By: Ifeanyi Izeze
Being “extreme left” or “extreme right” are measurement
standards that solely depend on who is doing the definition. To a
leftist everything is right and to the rightist, everything is left.
That’s where we are today as a nation of people. Everybody is
interpreting the constitution to support their evil agenda against
corporate Nigeria.
Tragically, across the country marauders commonly referred to as
bandits, Fulani herdsmen, Boko Haram terrorists etc. freely move around
from one area to the other meting mayhem on innocent citizens of this
country for no reasonably genuine reasons whatsoever.
The worst part of it is that those that should speak out against these
criminal atrocities either became dumb and/or opt to play dangerous
politics with the issue. And this conspiracy of silence by northern
leaders produced all kinds of interpretations of the source of the
audacity of the armed herdsmen and bandits. Truth be told, when leaders
(religious and political) refuse to speak against the glaring evil in
their domain, it is either they are part of the problem or they benefit
lucratively from it.
Hitherto, Gen. T.Y. Danjuma was the lone voice from the entire northern
Nigeria speaking against the ills of the marauding Fulani bandits and of
course his reasons are obvious as his people have serially been attacked
and messed up by the same herdsmen/bandits.
Now, a first of its kind ever heard, the fiery Islamic Scholar, Sheikh
Dr Ahmad Gumi and the Kano State governor, Abdullahi Ganduje have boldly
stepped out to proffer solutions to the spate of senseless killings by
bandits and herders in the north and elsewhere across the country. This
is what Nigerians from other sections expected the northern leaders to
have done right at the onset of the security challenge that has
literally destroyed the economy of the north whether anybody wants to
hear it or not.
As exclusively reported by the Desert Herald Newspaper, Sheikh Dr Gumi
has stepped out to pioneer the course of peace between the Fulani
herdsmen and other Nigerians, particularly in the Northwest where on
daily basis we get reports of bandits wiping out entire villages with
impunity.
Sheikh Gumi on Tuesday 19th January convened the first-ever fact-finding
peace initiatives with over 500 armed Fulanis and about 25 of their top
commanders somewhere in the bush in Kaduna state.
The mission of the Sheikh is to “educate, support and pacify aggrieved
Fulani herdsmen that turns into kidnapping and armed banditry.” Just
to hear them out on a first hand basis. If this is not a milestone, how
else can anyone describe it? Have we heard of that kind of meeting
anywhere in the north since this mayhem started?
Though details of Sheik Gumi’s discussions with the armed Fulani men
are not known, interestingly, it was disclosed that they accused
government of not being sincere in ending instances of banditry and
kidnappings. They said the Fulanis are not the only culprits in the
business of kidnappings and banditry as most of the local intelligence
they used to gather are being coordinated by their accomplices in the
city as it is impossible for them that are predominantly living in the
bushes to personally know their targets, locations of houses or to even
identify the rich without such internal collaborators. They said
government has failed in acknowledging and addressing that reality. But
this a story for another time
No doubt, Sheikh Gumi’s carrot approach and confidence-building
mission should be encouraged as key to any solution that will enthrone
lasting peace and security in the region where kidnappings and banditry
has become a daily occurrence.
Also, few days from the Sheikh’s meeting with the armed Fulani
herdsmen, Governor Ganduje of Kano state also stepped out to urge the
Federal Government to enact a law banning the movement of cattle from
the north to other parts of the country in order to resolve the
incessant incidences of clashes between farmers and herders and address
the spate of banditry, kidnappings and other heinous crimes attributed
to the Fulanis some of them herders.
His words, “My advocacy is that we should abolish through a law the
transportation or trekking of herdsmen from the northern part of Nigeria
to the middle belt and to the Southern part of Nigeria. Otherwise we
cannot control the conflicts between herdsmen and farmers and cannot
control the spate of cattle rustling which is affecting us greatly.”
Give it to these two northern leaders, they deserve commendation for
this path they are toeing because no matter what happens, this Fulani
banditry can only be sincerely addressed by Fulani/Hausa elders as we
had with the Niger Delta militants.
True as said by the Kano State governor, if such prohibition of cattle
movement for open grazing is enacted, it would nip in the bud the
incessant incidences of clashes between farmers and herders as well as
resolve the many illicit cases and security issues associated with the
nomads including banditry, kidnappings for ransom etc. So it’s a call
of common sense.
Ganduje’s idea is brilliant. He is also an expert in agriculture and a
stakeholder in animal husbandry. He ought to know the challenges of the
sector. He also ought to know what will be the solution.
If the prohibition is enacted, it resolves what we are facing at the
moment across the country. Wandering around from state to state, from
cities to cities with grazing cattles and causing mayhem is an
anachronistic concept that no longer should be allowed in the 21st
century. We can do better than that!
Obviously, bad Fulanis have infiltrated the good ones we used to have;
they are committing serious havocs creating fear and despondency
everywhere in the country even in their natives states in the Northwest.
How long can a nation allow this misdemeanour to continue?
If the proposal coming from Sheikh Gumi and Ganduje: two prominent
northern leaders will solve the problem of armed banditry and
kidnapping, it is a welcome development and need to be supported by all
and sundry. More prominent northern leaders especially the honourable
Islamic scholars and teachers that have integrity to be honoured and
listened to need to speak up against the ills by these armed Fulani
bandits. We cannot continue like this and everybody is keeping quite!
It is the height of insensitivity and outright callousness for any
lawmaker to say that such enactment of such law would not only be
unconstitutional, but also go contrary to the part of the constitution
which stipulates that Nigerians, irrespective of state of birth or
nativity had right to freedom of movement.
Your right to freedom of movement and/or residency cannot trample upon
my own right to life and ownership of land and crops in my place of
nativity and/residence. If that is allowed as we have today, then
something is grossly wrong with the interpretation of that section of
the Constitution.
Ganduje’s proposition and Sheikh Gumi’s initiatives are fantastic
ideas that need a follow up in pragmatic and sincere manner towards
addressing this herdsmen/bandit security problem. What to do now is to
look at the credibility of the propositions with sincerity and unbiased
mindset. It can be made to go as a private bill before the National
Assembly and given expedited action considering the seriousness of the
issue on our oneness as a nation of people and the security of lives and
property across the country. God bless Nigeria!
(IFEANYI IZEZE: iizeze@yahoo.com; 234-8033043009)