Nyako, Arewa And National Security

Murtala Nyako is a retired admiral of the
Nigerian Navy and current Governor
of Adamawa State. His State falls within the North Eastern region that constitutes the main theatre for terrorist activities of Boko Haram. Although the Federal Government had earlier declared a state of emergency in Adamawa, Borno and Yobe States, the security of lives and property remains a challenge.
Apparently unimpressed with the slow successes recorded by the Nigerian military, Governor Nyako had two weeks ago, sent a memo to his fellow Northern governors in which he accused the Federal Government of systematically conducting a genocide against the people of the North.
He had in the controversial letter accused the authorities in Abuja of failing to “arrest the mindless slaughter and indiscriminate bloodletting by the Boko Haram insurgents and other terrorist groups, which is a clear and systematic effort to destroy the northern population for partisan political advantage.”
The governor also decried the possible extension of emergency rule in the three North Eastern States, arguing that the elapsing state of emergency had not achieved the desired result.
Supporting Nyako’s memo, the Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF), the leading socio-political umbrella group for the north had in a press statement issued by its National Publicity Secretary, Muhammadu Ibrahim, insisted that the Federal Government must probe the issues raised by the Governor, especially with a view to discovering the sources of Boko Haram’s funding, logistics and their sponsors.
The ACF said it was at a loss as to how Boko Haram insurgents were able to continuously carry out killings and kidnappings of innocent people despite earlier claims by the military of capturing some of the terrorists and destroying over 700 vehicles in one of their raids.
We think that Nyako’s genocide claim against the President Goodluck Jonathan’s administration is already regrettable, and for the ACF to lend its support to such a frivolous accusation is nothing short of a tragedy.
Although, the baseless memo and the action of ACF were roundly condemned at a recent expanded Security Council meeting in Abuja, the wanton disregard for the peace and unity of this country by some people in high places must be condemned. Nigeria must invoke the laws that forbid such recklessness before things get out of hands.
Like the North East, the South-South geo-political zone also had its years of kidnappings and outright militancy without any of the governors or groups from the region trumping up an ethnic cleansing charge against any of the then Presidents until the agitating youths were pacified with an amnesty programme.
The erroneous impression that was bandied about was that the Federal government floated Boko Haram or that it is not the terrorist group that is killing, maiming and kidnapping people any more, but rather the government. Also unacceptable is the impression that the mostly embattled North East is better-off with Boko Haram and would not mind if the federal troops are withdrawn.
To call for an end to the emergency rule in the region is to give the impression that Nyako and his Arewa co-travellers can do what the federal might could not achieve. Yet, these are the very people who were commissioned to proffer a lasting solution to the insurgency and they came up with nothing.
The Tide is very disappointed with both Governor Nyako and the Arewa group. It is even moreso when we consider that as a retired member of the military top brass, the governor ought to have weighed the security implications of his comments. The only deduction is that some persons are trying so hard to destabilise Nigeria, cause religious and social disharmony and also send an encouraging signal to Boko Haram.
We also think that these uncalculated words should be discountenanced as was indeed the case when the Governor of Niger State and Chairman of the Northern Governors Forum, Dr. Babangida Aliyu, spoke after an enlarged meeting of the Security Council meeting in Abuja, last Thursday.
Even so, we think that the Federal Government should go the extra mile to end the bloodletting, particularly in Abuja and parts of the North East. This surely demands the support of all, including Nyako and the ACF.