By: Femi Fani-Kayode<\/p>\n
“We will write this for all to read. Anyone, soldier or not, that kills
\nthe Fulani takes a loan repayable one day no matter how long it takes” –
\nMallam Nasir El Rufai, 2012.<\/p>\n
I will never forget these words. How I wish that my friend and brother,
\nGovernor Nasir El Rufai, expressed the same level of angst, cold rage,
\nchilling resolve and passion for vengeance after the murder of millions of
\ndefenceless and innocent non-Fulanis, including women and children, in his
\nown Kaduna state and indeed all over the country since the coming to power
\nof the Buhari regime one year and seven months ago.<\/p>\n
How I wish that he could have learnt a lesson or two from other Nigerian
\nleaders of Fulani extraction who are far more restrained, mature,
\nexperienced, knowledgeable and responsible than him like Vice President
\nAtiku Abubakar, Senator Ahmed Makarfi, Hon. Minister Kabiru Turaki, Hon.
\nMinister Hadi Sirika, Governor Sule Lamido, Col. Abubakar Dangiwa Umar,
\nGeneral Aliyu Gusau and countless others that careless and ill-advised
\nassertions, vicious threats and a lack of decorum and restraint have no
\nplace in public discourse and could lead to unimaginable consequences
\nincluding the loss of innocent lives. After all, we are ALL Nigerians.<\/p>\n
Given the circumstances I am constrained to write the following for all to
\nsee: the spilling of innocent blood in the name of vengeance, religion,
\nethnicity or anything else is expensive and it comes with a heavy price.<\/p>\n
Those who willfully shed it will face the consequences of their actions.
\nThey will pay a heavy price from generation to generation both in this
\nworld and in the world to come.
\nGiven all the horror stories of murder and butchery that we hear about in
\nKaduna state today things have certainly got out of hand and every
\nNigerian, whether they be Christian or Muslim, ought to be deeply
\nconcerned.<\/p>\n
Such is the carnage and wasting of innocent lives that I cannot but
\nsupport the columnist Sam Omatseye’s call on Christians in southern Kaduna
\nto rise up and use all lawful means to defend themselves from what can, to
\nall intents and purposes, only be described as genocide.<\/p>\n
I also support the appeal to the Christian Association of Nigeria to use
\nall lawful means to assist and support them and I commend the gallantry
\nand resilience of the Southern Kaduna’s People Union (SOKAPU) who have
\nconsistently spoken out and resisted the evil that the good people of
\nsouthern Kaduna have been subjected to over the years.<\/p>\n
I also commend the efforts of men like Bishop Matthew Hassan Kukah, Pastor
\nTemitope Joshua, Apostle Suleiman and numerous others who have
\nconsistently urged restraint when it comes to such matters but who, at the
\nsame time, have always insisted on justice and equity for the oppressed,
\nthe poor, the weak, the vulnerable and the deprived.<\/p>\n
For as Thomas Jefferson, one of the great founding fathers of the United
\nStates of America once said, “when injustice becomes law, resistance
\nbecomes duty”.<\/p>\n
Self-defence, like self-determination, is a fundamental and inalienable
\nhuman right and those that take pleasure in mass murder and carnage must
\nbe resisted and stopped.<\/p>\n
Those that kill, maim and destroy their fellow human beings and
\ncompatriots in the name of ethnic and religious hegemony and under the
\nguise of cattle-rearing and herding cows must be brought to justice.<\/p>\n
When the International Global Index identified a group that they described
\nas the “Fulani militants” and “herdsmen of Nigeria” as the “fourth most
\ndeadly terrorist organisation in the world” the international community
\nwas shocked and many world leaders expressed their concern and outrage.<\/p>\n
It was only in Nigeria that we took it in our stride and that people found
\nit difficult to comprehend the implications or appreciate the dangers and
\ncomplexity of the challenge that we were faced with.<\/p>\n
It was also only in Nigeria that the government brushed the matter under
\nthe carpet and refused to disarm the murderous terrorists or even condemn
\ntheir actions.<\/p>\n
It was only in Nigeria that everyone hid under their beds and ran for
\ncover and refused to say it as it is even though they all knew the truth.<\/p>\n
It was only in Nigeria that the blood and the lives of the numerous
\nvictims of the Janjaweed-style marauders and murderers were regarded as
\nbeing less precious and less sacred than the blood of their tormentors and
\nkillers.<\/p>\n
The fact of the matter is that this is a major issue and a collective
\nchallenge. This fight is beyond politics: it is an ancient struggle which
\nis being fought in pursuance of an ancient cause.<\/p>\n
Worst still it has an international and global dimension. Simply put, it
\nis essentially about the supression and systematic destruction and
\nhumiliation of the so-called “lesser peoples” and supposedly “inferior
\nethnic nationalities” of the hybrid mega-nation called Nigeria.<\/p>\n
It is about the enslavement, the breaking of the will, the total
\nsubjugation and the complete annihilation of an entire people and various
\nethnic nationalities within that mega-nation.<\/p>\n
It is about the forced aquisition of the land, culture, destiny and souls
\nof others, ethnic and religious domination and good old-fashioned
\nconquest.<\/p>\n
That is the monuemental challenge that we are faced with in Nigeria today
\nby those that covertly commissioned and armed the herdsmen and that are
\nusing them to do a dirty job.<\/p>\n
Yet few wish to admit let alone discuss, hear or publish such bitter
\ntruths in our country. And those of us that are willing to do so are
\ninsulted, attacked, maligned, persecuted, threatened, ostracised and
\nlabellled as rebels and dissidents simply because we have cultivated the
\nstrength and courage to identify the problem, speak the truth and stand up
\nfor the weak and the oppressed.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
By: Femi Fani-Kayode “We will write this for all to read. Anyone, soldier or not, that kills the Fulani takes a loan repayable one day no matter how long it…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":49041,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-54932","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-articles-opinions"],"yoast_head":"\n