On 26th February 2014 one Mr. Adegoroye wrote "only an insane
government will be celebrating centenary while the youths, women,
children and citizens are being killed daily in cold blood. Rather than
mourn the dead, we want to celebrate one hundred years of a failed state
ruled by a failed and cursed generation. This country (Nigeria) needs
more than just prayers if the government will be unable, for just twenty
four hours, to protect the citizens. Who says we don't have a war
situation in Nigeria? Oh! Families of the pained and the dead should
celebrate too? Why not invite them all to Abuja to come and dance and
entertain you? Shame has only one definition - shame!".
My friend and brother Mr. Azubike Ishiekwene, who is undoubtedly one
of the most formidable and compelling columnists in our country today,
spoke the mind of virtually every self-respecting and civilised Nigerian
when, after watching the obscenity that was called the centenary ball
on NTA on the night of 27th February 2014, he wrote ''I can't believe
that President Goodluck Jonathan and co, are having a centenary ball,
literally dancing on the graves of over 50 innocent children murdered by
Boko Haram. I can't believe it. I'm bereft". Azu got it absolutely
right. As a matter of fact so shocked and disgusted was yours truly that
the centenary ball actually went ahead barely three days after the mass
murder of those innocent souls that I couldn't even bear to watch it on
television. We are in trouble in this country and our nation clearly
needs deliverance.
The war against terror is raging and we appear to be losing it. Hundreds of people are being killed on a regular basis and it appears that no-one really ''gives a damn''. The bowels of our compassion have run dry and we no longer shudder or shed a tear when we hear that hundreds of our citizens have been butchered in one go by Boko Haram. We are just not interested anymore and as long as it does not affect any member of our immediate family the best we can do is to shake our heads and whisper ''what a pity''. We feel no empathy with the victims and neither is there any sense of outrage. We simply feel numb for a few seconds and after that we couldn't care less.
The war against terror is raging and we appear to be losing it. Hundreds of people are being killed on a regular basis and it appears that no-one really ''gives a damn''. The bowels of our compassion have run dry and we no longer shudder or shed a tear when we hear that hundreds of our citizens have been butchered in one go by Boko Haram. We are just not interested anymore and as long as it does not affect any member of our immediate family the best we can do is to shake our heads and whisper ''what a pity''. We feel no empathy with the victims and neither is there any sense of outrage. We simply feel numb for a few seconds and after that we couldn't care less.
Yet the truth is that the minute we become so dehumanised and so
insensitive that we stop caring about those that are being slaughtered
then we may as well give up hope and conclude that life is no longer
worth living. The minute we begin to regard those that are being
butchered on a daily basis as nothing but distant numbers we may as well
stop regarding ourselves as human beings and instead we ought to
describe ourselves as a colony of beasts or a nation of vampires.
The minute we stop caring about what is going on in the north and we
no longer feel that it is necessary to honour the dead or to protect the
living, we are no longer worthy of life. It is for this reason that I
believe it is necessary to once again remind my compatriots about what
is happening in some parts of northern Nigeria today and to remind them
again about the sheer havoc that Boko Haram is unleashing on our people.
They are indeed an affliction for which there appears to be no cure.
Please consider the following:
On 1st March 2014, in the heart of Maiduguri the capital of Borno state, Boko Haram suicide bombers detonated two massive bombs slaughtering at least 53 innocent Nigerians including women and children.
On 1st March 2014, in the heart of Maiduguri the capital of Borno state, Boko Haram suicide bombers detonated two massive bombs slaughtering at least 53 innocent Nigerians including women and children.
On 26th February 2014 in Madagali and Michika Local Government Areas
of Adamawa state three communities were attacked and 37 innocent
Nigerians were slaughtered by Boko Haram. They also attacked some banks
and police stations and burnt them to the ground. There are eyewitness
reports that allege that on sighting the large number of well-armed
insurgents in their Hillux vans our soldiers fled the scene and ran into
the safety of the bush to hide.
On the night of the 24th February, 2014 at Federal Government College
Buni in Yadi, Yobe state 59 innocent school children were slaughtered
by Boko Haram in the middle of the night in their dormitories as they
slept.
On 23rd February 2014 in Malari and Izge villages, Borno state 12 innocent Nigerians were slaughtered by Boko Haram and both villages were levelled. On 19th February 2014 in the town of Bama, Borno state 91 innocent Nigerians were slaughtered by Boko Haram. Again on 19th February 2014 Boko Haram attacked the Buratai, Borno state country home of the Commander of the Joint Task Force in the Niger Delta Area, Major General Tukur Buratai, and they killed one soldier.
