Our lives, our woes
•Two years after Maiduguri crisis, victims still in agony
From TIMOTHY OLA, Maiduguri
Wednesday, March 12, 2008

William Iroeghu • PHOTO: Sun News Publishing

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As victims and entire Christian community in Borno State commemorated the two years of sectarian riot, which shook the acclaimed Home of Peace to its very foundation on February 18, one thing that unites them all was the call for government to pay compensation as promised, at least, as a first step towards healing the wound inflicted by the unfortunate incident.

Exactly two years ago, an Islamic lecture organised by the Borno State Muslim Forum, an umbrella body for Muslim organisations in the state, which initially started peacefully was later hijacked by hoodlums who were allegedly protesting an offensive publication by a Danish newspaper. The development snowballed into an unprecedented crisis, the first in the history of the 32 years old state, leaving many dead and enormous destruction in its wake.

A visibly angry Governor Ali Modu Sheriff had vowed to deal with the perpetrators of the dastardly act and equally pay compensation to the affected persons. Besides, an administrative panel of inquiry was established by the state government to unravel the immediate causes of the crisis, the extent of damage and recommend the processes of genuine reconciliation among the people.

It was gathered that the committee, having submitted its report, put the number of dead persons at 21. Burnt were 52 churches, 35 residences and 14 shops, while 11 hotels and offices were destroyed. The panel, among others, reportedly estimated the damages incurred to the tune of N1.5 billion.

With widespread condemnation of the mayhem and having been severally criticized for his alleged poor handling of the crisis, the governor, nevertheless, reiterated the resolve of the state government to pay compensation to the affected persons and institutions. Two years after, the victims said the governor was yet to fulfill his promise.

For Joseph Garba, who lost five children as well as all his property in the riot, the psychological trauma and economic losses engendered by the unfortunate incident would linger on in his life. Struggling to hold back tears, Joseph, an indigene of the state, told Daily Sun that life has been “tough, static and somehow uneasy” for him.

“Things have not been easy with me since I lost my five children and everything I worked for all my life in that riot. I survive on widow’s mite from friends and well-wishers who are kind to me. I have forgiven those who put me in this condition and the rest is between them and God. I only hope the state government would assist us, at least, to make us feel there is still hope after all the trouble,” he said.
His wife, Mrs Joseph, sounded more philosophical and religious as she attributed her strength to God’s doing.

“Naturally, as a mother, it has not been easy, even if it was just a child. But I lost five children, including my 23 years old daughter, who was an undergraduate in a college of education. Five children in a house one day! I think that was a great loss. If not for the grace of God, I would not be sitting here today. I know it is the Lord’s doing and He comforted me after everything,” she said.

If the Lord has been comforting the Joseph family, as claimed, James Obodo, who lost his 43 years old wife and three children said he was yet to be comforted. “Life has been terrible and sometimes I feel like ending everything like that. To remember that I buried my wife and children in my village one day is a serious pain to me. But when you think you will have some respite from the government in term of assistance to put together the bits and pieces left by the riot, you then realize nothing is forthcoming, it could be frustrating,” he disclosed.

As far as Effiong, who also lost his wife in the mayhem was concerned, no compensation could replace the woman who shared the same vision and dream with him since they tied the nuptial knot many years ago.

While the bereaved ones recounted how lonely and abandoned they have being since the unfortunate incident, Nnamaka Odebuhani’s biggest headache was the huge debt he incurred having lost all the goods in his big shop located at the heart of the state capital.

“I came to Maiduguri since 1976 and I have been a trader selling children beds, bicycle, shelves and items for interior decoration of houses and offices. But some jobless youths set the place on fire and I lost everything I worked for all my life. I took loan from other traders who were not affected by the crisis to continue the business and life has been difficult for me. I now live from hand to mouth, while I pay heavy charges to my lenders every month,” he said.

Unlike Nnamaka, who still enjoy the presence of his family with him despite all odds, Williams Iroeghu was not that lucky as he was compelled to send his wife and children to his village in the South- East because “there was no place to keep them since my house built several years ago and two vehicles were burnt down completely,” adding that the rented apartment where he now lives cannot accommodate his big family.

