Ladesope Ladelokun
History mirrors our yesterday. Its verdict may be harsh or kind depending on our actions or inaction today. So, last week, a sad chapter of our history was once again laid bare when the Bring Back Our Girls Group marked 2000 days of Chibok girls’ abduction.
Of course, it was not surprising that the name of former President Jonathan popped up being the occupant of Nigeria’s number one office at the time the girls were stolen. In his memoir, For The Record, former British Prime Minister, David Cameron, had accused the Otuoke-born ex-Nigerian leader of failing to give enough support to Britain when it volunteered to rescue the abducted girls, saying he was a leader that slept on the wheel.
Expectedly, his accusation triggered brickbats between him and the former Nigerian leader with Jonathan urging the general public to take his accusation with a pinch of salt. He called it a fairy tale calculated at casting him in a bad light.
To be frank, Cameron did not say anything new about the Chibok abduction that happened on April 14, 2014.The former Nigerian president can deny that there was never an offer to help by the British government.
What cannot be denied is the fact that for complete two weeks after the abduction, he maintained a deafening silence because he reasoned that the abduction was part of the plans by his political enemies to bring down his government. Also, it cannot be denied that on his watch, Boko Haram flourished and became one of the deadliest terrorist groups in the world. No one can also deny that at least 112 Chibok girls are still missing more than five years after they were abducted.It is also not a lie that his former National Security Adviser, Sambo Dasuki, is in the custody of the Department of State Services (DSS) following allegations that he funneled defense funds into elections at a time Boko Haram conquered swathes of territories in the northeast.
Truth be told, leaders in this part of the world hardly take responsibility for their actions or inaction. It explains why Jonathan would see the Chibok abduction as a conspiracy against his government instead of an evidence of the failure of the government in tackling the worrying security problem that beset Nigeria during his stint as Nigeria’s president.
All Progressives Congress (APC) spokesman, Mr Lanre Onilu, was right when he said, “ What is important now is Jonathan explaining to the families of the abducted school girls why as President, he did nothing for two weeks after Chibok abduction and still refuses to take responsibility for the tragedy up till now – except he continues to blame the abduction and other failings of his administration on the so-called grand conspiracy against him as he laboriously tries to state in his response to Cameron.”
But alas, Dapchi happened on President Buhari’s watch. And over 100 girls were herded away in trucks. Though it is true that the response of the present government was swift when juxtaposed with the Chibok abduction, five girls were reported dead and one girl, Leah Sharibu is still in captivity. It remains to be seen how Buhari’s APC has the bragging rights to taunt the PDP under Jonathan for failing to secure Nigeria and Nigerians.
Buhari had promised that every Nigerian child would be safe in their schools in the run-up to the 2015 election. Only recently, armed men attacked Engravers College, a boarding secondary school in Chikun, Kaduna state and abducted two staff and six female students.
Like the missing Chibok girls and Leah Sharibu, they are victims of the failure of the people who swore to protect them. Their sin: they dared to seek knowledge. Despite several assurances from the presidency that abducted Chibok girls and Leah Sharibu would be reunited with their families, they remain in the den of their abductors, leaving their distraught loved ones in the prison of hope.
Sadly, the narrative of a disturbing breach of contract between law-abiding Nigerians who pay their taxes on the one hand and the federal government on the other hand with the primary responsibility of protecting Nigerians which birthed the abductions highlighted has refused to change with a retired General as the Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces in spite of high expectations.
What appears to be an advertisement of the hopeless and helpless situation of the worsening security problem bedevilling Nigeria is the resolve of the Borno state government to engage prayer warriors to bring back the peace that has eluded his state and the entire North.
True, Nigeria is arguably the prayer capital of the world. We pray about everything- poverty, bad economy, corruption and everything under the sun, including simple things common sense can solve! Now that the Borno state government has contracted 30 Saudi-based clerics, expressing its readiness to engage clerics of different faiths in Nigeria, it is safe to say good times are indeed here for prayer warriors in Nigeria. What the government has failed to tell Nigerians is how much of tax payers’ money is piped into the project.
The action of the state government is a reminder of how we abandon leprosy to treat ringworm. Was it up to a month that it was reported that our soldiers still use obsolete equipment bought during the Shagari era? And prayer warriors are expected to do the magic obsolete equipment can’t do? Shouldn’t we demonstrate seriousness in leveraging technology to combat the rising spate of insecurity across the land like what obtains in same climes?
What are those in the power loop doing to take away the over 10 million out-of- school children that represent time bombs on our streets? Why are more people getting trapped in the chasm of poverty every passing day? Until we stop paying lip service to the issues that threaten our peace and unity, Dapchi and Chibok will continue to happen. But our missing girls must not be forgotten.
Ladelokun writes via [email protected]