On 17th February 2014 in Galga village, Gombi Local Government Area, Adamawa state 11 innocent Nigerians were slaughtered by Boko Haram. On 16th February 2014 again in Izge village, Borno state 90 innocent Nigerians were slaughtered by Boko Haram. On 15th February 2014 in Baga village, Borno state 10 innocent Nigerians were slaughtered by Boko Haram. On 12th February 2014 in Borno state 60 innocent Nigerians were slaughtered by Boko Haram and 24 young girls were abducted and carted off without any trace.
On January 27th 2014 in Adamawa and Borno states respectively 70 innocent Nigerians were slaughtered by Boko Haram in a series of attacks. On January 14th 2014 in the heart of Maiduguri, the capital of Borno state, no less than 50 innocent Nigerians were slaughtered by Boko Haram in a suicide bomb attack. Not too long before then Boko Haram attacked an army barracks in Borno state, killed 200 soldiers, carted off the wives and children of our military personnel and burnt the barracks to the ground. The soldiers were later buried in mass graves.
A few weeks prior to that, numerous schools were attacked and hundreds of our children were either shot to death, hacked to pieces or had their throats cut and blood drained. Consequently many schools have been closed down in Borno and Yobe states respectively. A few weeks back no less than 160 of our soldiers were killed by Boko Haram in one skirmish simply because they ran out of bullets.
On 23rd February 2014 in Malari and Izge villages, Borno state 12 innocent Nigerians were slaughtered by Boko Haram and both villages were levelled. On 19th February 2014 in the town of Bama, Borno state 91 innocent Nigerians were slaughtered by Boko Haram. Again on 19th February 2014 Boko Haram attacked the Buratai, Borno state country home of the Commander of the Joint Task Force in the Niger Delta Area, Major General Tukur Buratai, and they killed one soldier.
On 17th February 2014 in Galga village, Gombi Local Government Area, Adamawa state 11 innocent Nigerians were slaughtered by Boko Haram. On 16th February 2014 again in Izge village, Borno state 90 innocent Nigerians were slaughtered by Boko Haram. On 15th February 2014 in Baga village, Borno state 10 innocent Nigerians were slaughtered by Boko Haram. On 12th February 2014 in Borno state 60 innocent Nigerians were slaughtered by Boko Haram and 24 young girls were abducted and carted off without any trace.
On January 27th 2014 in Adamawa and Borno states respectively 70 innocent Nigerians were slaughtered by Boko Haram in a series of attacks. On January 14th 2014 in the heart of Maiduguri, the capital of Borno state, no less than 50 innocent Nigerians were slaughtered by Boko Haram in a suicide bomb attack. Not too long before then Boko Haram attacked an army barracks in Borno state, killed 200 soldiers, carted off the wives and children of our military personnel and burnt the barracks to the ground. The soldiers were later buried in mass graves.
A few weeks prior to that, numerous schools were attacked and hundreds of our children were either shot to death, hacked to pieces or had their throats cut and blood drained. Consequently many schools have been closed down in Borno and Yobe states respectively. A few weeks back no less than 160 of our soldiers were killed by Boko Haram in one skirmish simply because they ran out of bullets.
In June 2013 at Government College Secondry School, Damatru, Yobe
state 8 young students and one teacher were slaughtered by Boko Haram.
On July 6th 2013 at the Government Secondary School, Mamudo, Yobe state
41 young students and one teacher were slaughtered by Boko Haram. On
September 29th 2013 at the College Of Agriculture, Gubja, Yobe state 44
students and a number of teachers were slaughtered by Boko Haram. On the
night of April 19th 2013 till the early hours of April 20th at Baga
town in Borno state 228 people, including women and children, were
slaughtered by Boko Haram. On March 8th 2010 in Dogo Nahawa, Plateau
state 500 villagers, including women and children, were slaughtered by
affiliates and associates of Boko Haram. There were many other attacks
on churches, markets, motor parks and schools in various parts of the
north including Kano state, Niger state, Abuja, Kogi state and others
between 2009 and 2014. In each of these attacks many women and children
were killed. The situation seems to have degenerated even further today
with vast areas of the Nigerian state in the north-east literally being
overwhelmed by the terrorists and insurgents even though there is a
state of emergency in place there.
Worst still it has been generally acknowledged that the Boko Haram fighters are better equipped and better supplied than our soldiers. The beleagured Governor of Borno state himself, my friend and brother Alhaji Kashim Shettima, sent out an S.O.S to Nigerians last week when he told journalists at the Presidential Villa in Abuja that ''Nigeria is at war. The Boko Haram insurgents are better equipped than the Nigerian military. We need more equipment and more troops''.
