Aidoghie Paulinus, Abuja
The Archbishop Emeritus of the Catholic Archdiocese of Abuja, John Cardinal Onaiyekan, has appealed to Nigerians to join hands to draw the nation back from the brink of chaos.
Onaiyekan made the appeal at the Wilton Park Conference on “Fostering Social Cohesion in Nigeria” in London, United Kingdom.
Onaiyekan noted that certainly, it was not the time for stoking the embers of ethnic, political and religious polarisations, saying that there was a need to bring people together to work with a common heart and mind to restore peace and harmony in the land.
Onaiyekan also said those who believed in and desire a successful Nigeria, must come out to be counted, across lines of diversities, even as he said Nigerians have every right to be angry and complain about things not going on well.
He recalled a similar presentation he made in Berlin, Germany, in April 2004, where he gave a presentation at a consultation very similar to the Wilton Park Conference on Nigeria, organised by the Catholic Church and the Government in Germany.
The presentation, he said, was with the suggestive title: “Dancing on the Brink of Chaos,” adding that some years later, a pungent book was published on Nigeria by the former Ambassador of the United States to Nigeria, Prof. John Campbell, with a similar title.
The former president of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) further said as he departed Abuja for the Wilton Park Conference, his mind kept coming back to the ominous title.
According to Onaiyekan, “in recent times, many people in our country have been expressing grave concerns in one way or the other that the nation is not just dancing, but may actually be dangling perilously on the brink of chaos. Those who have lost faith in the survival of the nation are fatalistically waiting for the worst to happen. The media, social and mass, are agog with postings in this direction.
“Those of us who still believe that Nigeria is a viable project are passionately pleading that we need to join hands to draw the nation back from chaos. I believe that it is this stubborn faith that has brought me, and many of my compatriots to this conference in Wilton Park.
“We have been reflecting and talking among ourselves at home, and I am sure that we shall continue after we return. But the opportunity to meet out here in this English countryside, far away from the heat of events at home, in the company of others who we believe are friends of our nation, gives us great encouragement for which we are truly grateful,” Onaiyekan said.
Onaiyekan added that fostering social cohesion in Nigeria is an urgent task that must be worked seriously on before things deteriorate further.
He further said a special responsibility lied on those who have sought and taken up political power to manage the affairs of the nation, even as he said it was the primary duty of political office holders to bring the country together as a nation united in justice, peace and harmony “under God,” as the constitution proclaimed.
“We can only hope that they sincerely share the fears and anxieties of the Nigerian people in these turbulent times. This is certainly not time for stoking the embers of ethnic, political and religious polarisations. There is a need to bring people together to work with a common heart and mind to restore peace and harmony in our land.
“Those who believe in and desire a successful Nigeria must come out to be counted, across our lines of diversities. We have every right to be angry and complain about things not going on well. And those who are in authority must allow those who are hurting to cry and tell their story.
But we must go beyond crying and complaining. All hands must be on deck. Nation building is both the duty and the right of every citizen,” Onaiyekan added.
Onaiyekan highlighted some of the challenges bedeviling the nation as political, ethnic, religious, security and corruption.
On the political challenge, Onaiyekan said it was clear that there were many unresolved issues around the national identity and unity, saying that issues pertaining to the dismantling of the country as being canvassed in some quarters, including restructuring, were expressions of dissatisfaction with the status quo.
In terms of ethnic divides, Onaiyekan noted the growing problems with ethnic identities in the country and unfinished tribal wars around the concept of ancestral lands, indigenes and settlers, adding that the claims of ethnic nationalities cannot be subsumed under a few lingua francas like Hausa in the North and Middle Belt.
On religion, Onaiyekan said the issue continues to be seen as problematic, saying that the long rivalry between Islam and Christianity for conversions and territorial dominance has reached a critical stage.
“The freedom and duty to propagate one’s faith must now be balanced by a mutual recognition of the same right and duty for those in the other camp. Otherwise, clash and conflict become inevitable. Both sides need to temper their tendency towards superiority complex and universalistic pretensions. Many still find it difficult to acknowledge the fact of plurality of religions under one God. The right to be different in this area has to be accepted and respected, not simply tolerated. This requires a radical change of attitude that many are not yet ready to undertake.
“In particular, the place of religion in public life continues to be a bone of contention. There are still in some quarters, remnants of a theocratic mentality that can hardly be compatible with democratic principles of a just autonomy of religion and politics. The debate about secularity of the Nigerian state has led to unnecessary confusion between our two faiths. There is a wide but erroneous perception that suggests that while Muslims do not separate religion and politics, Christians insist on the contrary. But let it be made clear that it would be most unchristian for a Christian to run his political life without – and worse still against God. That the will of God should guide all our human actions, including politics and publical life is a value shared by both faiths. If we could agree to work on this together, we would save ourselves a lot of unnecessary conflicts and misunderstanding. It is in this direction that we should seek a just solution to the still lingering crisis over the position of the Islamic Shariah in our legal system.
“When politicians use, abuse and misuse religion for their selfish interests, they bring out the worst aspects of religion. And when religious leaders collude with politicians in this regard, both religion and politics eventually suffer. The role of government is to be a fair umpire and a just organiser of public interests, including religious interests,” Onaiyekan also said.
