The insecurity situation in the country does not permit an enjoyable celebration. The people have been deprived of their hard-earned Independence celebration
Ben Okezie
She is supposed to be an elegant, beautiful lady that ought to be radiating all the attractions usually associated with beautiful ladies.
Lo and behold, the much-talked-about lady is called Nigeria and, interestingly, she is about to celebrate her 58th birthday, which is regarded as her independence celebration. Many other nations in her age bracket have many positive things to show for their celebration. They have good leaders whom they are proud of. They have solid institutions that make things work and, moreover, the citizens are patriotic and disciplined.
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Not so with Nigeria. She stands out in the commonwealth of nations as a ridicule and big-for-nothing.
Economically, she is regarded as an international beggar with the larger percentage of her citizens living in penury (reference Bill Gates and British Prime Minister Theresa May’s recent economic assessment of Nigeria).
Internationally, she stands as a nation of mockery, with the exposure that her Minister of Finance, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun, was found to have forged her NYSC documents. It was so bad that she was shielded for months before being escorted out of the country to escape prosecution.
All through her 58 years as a country, she has not known real peace. It is on record that no year passes without issues of insecurity rearing its ugly head in one shape or the other. A few years after Independence, a civil war broke out that lasted between July 6, 1967, and January 15, 1970, between the Nigerian government and the south-eastern part of the country. The genocidal war saw the death of over two million lgbo. The war, known as the Nigerian Civil War or the Biafran War ravaged the southeastern states and saw the destruction of hundreds of structures in the country. Unfortunately, the major issues that bedevilled and triggered the civil war are yet to be addressed. Issues like marginalization, lopsidedness in political appointments, income inequality and unfair sharing of national resources. These minuses are still prevalent, to the detriment of the country. It is painful that successive governments have continued to pay lip service to the mirage of ethnic, political, economic and religious problems facing the country, by not providing lasting solutions. Not easily forgotten is the controversial preacher from Cameroun, Mohammed Marwa, best known by his nickname, Maitatsine, in Nigeria. His activities led to the death of over 5,000 youths in Kano and hundreds of policemen sequel to his negative religious preaching. The country behaves like one without past experiences to learn from, such as long-term ethnic conflicts that have ravaged virtually every state in the country. Also, political instability has helped to further weaken the fabric of the country. Looking back into the history of the country brings sorrowful memories.
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Many have different stories to tell. While the people of the Niger Delta region would narrate how the country raped them of their God-deposited gift of oil and their sons were pushed to the wall to carry arms in their desperate bid to fight for their rights, yet their land is a devastated sorry sight. The same with the lgbo, who believe they have been short-changed and are not catered for by government. The same story with the Yoruba and the Middle Belt region. All have pathetic stories to tell of how the federal government has deprived them of their national identity of belonging to the country. Worse hit is the northeastern part of the country, which, for over 10 years, its wayward youths have turned the area into a terrorist battlefield, killing, abducting people and destroying structures at will. These criminalities and open insecurity that are witnessed all across the country do not speak well of Nigeria. All through his almost four years in office, President Muhammadu Buhari has celebrated Independence Day in a low-key form. This is because the insecurity situation in the country does not permit an enjoyable celebration. So, the people have been deprived of their hard-earned Independence celebration. One, therefore, wonders what has suddenly given the government the courage in its decision to declare a celebration in the face of insecurity. The questions on the lips of the average Nigerian, is “was this not the same insecure situation in the country years back that informed the non-celebration of Independence Day?” So, what is the difference between 2015 and present-day insecurity?”
Insecurity in any land speaks volumes about the leadership and the security apparatus. Since 2015, the country has not known internal peace, yet the President feels comfortable working with his police chief, who flagrantly disobeyed his order. The President does not weigh the implications when he brought a rusty and retired person to head a sensitive organisation like the Department of State Service (DSS). The major insecurity the country is experiencing is internal. Issues like the killer Fulani herdsmen, political kidnapping, robbery, highway attacks, etc. These are under the purview of the police, Civil Defence Corps and DSS. That the military is seen handling internal security could only be out of deep patriotism for the country. It is interesting to note that the Nigerian military has been the only institution that has continued to attract national and international applause for its operations despite some unfriendly remarks from unfriendly international organisations. Their anti-terrorism fight has amply restored hope to the country. A critical evaluation of the internal security situation shows that the Buhari government’s decision to celebrate the 58th Independence anniversary of the nation could be a show of bravado, since its the last year of the administration. Or, could it be a political celebration of insecurity? One, therefore, wonders why government is going the whole hog to celebrate this year’s Independence anniversary but was completely reluctant to celebrate the anniversary in years past.
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The truth still remains the truth. No matter how we clad the 58th Independence Day anniversary by popping champagne and rolling out the military and police drums, no matter how we shade the anniversary by flying all the jets and helicopters to embark on acrobatic air displays, no matter how we deodorise the political space to give the impression that all is well, no matter how we dust the roads, especially the Eagle Square, to attract school pupils and security personnel to stage a march past, we cannot cover the truth that we are celebrating insecurity.
Over 100 Chibok students abducted from their school are still in captivity, with the Christian girl, Miss Leah Sharibu. Therefore, brazenly celebrating insecurity is tantamount to insensitiveness. Full Stop!
Congratulations!
SECURITY File extends a congratulatory handshake to one of our avid readers, CP Lawan Jimeta, who was recently appointed new Compol Mopol … we wish you all the best.