President Goodluck Jonathan responded to the governor's concerns during his Presidential Media chat on 24th Feb. 2014 by saying the following- "Boko Haram is not easy to fight. If the Governor of Borno feels the military are that useless against Boko Haram I can pull out the military for one month and see what happens there and after I can send the military back to take charge. The Governor should be sensitive in his choice of words. It's unfortunate".
Clearly we are in trouble. The Governor of Borno state is asking for more help and more troops from the Federal Government because hundreds more of his people are being killed and abducted EVERY DAY by Boko Haram and this is the best response that our President can give to him? Are those being slaughtered and abducted not Nigerians? Would this have been his response if those being killed on a daily basis were his own Ijaw people?
Finally no less than 130 churches were burnt down in Borno state in 2013 alone and the Catholic Church alone lost 53 churches out of that figure. This genocidal pattern of behaviour and cycle of butchery by Boko Haram is systemic and has been recurrent and regular for the last three years. All in all Nigeria has lost almost 8000 innocent civilians to Boko Haram in the last three years and that includes women and children. It does not however include the vast number of women that have been captured and kidnapped by them and that are now being used as sex-slaves. President George W. Bush once said "I believe the most solemn duty of the American president is to protect the American people." President Goodluck Jonathan has much to learn from this.
Worst still it has been generally acknowledged that the Boko Haram fighters are better equipped and better supplied than our soldiers. The beleagured Governor of Borno state himself, my friend and brother Alhaji Kashim Shettima, sent out an S.O.S to Nigerians last week when he told journalists at the Presidential Villa in Abuja that ''Nigeria is at war. The Boko Haram insurgents are better equipped than the Nigerian military. We need more equipment and more troops''.
President Goodluck Jonathan responded to the governor's concerns during his Presidential Media chat on 24th Feb. 2014 by saying the following- "Boko Haram is not easy to fight. If the Governor of Borno feels the military are that useless against Boko Haram I can pull out the military for one month and see what happens there and after I can send the military back to take charge. The Governor should be sensitive in his choice of words. It's unfortunate".
Clearly we are in trouble. The Governor of Borno state is asking for more help and more troops from the Federal Government because hundreds more of his people are being killed and abducted EVERY DAY by Boko Haram and this is the best response that our President can give to him? Are those being slaughtered and abducted not Nigerians? Would this have been his response if those being killed on a daily basis were his own Ijaw people?
Finally no less than 130 churches were burnt down in Borno state in 2013 alone and the Catholic Church alone lost 53 churches out of that figure. This genocidal pattern of behaviour and cycle of butchery by Boko Haram is systemic and has been recurrent and regular for the last three years. All in all Nigeria has lost almost 8000 innocent civilians to Boko Haram in the last three years and that includes women and children. It does not however include the vast number of women that have been captured and kidnapped by them and that are now being used as sex-slaves. President George W. Bush once said "I believe the most solemn duty of the American president is to protect the American people." President Goodluck Jonathan has much to learn from this.
The truth is that we as a people have lost all sense of compassion
and decency when it comes to such matters and our feelings and
consciences have become seared. To the majority of Nigerians those
precious souls and compatriots that have been killed by Boko Haram over
the last three years are just a number- they are nothing but distant
names, from a distant place, belonging to distant figures. There is
simply no sense of national outrage from our people about this insidious
rebellion and about these brutal killings and vicious attacks and
neither is their any sense of urgency on the part of our government to
bring them to an end.
Given the way we conduct ourselves one would not have thought that Nigeria is currently enmeshed in the most brutal war against terror in it's entire history. Yet as we go on with our day to day business and act as if all is well thousands are being killed in the north-eastern part of our country by Boko Haram. There can be no greater evidence of man's inhumanity to man when one considers our attitude. Such inhumanity and insensitivity to the plight of others has taken firm root in the Nigeria of today.
What a monuemental tragedy this is. When did we, as a people, degenerate to this abysmal level of lack of empathy and when did we stop becoming our brother's keeper? As millions of Nigerians ''celebrate'' our one hundred years of national unity I hope that they find it in their hearts to spare a thought and say a little prayer for those whose loved ones are not with them today simply because they have been murdered or kidnapped by Boko Haram. May God heal their wounds and have mercy on them even as we grieve with them. And may God forgive our President and the majority of the Nigerian people for simply ''not giving a damn'' about their sad and unfortunate plight.