Onaiyekan further said the persecution of Christians, as a matter of great interest and concern, has to do with the frequent complaint by some Christians that they are under persecution in Nigeria, especially in northern Nigeria.
“The case has been made with copious statistics and evidence that many Christians sincerely see themselves as being under various kinds of disadvantage and neglect because of their Christian faith. The death of many Christian victims of the ongoing violence and insecurity has been attributed to hatred of their faith. The fact is that the perpetrators have often made this point clear in their declarations. (Eg the outbursts of Boko Haram commanders). We hear the same from the evidence of many survivors. When gun men enter a Catholic seminary at night and drag out four innocent young men studying for the Catholic priesthood, keeping them in captivity for weeks and ending up leaving one 18-year-old boy dead with wounds of torture and gun shots, there is a clear case of martyrdom and persecution.
“It is true that not every injustice and violence suffered by a Christian automatically amounts to persecution. We live in an environment where injustice and insecurity are having a deadly toll on all categories of Nigerians, Christians and non-Christians alike. But it is not helping matters to try to deny the obvious. The victim knows what is hurting him or her, and has every right to cry and complaint. This has given the nation a bad name, which should be of grave concern to our government.
“The exploits of terrorists who kill, maim and rape, chanting Islamic slogans in no way represent the Nigerian Muslim community. But we cannot close our eyes to the significant amount of hatred of the Christian faith manifested in many quarters. This is a dangerous attitude which both faiths must jointly work against. The same must be done if there are cases of hatred of Islam in Christian-dominated communities,” Onaiyekan stated.
Onaiyekan also said security was the greatest challenge facing the nation at the moment, maintaining that the Boko Haram insurgence in the North East, with its trail of suffering and death among many innocent people, has refused to go, despite frequent claims by government to the contrary.
“The Fulani herdsmen that have lived peacefully with their hosts for years all over the nation seem to have suddenly been infiltrated by murderous, heavily armed terrorists, going on rampage seemingly freely. Other armed bands called “bandits” have been on a killing spree in many parts of the North and Middle Belt. Kidnapping for ransom has become a thriving business all over the nation. Common criminals now seem to have freedom to rob and rape, kill and maim at will. While the people in authority move around with an army of security agents, the normal citizen is at the mercy of all sorts of criminal elements. The sad truth is that there is an unacceptable level of incidents, and an inexcusable level of impunity. We cannot understand that herdsmen drive farmers away from their lands only to settle on and occupy those same farms peacefully grazing while the farmers are in IDP camps begging for relief. How come kidnappers are able to collect and move around the billions of Naira of their ransom money and no one can trace them? This level of insecurity can only be found in nations that are at war,” Onaiyekan noted.
On corruption, Onaiyekan said after more than five years of the current administration, the nation has well intentioned anti-corruption agencies like the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), but with poor performance.
He added that there were wild allegations that massive stealing is still going on with impunity, and stashed away in the usual or new tax havens, including those in so-called respectable nations.
“There is the “legal corruption” of overpaid public officers, legislators and political office holders, in a nation still arguing over a minimum monthly wage of 30,000 naira. No wonder many youths have lost hope for a decent future in Nigeria and are ready to migrate to anywhere, by all means,” he further said.
Preferring solution to the myriads of problems in the country, Onaiyekan however, said despite the inadequacies of government, there is still a government in place in the country, adding that the present government can perform better if it paid more attention to the cries and complaints of the people.
He said President Muhammadu Buhari who is in his second and last term of office and who has just about three more years, but long enough, to make a more felt impact on the life of Nigerians.
“If he vacates office leaving Nigeria the way it is now, or even worse, history will likely judge him very harshly. It is not too late to change course and attitude. In particular, the nation is in a crisis requiring the kind of emergency attention that should not be limited to friends and party members only. Government should find an effective way to open up to the contribution of the vast array of experts we have both at home and abroad. Nigeria is too big to be left in the hands of only those known to Mr. President,” Onaiyekan told the audience.
While saying that calls for a meaningful national discourse and dialogue about the present state and future direction of the nation ought to be taken seriously, Onaiyekan also said whether or not it is called a “sovereign national conference,” it should be an open forum for free discussion of all relevant issues, with no restrictions or “no-go areas.”
He said the discourse, in whatever form, should include, if need be, renegotiating the terms of national identity.
On security, Onaiyekan said it should be clear to the authorities, as it is to the ordinary Nigerian, that the existing strategy is not working and should be re-designed.
“It is hard to see how keeping the same people at the helm of the security apparatus for long time can ensure the kind of change required. The needful has to be done to make sure that terrorists are checkmated, criminals rounded up, bandits dismantled, and kidnappers put out of business. We have a right to move freely on our roads, and sleep with both eyes closed on our homes. This is not asking for too much. It is the least citizens expect of their rulers. The rise and proliferation of many forms of “self help” security organisations is a loud vote of no confidence in the power that be. This cannot be the final solution that we are looking for. It is only emergency measure,” Onaiyekan declared.