actions on arrest and prosecution, several other segmental cleavages from the Yoruba nation to the Middle Belt and the Niger Delta have been spitting fire, threatening to go their separate ways if the northern youths “are wallowed to descend on the Igbo population in the North beginning from October 1, 2017.’ The threat sent strong signals of multiple wars awaiting the Hausa/Fulani oligarchy.

On a second thought, intervention of the security operatives became expedient to unravel if there is a secret plot against President Muhammdu Buhari; is there a gang-up of conspiracy or sabotage against the President either sponsored within or from outside Nigeria to provoke inter-ethnic hostilities and destabilize the country under his leadership. This is more so as the Coalition of Northern Youths adopted the Kaduna Declaration to scientifically endorse or accept the reality of the Sovereign State of Biafra in the open society but subtly added the vacation threat to unsettle ethnic nationalities.

It is curious that northern leaders, particularly, the state actors, were quick to comprehend the potential danger of the Kaduna Declaration by the northern youths.

Governor Kashim Shettima of Borno State, Chairman of Northern Governors’ Forum, on Wednesday, disclosed that Governors of the 19 Northern States have disowned the Coalition of Northern Youths which issued three months ultimatum to the Igbo vacate the North or they will implement mop-up of Igbos.

The Governors joined Governor Nasir El-Rufai of Kaduna State in requesting security agencies to arrest the youths and probe the motive behind the call. The governors acknowledged that the call by the youths was a suspicious act that falls in line with recent trend of arms catch, coup rumours which may not be coincident.

Several stakeholders in the polity also admitted that the Northern Governors have raised germane concerns relating to conspiracy paradigm.

Governor Shettima had declared: “On behalf of the Governors of the 19 Northern States, we totally condemn such irresponsible pronouncements by those groups; we condemn, we disown, and we are totally distancing ourselves from those faceless groups who don’t have the mandate of the people of Northern Nigeria to make such loud pronouncements.”

The Governor had further remarked: “Section 41, Subsection 1 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria is very explicit in safeguarding the rights of all Nigerians to reside in any part of the country with no hindrance whatsoever. But then, ‎when you see a toad dancing in the broad daylight, the drummer is not far off from the main road. We wish to call on the security agencies to beam their lenses on these groups, and unearth the faces behind the mask.”

He maintained that, “Some months back, there were cases of importation of arms, illegal importation of arms intercepted at the ports, then, we started hearing rumours of a coup d’etat.

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“Now, a group or a bunch of groups that do not have the mandate of the people came up with remarks capable of destabilizing the North and the country as a whole. We are one nation tied to a common destiny, the governance of Northern Nigeria is not in alignment with those pronouncements, and we will take whatever measures that is necessary to safeguard the lives and properties of Nigerians living in any part of the North. I am in contact to most of my colleagues, and they all talking to heads of security establishments in their respective domains because we cannot afford to take chances. We cannot afford to toil with the destiny of this country.”

“The 19 Northern Governors wish to call on our brothers of Igbo descent to remain calm and go about their legitimate businesses. Nobody can dare to intimidate, harass or dehumanize them in any of the 19 Northern States, our Governors will not allow that” Shettima assured.

The Governors said they are in touch with heads of their security agencies and have taken measures that will guarantee the rights of all Nigerians to live in of the 19 States in the three geo-political zones within the north.

The Governors also called on security agencies to arrest the youths and probe the motive behind the call, saying the call by the youths was a suspicious act that falls in line with recent trend of arms catch, coup rumours which may not be coincident.

“On behalf of the Governors of the 19 Northern States, we totally condemn such irresponsible pronouncements by those groups, we condemn, we disown, and we are totally distancing ourselves from those faceless groups who don’t have the mandate of the people of Northern Nigeria to make such loud pronouncements.

“Section 41, Subsection 1 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria is very explicit in safeguarding the rights of all Nigerians to reside in any part of the country with no hindrance whatsoever. But then, ‎when you see a toad dancing in the broad daylight, the drummer is not far off from the main road.

“We wish to call on the security agencies to beam their lenses on these groups, and unearth the faces behind the mask.

“Some months back, there were cases of importation of arms, illegal importation of arms intercepted at the ports, then we started hearing rumours of a coup d’etat.

“Now, a group, or a bunch of groups that do not have the mandate of the people came up with remarks capable of destabilizing the north and the country as a whole.

“We are one nation tied to a common destiny, the governance of Northern Nigeria is not in alignment with those pronouncements, and we will take whatever measures that is necessary to safeguard the lives and properties of Nigerians living in any part of the North.

“I am in contact to most of my colleagues, and they all talking to heads of security establishments in their respective domains because we cannot afford to take chances.

ALSO SEE: IPOB making progress on Igbo sovereignty: North accepts Sovereign State of Biafra

“We cannot afford to toil with the destiny of this country. The 19 Northern Governors wish to call on our brothers of Igbo descent to remain calm and go about their legitimate businesses.

Nobody can dare to intimidate, harass or dehumanize them in any of the 19 Northern States, our Governors will not allow that” Shettima said.

Moreover, Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar was of the view that the ultimatum issued by the northern youth coalition to the Igbos to quit the region is provocative, and a grave threat to national security.

Atiku, on Wednesday, also noted that, “the counter response by a South-east group to Northerners is also reckless and thoughtless.” He insisted: “Our country is too precious; our problems are too pressing to pander to divisive rhetoric.”

Meanwhile, two units of the Coalition of Northern Youths that unveiled The Kaduna Declaration last Tuesday, were gathered to have, on Wednesday, withdrawn the threat on the Igbo population in the North.

Comrade Yerima Shettima, President, Arewa Youth Consultative Forum, and Isaac Balami, Arewa Consultative Forum Congress, were said to have appealed to Nigerians on Wednesday not to panic over the Kaduna Declaration.

Balami was said to have acknowledged that the Northern groups had observed how the issue was “being discussed globally”. He had promised that the groups will create a platform to discuss the outrage and condemnation trailing the eviction threat.

“This is not the time for us to discuss separation. We need to come together. Arewa is known for peace.

“It is obvious that the initial approach was not the best. We need to work together as a nation

“I want to tell Nigerians living at home and in diaspora that there is hope. This nation is going nowhere.

“Shettima here wants to assure that everything that he has done was in good faith. This is one Nigeria and we are going nowhere,” Balami was cited to have declared.