There is no question in my mind that Nigeria is presently being governed by vile and evil men. These are cowardly men that are being guided by satan, that have no fear of God and that are more interested in persecuting the innocent and attempting to intimidate the opposition than in providing good and accountable government, protecting the lives of our citizens or fighting the war against terror. We have become a nation of vampires that is being run by a vampire President who feels no pain and who harbours no remorse when the blood of children is shed and when the lives of the innocent are cut short.
Given the way we conduct ourselves one would not have thought that Nigeria is currently enmeshed in the most brutal war against terror in it's entire history. Yet as we go on with our day to day business and act as if all is well thousands are being killed in the north-eastern part of our country by Boko Haram. There can be no greater evidence of man's inhumanity to man when one considers our attitude. Such inhumanity and insensitivity to the plight of others has taken firm root in the Nigeria of today.
What a monuemental tragedy this is. When did we, as a people, degenerate to this abysmal level of lack of empathy and when did we stop becoming our brother's keeper? As millions of Nigerians ''celebrate'' our one hundred years of national unity I hope that they find it in their hearts to spare a thought and say a little prayer for those whose loved ones are not with them today simply because they have been murdered or kidnapped by Boko Haram. May God heal their wounds and have mercy on them even as we grieve with them. And may God forgive our President and the majority of the Nigerian people for simply ''not giving a damn'' about their sad and unfortunate plight.
There is no question in my mind that Nigeria is presently being governed by vile and evil men. These are cowardly men that are being guided by satan, that have no fear of God and that are more interested in persecuting the innocent and attempting to intimidate the opposition than in providing good and accountable government, protecting the lives of our citizens or fighting the war against terror. We have become a nation of vampires that is being run by a vampire President who feels no pain and who harbours no remorse when the blood of children is shed and when the lives of the innocent are cut short.
Permit me to end this contribution with two parting shots. The first
is from the government of the United States of America who have said
that ''Boko Haram is the second most dangerous terrorist
organisation globally''. The report says “apart from the Taliban in
Afghanistan, Boko Haram in Nigeria recorded the highest number of terror
attacks last year whilst Boko Haram killed the second highest number of
people''. The statistical report called ‘START’ which was conducted by
the University of Maryland for the American government on global
terrorism in 2012 revealed that ''while the Taliban killed 1,842 people
in 525 terror attacks last year, and came tops on the infamous ranking,
Boko Haram came second, killing 1,132 in 364 terror attacks. Both the
Taliban and Boko Haram have killed more than Al-Qaeda in Iraq, the
Maoists in India, Al-Shabaab, Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, rolled
into one.”- United States Government, June 11, 2013. This is indeed food
for thought.
The second parting shot is a chilling and insightful contribution from
Governor Murtala Nyako of Adamawa state who is a man that has proved to
be far more discerning and forthright than most when it comes to this
matter. Barely 24 hours after 37 innocent people were butchered by the
terrorists in his state he asked the following pertinent questions. ''In
Buni-Yadi, Yobe state, the soldiers withdrew from checkpoints hours to
the attack. Who ordered the withdrawal? In Shuwa and Michika, soldiers
withdrew and shortly after that Boko Haram attacked. Who ordered the
withdrawals? We also have the case of General Mohammed Shuwa (who was
killed) in Maiduguri by the so-called Boko Haram.
There is an army unit
there but they didn't respond during the attack. Who told them not to
respond? The Air force Base was raided in Maiduguri. There was a
military base nearby. Who gave the base the order not to respond during
the raid on the air force base? Either this thing is controlled by
unknown fellows or an unknown Boko Haram strategic commander who is in
the defence system or are things being staged managed?'' Needless to
say these questions need to be answered. May God help us all.
The Views expressed in this article are solely that of the Author and not of Ese's Blog
The Views expressed in this article are solely that of the Author and not of Ese's Blog
God! I cry to you, help my nation. Forgive us and have mercy. Do not leave us to a reprobate mind and let these craziness end.
ReplyDeleteMaybe Chief FFK was a lil bit harsh when he referred to the president as a Vampire but of a truth the President has done very little to safe guard the lives of Nigerians. The statistics for the month of February alone leaves a lot of unanswered questions on my mind and yet the president and his aides still find time to party all in the name of a centenary celebration. The last two paragraphs really struck me. If the statistical report of the University which puts BH on Second with terror attacks in 2013 as killing 1,132 in 364 terror attacks as opposed to 1,842 people killed in 525 terror attacks by Taliban is anything to go by then Nigeria is on the brink of collapse if this siege is not brought to and end soon.
ReplyDeleteI sincerely hope the President realize soon that he has failed Nigerians as President of this great Nation. May the soul of the dead rest in perfect Peace