By SKC Ogbonnia
\nAugust 19, 2019<\/p>\n
The Herdsmen terrorism in Nigeria has lasted because the victims are
\ntypically the ordinary people. Consider, for instance, two recent
\nkillings, in which the victims happened to be an ordinary man of God and
\na daughter of a prominent politician.<\/p>\n
Take note of this name: Funke Olakunrin. She was the daughter of the
\nAfenifere leader, Pa Reuben Fasoranti. Though murdered in cold blood by
\nbandits on July 12, 2019, the unfortunate incident might turn out a
\nsacrificial lamb in the fight against herdsmen terrorism in the country.
\nBefore Mrs. Olakunrin, many Nigerians had lost their lives at the hands
\nof Fulani herdsmen in recent years. The number is in thousands, and
\nacross the country, particularly the minority areas of the Middle Belt.
\nDifferent pressures, both local and international, to provoke the
\nFederal Government towards meaningful action fell on deaf ears.<\/p>\n
But all that changed with case of the daughter of the politician from
\nthe highly influential Southwest Nigeria, home to the country\u2019s human
\nrights superstars. This death shook the political class, reminding them
\nit could be any of them any day. A cream of who is who in Nigerian
\npolitics quickly found their way to the victim\u2019s Akure home. Former
\nPresident Goodluck Jonathan was on hand, praying for an end to the
\nkillings. The dean of former presidents, Olusegun Obasanjo, wrote a
\ndamning letter, urging President Muhammadu Buhari to do something.<\/p>\n
The major socio-cultural groups in the country, notably, Afenifere,
\nOhanaeze Ndigbo, the Pan-Niger Delta Forum, the Southern and Middle Belt
\nLeaders Forum, Coalition of Northern Groups, and Northern Elders Forum
\nwere not left behind. Strong warnings also came from the sole Nigerian
\nNobel laureate and eminent activist, Wole Soyinka, and the preeminent
\nking in the region, the Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi, Ojaja
\nII.<\/p>\n
The Federal Government finally woke up. President Buhari, who had always
\nshown indifference to past killings, swiftly condemned the terrorist act
\nand promised to fish out the culprits. He followed by dispatching his
\ndeputy, Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo, to pay a condolence visit to Pa
\nFasoranti.\u00a0 Akure, the home of the deceased, suddenly became a political
\nMecca for the ruling party henchmen, including its National Leader, Bola
\nTinubu, and host of others. Importantly, Buhari would meet with the
\ntraditional rulers from the Southwest Nigeria and promised to launch
\ndrones and CCTVs in Pa Fasoranti\u2019s region.<\/p>\n
Now, place the account above side by side with the case of the man of
\nGod, the Catholic Reverend Father Paul Offu, who was murdered in my area
\nof Enugu State by suspected Fulani herdsmen August 1, 2019. This
\ngruesome act made news, quite alright, especially among the Catholic
\nfaithful. The priests of Catholic Diocese of Enugu matched to protest
\nfor their colleague. Rome was furious, as did many Christian
\norganizations around the world. President Buhari also joined and ordered
\na manhunt for the killers.<\/p>\n
But that was as far as the attention could go. There was no motorcade of
\nthe rich and famous thronging to the home of the poor man of God.
\nBesides a statement from the governor of Enugu State, and unlike the
\nscene during the last elections where the two major parties rented tents
\nat the Adoration Ground Enugu, seeking Father Ejike Mbaka\u2019s
\nendorsement, neither former leaders, current, nor future leaders could
\nshow serious concern. The two federal lawmakers from the area, namely
\nSenator Ike Ekeremadu and Hon. Toby Okechukwu rather chose to travel to
\nfaraway Germany to celebrate fake new yam festival while their region
\nwas under siege.<\/p>\n
Vice-President Osinbajo, who doubles as man of God, could not even
\ncommiserate, let alone pay a visit to Father Offu\u2019s village. And, of
\ncourse, there was no meeting between South-East leaders and President
\nBuhari nor concrete national action plan to combat terrorism in the
\nEastern flank. This seemingly double standard prompted the apex Igbo
\nsocio-cultural group, Ohaneze Ndigbo, to demand equal justice in line
\nwith the security measures initiated in the Southwest Nigeria.<\/p>\n
Yet, the attention garnered thus far by the killing of Father Paul Offu
\nwould not have materialized, if the incident was not preceded by that of
\nthe daughter of Chief Reuben Fasoranti. After all, many other men of God
\nhad been victims, particularly in Northern Nigeria. Moreover, two
\nCatholic priests had lost their lives at the hands of the terrorists in
\nthe same Enugu State in recent months without much fuss. In fact, unlike
\nin the past, the security agencies in Enugu State, along with Governor
\nIfeanyi Ugwuanyi, demonstrated seriousness. Within three weeks after the
\nkilling, the Police Commissioner, Enugu Command, Mr. Suleiman Balarabe
\nparaded Ibrahim Adamu and Idris Tobe as suspects, contrary to the
\nsubservient insinuations of Bola Tinubu that herdsmen terrorism in the
\nSouth is a hoax.<\/p>\n
The current fight against insecurity in Nigeria must not be selective.
\nPresident Buhari should, therefore, hasten to equally launch tangible
\nanti-terrorist measures in the East, as well as other hot areas,
\nparticularly the Middle Belt, which has been the epicenter of herdsmen
\nkillings in the country. The government must depart from the prevailing
\npattern where patronage is based purely on political calculations. For
\ngood governance in the entire country is vitally important to all. As an
\nAmerican president, John F. Kennedy once noted, \u201cIf a free society
\ncannot help the many who are poor, it cannot save the few who are
\nrich.\u201d<\/p>\n
SKC Ogbonnia, a 2019 APC presidential aspirant, is the author of the
\nEffective Leadership Formula.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
By SKC Ogbonnia August 19, 2019 The Herdsmen terrorism in Nigeria has lasted because the victims are typically the ordinary people. Consider, for instance, two recent killings, in which the…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":48980,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-68529","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-articles-opinions"],"yoast_head":"\n