Nigeria is an awkward contraption. Ours is a deliberate sabotage. This is not far-fetched. It is overwhelming, overbearing and it is all over us. We are all trapped in ruins, including the saboteurs themselves.
Yet, the masterminds continue the devilish game unabated. They carry on as if nothing serious is at stake. They bother not whether we are adversely affected, inflicted or even afflicted.
Nevertheless, in this mess and disorder cometh huge hope. We simply need to tap into it. And we must be sincere and honest. As it is, our sure hope lies exclusively in God. No viable alternative.
We have to lean on Him like a baby.
Israel was in total bondage in Egypt that lasted over 430 years. They had no voice of their own. It was absolute submission to the Egyptians. They could only groan.
Theirs was complete hopelessness. But they wisely turned their gaze on God. They cried bitterly with all the strength they could muster. The Lord answered them. And they sang a new song.
Ours will not be different. We have been in this plight for just six years. We still have our voices to be heard. We still manage to enjoy some privileges. God is forever on the throne. He will answer us if we quiver not.
These ravagers are far ahead of us. They know what they want and how to get it. And they are getting it right in their own way. The evil wreckers and ruiners know their onions inside out. They have assembled foreign nations against us.
We have biblical references to draw from. They are our reliable solace in times of need. Like it was with the ancient southern kingdom of Judah, so it is with us now. Judah was besieged by the deadly armies of Ammon, Moab and Mount Seir. We too are under siege of foreign Fulani bandits.
The graphic similarities end there. King Jehoshaphat held sway in those dark days of Judah. Fear gripped him but he never lost focus. He was in perfect control.
The situation was never under alarm. Our leaders are the exact opposite of Jehoshaphat. While he was there for his people, our leaders are always found wanting. They had explicit confidence in their king; we do not. He was proactive. Never to give excuses.
That is the trademark of our leaders; excuses and blame game. Jehoshaphat was not cut for that. And he was aware his people were not ready for excuses either. Here, our leaders are failing us every second. We have totally lost confidence in them. And we are not pretending.
Judah’s neighbours ought to be naturally friendly. In fact, God instructed the Israelites to spare them on their way to the Promised Land. This account is detailed in Second Chronicles, Chapter 20:
“And Jehoshaphat feared, and set himself to seek the Lord, and proclaimed a fast throughout all Judah.”
Together with his people, they sought the face of the Lord. And Jehoshaphat cried onto the Lord: “O our God, will You not judge them? For we have no power against this great multitude that is coming against us; nor do we know what to do, but our eyes are upon You.”
The result? Very profound, exhaustive and absolute: “The Lord set ambushes against the people of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir, who had come against Judah; and they were defeated.
“For the people of Ammon and Moab stood up against the inhabitants of Mount Seir to utterly kill and destroy them. And when they had made an end of the inhabitants of Seir, they helped to destroy one another.”
We are practically in the same mess if not messier than Jehoshaphat’s Judah. But ours is consciously intentional, calculated, to hurt us.
The heartless among us purposely did us in for their inordinate ambition. They brought in their Fulani kinsmen to torment us. And they are doing it with uncanny insensitivity.
It did not start today, not even yesterday. Back in 2015, they wanted power by all means. They were desperate for a way out. They had miserable times and sleepless nights packed full of nightmares. At the end of their ordeal, “wicked” luck angrily smiled on them. They found a devilish solution.
They hired foreign Fulani to fight the 2015 elections for them. Ask Abubakar Kawu Baraje. He agreed they did it. He was part of them then. He was bold enough to expose the sinister plan recently.
He is even anxious to spill more beans. But they continue to keep a safe distance from him. They behave as if Baraje never said anything at all. It is yet to be denied. How long are they going to hold on to that? Time, the ultimate leveller, will tell.
Baraje was chairman, New Peoples Democratic Party (NPDP). He carried his faction of PDP to the newly put-together All Progressives Congress (APC), all in their desperate bid to sack President Goodluck Jonathan.
But they had a strange feeling. They felt insecured. They thought Jonathan would be adamant; he would not willingly relinquish power.
Pronto! They imported Fulani from Chad, Niger, Cameroun, Mali, Senegal and Sierra Leone. They planned to unleash the Fulani bandits on us if the election failed them.
Jonathan wisely thought differently. He refused to oblige them that golden opportunity. He actually accepted defeat before the election was over. This shocked them.
Those characters are now not only in government, but they are in power. They are calling the shots recklessly. But they could not contain and curtail their army of bandits. More of these bandits are daily trooping into our forests unchallenged.
The recent Okitipupa incident in Ondo State is changing the narratives. It is crystal clear, these killer Fulani herdsmen are being encouraged and assisted.
More than 45 of them were sent back to Kano and Jigawa states by the Ondo State Government. Before then, they were “admitted” into the army barracks. That is an absurd but subtle government backing.
These Fulani are about to consume us. They have effectively infiltrated our forests and bushes. We are convinced government cannot innocently feign ignorance of this.
This is trending wide and wild on the social media. It gives a sordid insight into the eerie minds of our leaders and rulers alike. What a brilliant collection!
You would be convinced our leaders are our undoing. They are the real enemies within we have enemies nowhere else. Make your own sense out of the damning headlines:
“Boko Haram picks Buhari to moderate talks with the government of Nigeria.” The Nation, November 2, 2012.
“Stop killing Boko Haram members, Buhari tells FG.” PointBlank News, June 2, 2013.
“Buhari faults clampdown on Boko Haram members.” The Nation, June 2, 2013.
“Military offensive against Boko Haram anti-North –Buhari.” All Africa News, June 3, 2013.
“How Buhari stopped us from fighting Boko Haram –South African mercenaries.” The Guardian, November 26, 2018.
“FG is setting our killers free –Soldiers kick as 1,400 Boko Haram suspects are released.” The Cable, February 11, 2020.
“356 soldiers tender resignation to Buratai, cite loss of sincerity in Boko Haram war.” The Punch, July 12, 2020.
See why our case is complex and confusing? The reason the terrorists, bandits and Fulani herdsmen are bold and daring. See why Boko Haram has become a lucrative and viable sub-sector of our dwindling economy.
All the same, our plight is not beyond redemption. This ugly phase will soon phase out. It then follows that all the foreign armies against us shall go the destructive way of the armies of Ammon, Moab and Mount Seir.
We are a chosen nation, strictly for Nigerians. And it’s for a good purpose. What’s more; we have a God of possibilities. He did it for the Israelites when they moved. Meaning? We need to do the needful.
The ball is in our court.