Igbo leaders mislead their people

By Pius Abioje

The recent strike in Kano by militants is said to have killed many citizens of Igbo descent. Some "Igbo leaders", are said to have told their people not to retaliate but leave vengeance to God. That is fine. But any step to forestall future occurrence? No, because the leaders have sold out to support war and not amnesty. Jonathan is expected to reign till 2019, and then pass the presidency to an Igbo.

Undoubtedly, the north has produced more heads of state than the south, but it is not true that the southerners have been excluded from such governments. Beyond that, where there is no law, there is no sin. The unwritten law came in rotational presidency. Why did Jonathan take undue advantage of the death of President Umaru Musa Yar'Adua to run for presidency in 2011?

Rotational presidency represents order; Boko Haram (the northern militants) represents the chaos that obtains where there is no order. Rather than asking Jonathan to grant amnesty to Boko Haram and respect rotational presidency among the six geopolitical zones, Igbo leaders are playing games with the lives of Nigerians. Any lesson from how the civil war ravaged Nigeria; or how the south-west went on rampage upon the annulment of the June 12, 1993 presidential election won by a Yoruba?

To forestall such ugly occurrences, rotational presidency was decided upon by well-meaning Nigerians. Why did the Igbo leaders and people of like minds, like General Olusegun Obasanjo, decide to truncate it? I argued then and now that rotational presidency rather than survival of the fittest or rabid opportunism will engender order, equity, peace, and progress. With that, Boko Haram and al-Qaeda combined will find Nigeria impregnable. But now, the wall has cracked, and Jonathan and his supporters are resisting all efforts at mending it.

Why accuse the northern leaders of inability to tame Boko Haram? It was President Yar'Adua (and not the Niger Delta leaders) who tamed the Niger Delta militants. Former President Obasanjo was a Christian from the south-west. How did he manage to rule Nigeria for eight years, without some Muslims joining al-Qaeda to kill innocent people in the name of Islam? Jonathan, not northern leaders, wields the sceptre and all the associated resources to provide security, which is the primary responsibility of a government. Igbo leaders, et al, are playing politics with the lives of Nigerians.

The genuine Boko Haram has been around since 2003, as a peaceful Islamic sect until it was provoked by some oppressive Muslims. It is, therefore, beyond that sect to explain Nigeria's crisis, which can be explained only by political opportunism and leadership failure. Seek peace with Boko Haram, restore rotational presidency, and allow a truly independent electoral commission whose principal officers are not chosen by a partisan president. Otherwise, Nigeria is far from the kingdom of order, equity, peace and progress.

* Pius Abioje,

University of Ilorin.