To underscore how deadly and how prepared these Militia men were, the Benue State governor, who is also the Chief Security Officer (CSO) of the state, accessed the current hostilities in his domain and observed that “it (crisis/hostilities) is taking a different dimension. Just yesterday (Monday) in Logo Local Government, mobile policemen deployed to Logo to keep vigil to protect the people and the land, these Militia came, exchanged fire with them, caught two of them and slaughtered them like goats. They shot another one and left him in the pool of his blood but luckily he did not die. We have to take him to the hospital. We are treating him. The other one that was declared missing was found today (yesterday- Tuesday)”.
The governor went on to remark and raised pertinent questions that “…….when it gets to the level of Militia killing Security men who are armed and trained to protect lives and properties, is it not taking a dangerous dimension? Who is now safe?”
As one of the major ways forward, Ortom had requested the president to do the needful. And the needful according to the governor is that the leadership of Miyetti Allah, Kautal Hore, must be dealt with. According to the same reports, to buttress his assertions that the Federal Government Agencies ignored his warnings, the governor went on to state that “they (the leadership of the Fulani herdsmen) had earlier threatened and I accused them directly since June last year. I have been writing to the leadership of security agencies that these people are a threat to our collective interest. They must be arrested and prosecuted because we cannot allow impunity to continue to thrive. And of course, threat and no action has resulted in this killing and I think Mr. President will also do the needful to ensure that something is done”.
We cannot agree less with the position taken by the Benue State Governor on this contentious issue of incessant clashes between the Fulani herdsmen and the crop farmers that has surreptitiously overtaken the Boko Haram insurgency and which is currently occupying the unenviable number one position on security issues that are bothering our Security Agencies and still posing unending threats to our collective National Security. They are not just actively involved in unnecessary destruction of farmlands across the country leading to the killings of the crop farmers and sometimes raping and manning of their victims’ spouses and daughters, these assailants have also diversified their trades into other criminal acts such as kidnapping and armed robbery.
Frankly speaking, if the needful is not done with a view to tackling the Fulani herdsmen’s menace from the roots, it will be the number one factor that will scuttle the president’s ambition in elongating his tenure in office beyond May 29, 2019 by God’s grace.
Another critical factor that may hinder Mr. President’s 2019 ambition is the widening gap between the rich and the poor in Nigeria. In a country where governors are living like emperors and yet fail to pay the salaries of their workers despite collecting their monthly allocations from the Federation Account and the windfall of Paris Club in three tranches running to several billions of naira, the resultant effect is widespread poverty. At the same time, the efforts of the Federal Government to diversify the economy from the Petroleum resources to Agriculture, Solid Minerals, Mining, Tourism and so on have not been yielding the desired results because of the security threats being posed to the farming communities and the Tourism industry due to the nefarious activities of some Fulani herdsmen already discussed above. If the security of lives and properties cannot be properly guaranteed, no farmer or agro-allied dealer will venture into the field to engage in massive or commercialised Agriculture only for his/her farm crops to be grazed upon and destroyed within few hours.
Therefore, if the president wants to enjoy the continued support of the Nigerian electorate whose majority are living with less than $0.5 per day, he needs to appease to their stomachs and raise their levels from the state of penury and abject poverty in which some are even dying of acute hunger/starvation and illnesses that can be cured with less than $1 or N500 medication; otherwise, Mr. President’s dream of returning to power in 2019 under a free and fair elections maybe a mirage.
Another issue that may become President Buhari’s albatross in his reported ambition to seek the support of the Nigerian electorate to renew his electoral mandate in 2019 is his determination to cling or hang on to close aides or officials with alleged corruption tags within his administration. The opposition is even crying foul that their members are being witch-hunted by the officials of the anti-graft agencies while those with similar issues/alleged corrupt related problems are running into the protective custody of the ruling party– the All Progressives Congress (APC) for cover.
In addition, of crucial importance in determining Mr. President’s success at next year’s polls is his dexterity in navigating the murky and turbulent waters of international politics. The decision of Nigeria to support the contentious United Nations’ (UN) Resolution to disown United States of American (USA) recognition of the city of Jerusalem as the new Capital city of Israel did not go down well with America and the Great Britain who did not hide their supports in favour of this incumbent president in the buildup towards the 2015 Presidential Elections in which Mr. President was eventually declared the winner. So, if the President does not display his ability to balance his acts in playing the game of international politics and diplomacy, it may count against him in any crucial moments he may need the support of these Nigerian allies in his quest to remain in power beyond May 2019.
- Olakunle is the General Secretary, National Prayer Movement
and then