Obasi Igwe: North far ahead in politics

Like other wandering bands, Fulani wandering bands are not civilizational, and there lies their “strength”. While many Southern nationalities had long been in the iron age and therefore with something tangible to preserve (hence their weakness or less eagerness to destroy), not so the perpetually fighting Fulani, maybe unlike what some people may wish to refer to as “town Fulani” albeit now seemingly joining forces in Nigeria; they belong to no country and belong to every country, so, have nothing to lose in a war or general destruction anywhere; bloodletting is nothing to them and their “politics” is to instead destroy what others have built up over centuries, and to that extent, in terms of their own definition or understanding of politics, they are succeeding in Nigeria, while others who think of politics in terms of civilized discourse and “level-playing” competitive peaceful relations will continue to fail until they understand the nature and character – and mindset – of their very determined and focused adversary.

Fulani of all categories in Nigeria (with a few notable exceptions), both those in public office and those outside have been clearly stating their strategic aims: that the usually wandering and stateless Fulani are tired of living such a useless life and need a country to finally settle and call their own; that after several trials and errors in various places, they’ve decided that Nigeria is the right national homeland of the African Fulani whether by fire or by force – both Dan Fodio, Ahmadu Bello, or Alimi made direct statements or allusions to that; that they will fight tooth and nail to achieve this objective by driving away or destroying indigenous communities and replacing them with their own – they’re already doing so in the Plateau highlands, southern Kaduna, Benue, etc; that they did fight tooth and nail to have someone in power they believe subscribes to this grandstrategic design; they have created a “strong alliance” in pursuit of the objective couched in terms of a (Caliphate Fulani-led Islamic) jihad (presented as a fight against terrorism, “insecurity”, “secessionists”, etc) to dip the Koran into the coast, and by such unequal alliance recruiting a big chunk of the Yoruba and Kanuri, etc who mistakenly equate the Fulani agenda to the mere expansion of dear islam.

Now, with their control of everything military-security, economic, political and all, and with what they consider their government (the Fulani own Nigeria government) allegedly conniving, condoning, facilitating, aiding and abetting or actually orchestrating all this insecurity, the stage is probably set for the final onslaught against the various ethnic homelands of Nigeria.

Those orchestrating this disaster from wherever cannot take the risk of trusting a non-Fulani to continue implementing to the full these horrible mass murdering designs; so, they have to immorally snatch control of the PDP and today, let’s see if the North-dominated APC convention genuinely intends to rotate power to a Southerner, or simply attempting to divide Southern votes so as to set-up another Fulani to take-over power via a PDP, and “democratically”  continue from where one Fulani may wish to “stop.” It’s an indescribable existential challenge for all Nigerians, including even for those behind the malign designs. They better “succeed”  making everyone a slave; if they fail to, it might turn a very bad thought and extremely risky venture. But that would require a massive unity of thought, understanding and action by all civilized Nigerians, East, West, Middle Belt, etc, etc. including even those in the Islamic North who believe that Nigeria ought to abolish the Caliphate/emirate system and its vindictive Sharia and other violent survivals of primitivism, reorganize the military-security services and other agencies and organs of government out of Fulani or other tribal domination, and positively restructure the country so it be run as a modern democratic secular state of equal laws and equal applications

What corrupt and wicked Nigerians fear most is what is knocking at the door: Revolution whether violent or peaceful to eliminate the orchestrators, sponsors, perpetrators, connivers and protectors of the multiply intensified mayhems ravaging Nigeria especially since mid-2015, with a federal government issuing endless sterile threats, alibis and orders that seem merely programmed to give way to “body language.”

No state police can solve Nigeria’s security problems unless and until* the military-security services are thoroughly audited and reorganized in terms of ethnic structure, deployments, commands, promotions, demotions, dismissals, killed on duty/which duty, missing, treacheries, betrayals, available and missing weapons, etc. This reorganization, not so-called state police should be the focus of any honest Nigerian. Thanks greatly.

Professor Obasi Igwe is a political activist and human rights crusader, writes from Enugu State. Tel No–08064090495