“The crisis split my family. Honestly, I was scared after the crisis especially because of those who were killed. I couldn’t risk losing any of my offspring or wife to any riot coupled with the fact that I no longer have a place to put them. So, from a landlord, I became a tenant, staying in a room and a parlour. The ruins of the burnt house has remained there since,” he said.

Emmanuel Okona Akam operates a popular hotel in the densely populated area of the state capital. He claimed to have lost about N30 million as his hotel was burnt down by the hoodlums, while his other businesses were badly affected. At 61, he said he would never forget the incident.

He said: “I took loan to rebuild a part of the hotel, so that I can have a source of income to sustain myself and my family who has relocated to Nnewi in Anambra State. Unfortunately, the facilities at the hotel are in bad shape and the situation has driven away would-be guests. It is difficult for me, especially at my age, to take loan for business because I can no longer struggle the way I used to before.”
Okona appealed to the state government to assist the victims as promised shortly after the crisis.
Borno State chairman of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), the Rev Daniel Mbaya, said efforts to press the state to redeem its pledge on the compensation were yet to yield result. He lamented that the government had not given the leadership of the association audience since the administrative panel submitted its report in 2006.

Mbaya wondered why a government that swore to be fair to all its citizenry would compensate the victims of a fire incident which occurred at a portion of the Maiduguri Monday Market less than six month after the incident, while those of the man-made disaster were left in the limbo two years after.
“When one is bereaved or injured as a result of another person’s wickedness, it would be difficult to heal within a short time, but the wound would have been partially healed if the government had shown genuine commitment towards the plight of the affected persons,” he noted.

Outgoing Bishop of Maiduguri Diocese of the Catholic Church, Rev Matthew Man-Oso Ndagoso, said the people were disappointed at the way the state government was handling the restoration of peace in the state as well as its failure to resettle the victims.

His words: “I am very much disappointed with the government’s handling of case. I feel sad that the governor has not made efforts to bring religious leaders together since the crisis occurred two years ago.”

Ndagoso said the Christians community in the state felt left out, “uncared for, abandoned, rejected and unjustly treated,” especially by not assisting the victims. He said he wondered why the state government was dragging its feet on the compensation even while a non indigene, the former Sokoto State governor, Alhaji Attahiru Bafarawa, sent N6 million to the CAN to assist build the burnt churches, barely two weeks after the incident.

“The governor personally told us that he was going to pay compensation. In fact, he announced it several times in the public even in one of his state broadcasts. At a point, he told us the Federal Government had sent money for such assistance and that he had instructed the Accountant -General of the state to commence the process that would lead to the payment. So, what happen since then or has he forgotten he made such pronouncement and that people are suffering,” the cleric queried.

He, however, appealed to the governor to fulfill his promise, so that the affected persons could breathe a new life having lost much in the mayhem. “We will not encourage anything violence but continues to appeal to the government on this matter and ask for our rights through legitimate means,” he added.
The state Commissioner of Information, Dr Bukar Usman Abba, declined to comment on the position of the state government when contacted on telephone, saying he was “not the right person to speak on the matter.” Also, the secretary to the state government, Ambassador Baba Ahmed Jidda, who was the chairman of the administrative panel said he would not wish to make any comment. “I have finished my job as the chairman of the committee and we’ve submitted our report. I don’t think I am the appropriate person to make any comment on the government’s position,” he declared. Efforts to get useful information from the governor’s media adviser, Mrs Nancy Brian Mbaya, proved abortive as her several promises to volunteer the governor’s position on the compensation brouhaha could not be met as at the time of filing this report.

Daily Sun gathered that the division in CAN in the state did not help matter as such a situation was said to have weakened the cause, while the government allegedly exploited the alleged disunity to shift position from its earlier promises. But the chairman of the Christian Council of Nigeria and Archbishop of Jos Province of the Anglican Communion, Bishop Emmanuel Kani Mani, maintained that “no division ought to prevent the government from discharging its duties to the people.”

He said the affected persons would continue to be law abiding and supporting the state government despite its posture towards their plight, thanking the Shehu of Borno, His Royal Highness Mustapha El-kanemi, for “his fatherly role and contributions towards ensuring peace in the state.” In all, it is hoped that government would revisit the issue of compensation and demonstrate that it is responsive and responsible. Such gesture would go a long way in healing the division and bad blood created in the wake of the riot and also alleviates the suffering of the victims.