I m not a Buharist, whatever that
means. If Buharism is a religion, I don’t believe in it. I am a Muslim. If it
is a cult, I am not a member; I don’t join cults. If it is an association, I
have not registered with it. I don’t even know its office. I simply like Buhari
because I believe he is one of the least corrupt leaders Nigeria has produced.
But I also believe that Buhari is only another human being who is not
infallible. I have thus criticized him from time to time. In fact when, in
those days of PDP, he was contesting and losing and people of questionable
characters kept using his name to win elections, I almost travelled to Kaduna
to advise him to quit politics.
Buhari is now the president of
Nigeria and many nasty things have happened to his people under his watch.
Fulani have been killed in large numbers in Taraba state. People live in
constant fear for their lives and property in Zamfara state and my own part of
Katsina state. And most recently the ‘Dapchi girls’ scandal has occurred. In all
these cases, many people, including me are not satisfied with the way Mr.
President has reacted. I agree with the person who used the adjective ‘timid’
to describe Buhari. But timidity when it comes to protecting their people has
been the character of most of the Northern Muslims who ruled this country. I m
not here to discuss the details.
Many commentators are now satisfied
that Buhari is going to pay visits to Zamfara, Taraba, Yobe and Benue to
commiserate with the people. That, however, is not what we expect from Mr.
President. Is the President going to those states to confirm that lawlessness
has taken place? Is he going there to lead a military expedition against the
Boko Haram in Yobe, the bandits in Zamfara or the ethnic militia in Taraba?
Even someone like me who is not a security expert know that Mr. President,
being the commander-in-chief of the armed forces can address those issues
effectively from Abuja if he decides to do so.
The visits may end up adding salt to
the injury. In each of those states he goes, he will be received at the airport
by the state governor. Then he will go and pay a courtesy visit to the
paramount traditional ruler of the state. He will probably meet with the
“opinion leaders” of the state who are carefully selected by the state
governor. If there are any victims in the hospital the president will go and
visit them. He will most likely pledge to pay all the medical bills. At the
meeting with the opinion leaders and the traditional ruler he will appeal to
the people to live in peace.
The governors will not take him to
the scene of genocide in the case of Taraba state, or the hideouts of bandits
in the case of Zamfara because the governors themselves have not been there.
After the President leaves, the crimes will continue.
So Mr. President, please address the
security challenges as they should be addressed. If you do, you can attend your
weddings and party meetings without any “Allah Ya isa” coming from your people.
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