Yinka Odumakin is the spokesperson for the Yoruba social-cultural organisation, Afenifere. In this interview with DAVID AKINADEWO, he speaks on the danger inherent in granting amnesty to herders and bandits in the Northern part of the country and the need to embrace federalism, if the country must survive.
WHAT’S the position of Afenifere on the amnesty being granted herders and bandits by Northern governors?
It is an admission of failure of state, when you begin to grant amnesty to bandits and criminals. It is the clearest sign of the shrinking governable space in any country and signs that outlaws have overwhelmed the government. The essence of crime and punishment is the existence of law and order. But when elected officials begin to pose with gun-wielding bandits, the authority of state has despaired and criminals have taken over the polity. That is what is going on in Northern Nigeria today.
But has this initiative not paid off?
It has not paid off in any way, as banditry still holds sway in all the places governors are making deals with criminals. The issue is not being addressed in any form beyond showing the helplessness of the state. If there is anything that has been achieved, it is only the satisfaction of the elite who are communicating narrow-minded biases: ‘We are taking care of our criminals the way Niger Delta militants were settled.’
If it is not in order, why did you applaud the amnesty programme introduced by the late Umar Musa Yar’Adua-led government for the Niger Delta militants?
We never applauded the amnesty granted to Niger Delta militants by Yar’Adua, even though we didn’t condemn it, because it was understood as a measure to create room to address the conditions that led to the militancy in the Niger Delta region of the country.
The militants had a cause they were fighting, arising from the total neglect of the goose that lays the golden egg. The Nigerian state behaved so irresponsibly in that region in the total devastation of the environment of Niger Delta, while billions of dollars of petrol money was being wasted on conspicuous consumption. That differentiates the situation from the deals being cut with common criminals in the North today.
Is there any other way to solve the insecurity problem in the Northern part of the country aside the amnesty programme?
The amnesty introduced won’t resolve the insecurity. It can only exacerbate it, as more criminals would emerge with audacity and the existing ones would become more daring, as the conditions producing bandits are not being addressed.
What should have been done was carrot and stick in beginning, to create opportunities for derailed young people who are taking to crime because they have no other chance at life.
A productive economy would create opportunities for their engagement and pumping skills into them would make a difference. You can then begin to apply the full wrath of the law against those stuck in criminalities in spite of the opportunities given. But to cancel punishment for crimes is a wrong-headed approach that flows from cluelessness and a backhand support for criminality
No one is too powerful for me to control — Buhari
What other measures do you think the present Federal Government should introduce to make Nigeria secure?
To make Nigeria secure, the government must invest in social security by re-setting Nigeria and allow every section to become centres of productivity. That would take millions of youth off the lane of despondency that leads to crimes. People who are economically engaged don’t take to crimes, as they are able to take care of their needs. This is different from the very thoughtless idea of going to markets and distributing pittance called Trader Moni or other such programmes mocking poverty.
Having provided social security, you can then strengthen law and order to combat insecurity.
To maintain law and order is within the purview of the law enforcement agencies of government. Isn’t the insecurity in the land an indictment and failure on their part?
When a city is in darkness, it is evident the power agency has failed. The security forces have been overwhelmed. Nigeria has practically become a failed state and its security agencies are practically turning a mere window dress.
The rate at which Boko Haram and other bandits take them out has become a big embarrassment.
Is the closure of the Nigerian borders the right step to be taken at this time?
The closure of borders is a violation of the Economic Community of West Africa (ECOWAS) protocols and we cannot claim the government is not aware of this, as it was cited when Nigerians asked for such measures to tackle the influx of foreign Fulani herdsmen into the country.
That the government has now taken such measure to promote consumption of local rice shows clearly that the government places not so high premium on the lives of Nigerians who are victims of the terror of the herdsmen.
And it shows the discriminatory approach of the government to national issues when borders are shut in the South and such does not happen in the North where most of the illegal arms and foreign criminals who are aiding local ones come into the country.
In fact, there are no borders in most Northern boundaries with Niger for instance. Nigeria is even building a rail to that country. This is clearly insensitive
But the government said the closure of the borders is in the nation’s interest, particular to promote agriculture, curb influx of criminals and ensure it doesn’t become the dumping ground for all contraband among other issues. Isn’t that so?
What input has government made into agriculture to warrant the closure of borders? This kind of action is not well-thought out; or it is a deliberate wicked act to punish some sections of the country. Don’t forget that President Muhammadu Buhari once cast a slur on the Yoruba when he said ‘our neighbours in the West are smugglers.’
If the action were about curbing influx of criminals, it is the Northern borders that they should shut, as they have become entry points for criminal Fulani from all over Africa.
The North, today, is a dumping ground for dangerous weapons to the point that AK-47 rifles are available like bread. We are no children to accept government explanations.
What’s the way forward for Nigeria?
The way forward for Nigeria is to return to the practice of federalism, so that we can maximise the potential of all sections of Nigeria. This is the surest way of freeing people from the clutches of poverty and reducing tension arising from sharing limited opportunities.
The present command and control system can only lead to the destruction of Nigeria with all the issues confronting her. We cannot continue to run a multi-ethnic country from Abuja and expect harmonious existence.
We need to urgently disperse powers to the federating units and allow the centre to run essential things that are central to all nationalities.
Do you foresee the practice of federalism coming back to Nigeria with the level of opposition to it in the high places?
It is the cheapest option for Nigeria to stay together and have accelerated development. A constitution that does not bend will break. USSR, Yugoslavia and Chekoslovakia have all become history, because they resisted reforms. Nigeria should learn from them.
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