With the latest decision by the presidency to inaugurate committee to consider the Boko Haram insurgents for amnesty, Nigeria soared to her acme of notoriety in romancing with evil doers. By implication, a wrong signal has been given out to encourage youth restiveness for whatever course, to pamper criminals of whatever categories and to nurse all sorts of social vices that is bound to plummet to diverse and uncontrollable dimensions. The word amnesty is now a refrain which might not depart from the lips of Nigerians given the historical background and recent developments where a vicious religious sect like the dreaded Boko Haram after unleashing mayhem still stand the chance of being considered for the highest gesture of presidential prerogative of mercy. It is true that to err is human whereas to forgive is divine.
This axiom learning so much on divinity, even deriving there from serves only to give the remorseful another chance but not the unrepentant. Simply put, under the Christian religious ethics, a sinner must first denounce and repent from his sins before expecting forgiveness from the author of life, the God head and of course the son of righteousness, Jesus Christ. Going by the dictionary meanings of the word amnesty:
1) “An official statement that allows people who have been put in prison for crimes against the state to go free, e.g the president granted amnesty for all political prisoners”;
2) “A period of time during which people can admit to a crime or give up weapons without being punished, e.g 2000 knives have been handed in during the month-long amnesty “(Oxford Advanced Learners Dictionary 6th edition).
It will be recalled that this word, amnesty first found a place in the lexicon of Nigeria’s political history at the point the Nigeria-Biafran civil war was called off under the compact of ‘no victor no vanquish’. Don’t query if this understanding was respected or not because it is outside the purview of this topic. But the emphasis here to note is that arms were laid down in a total surrender to the Federal troops by the ailing Biafra rebels before the corresponding gesture of a presidential pardon. Another time the term amnesty was applied to address the escalating security crisis was during the Niger-Delta Youth restiveness during the regimes of the former president Olusegun Obasanjo (OBJ) and Late Umoru Musa Yar’Adua of blessed memory respectively. It was the later that granted amnesty for the restive Niger-Delta Youths but not until after striking a deal with the FGN which impressed them to lay down arms and as well handed in a lot arms to that effect.
Meanwhile, considering the moral, social, political and even spiritual justification of the course being pursued in the process of breaching national peace as the case may be, the Biafrans rebelled against structural inequities, resource control (probably) and total annihilation of their indigenes resident in the Northern part of Nigeria prior to 1967 and this culminated in the 1967-1970 Nigeria – Biafran civil war. Similarly, the people of the Niger Delta region were agitating for resource control, deprivation and despoliation by the FGN as the white goose that lays the golden eggs (crude oil). There is no gain saying that Nigeria is a mono-economy which depends almost solely on the proceeds from crude oil sales, having neglected the agricultural and allied sectors, that hitherto was the major source of foreign exchange earnings before the discovery of the black gold. Nevertheless, when the FGN called for a truce, the restive Niger-Delta youths restrained and laid down arms in apparent repentance which provoked the FGN led by Late Umaru Musa Yar’Adua to grant amnesty for them with a concomitant amnesty package.in the same vein the underlining fact is that there was a just course abinitio, and later on remorse was demonstrated before negotiation and amnesty considerations.
In another case, an individual reputed for criminality and was convicted for a crime against the state of the Nigerian nation in the person of former Bayelsa State Governor, Col (rtd) Diepriye Alameisia but enjoyed the privilege of clemency under the presidential prerogative of mercy. Controversial as the case of Alamesia may be, it was clear that his conviction implied admission of fault and the right of prerogative of mercy behooves on the President Goodluck Jonathan alone.
On the contrary, the recent Boko Haram insurgents have consistently breached the peace of this nation especially up North leading to loss of quantum lives and property likened to a war time involving several millions of innocent citizens killed gruesomely as to cause trepidation on everybody in Nigeria for about ten years now still on going in defiance of military solutions. It is rather despicable that the FGN penciled down these worst criminals for a dialogue consideration and even went further to constitute and inaugurate a committee to look into their matter when the culprits are boisterously not repentant at all. Recently, the spokesperson of this atrocious Islamic religious sect disclosed some ear-tingling facts that, their reasons for insurgence were hinged on the dislike of democracy, the desire to have a system of government based on Islamic Sharia laws, and the objective of having Nigerian constitution jettisoned but replaced with Sharia laws. Obviously, their case was enumerated, boldly stated albeit obnoxious and quite strange. From every perspective it is viewed, the position of the FGN is laughable in that, the Boko Haram are indisposed to go into dialogue at the first instance with them as asserted by their spokesman Abu Dalma on the BBC interview. They did not request for amnesty from the FGN in sharp contrast to the ululation emanating from across the country and even beyond especially from the so called Northern political elites. Imperatively, the FGN’s magnanimity lacks congeniality in several respects in that it is a total negation of the principles of amnesty application as adumbrated in the fore-going and this places the Boko Haram insurgents in such an anomalous position to be negotiated with and considered for amnesty by the presidency. It is true because, the course for which the Boko Haram insurgents kill and maim people in the Northern Nigeria is not a just one at all. The incongruence of the Boko Haram demands give them out as not only the worst criminals or enemies of a corporate Nigeria but exposes their latent intent to inveigle the entire nation into Islamic religion which is at variance with the dictates of UNO’s charter of 1948 fundamental human rights. This is not only a challenge to the FGN, rather to the champion of the modern democracy as the new world order, the USA. If that be the case, the FGN ought to consider granting amnesty for organized kidnappers that have a union, prostitutes on the street that speak with one voice, armed robbers that present a common front, rapists that can boast of a spokes person and other organized criminals all in the name of agitations for one right or the other.
Unfortunately, the insurgency has succeeded in stifling economic activities in the Northern States almost to a halt. Although, the Northern political elite are bold strutting the streets in pretext, they are almost petrified by the dimension at which the insurgence is assuming on daily basis knowing the socio-economic implications. The northern Nigeria at the moment is being ostracized by the rest Nigerians and comity of nations business wise.
Amazingly, the caliber of political figures involved recently in the clamour for amnesty for the Boko Harams are ridiculed with the paradox underlying the scenario where the culprits unremorsefully disowned them, repudiate amnesty or dialogue initially with the FGN only to make a u-turn to crave for it like dogs regurgitating their vomits. Those Northern leaders playing subterfuge in this hyper-sensitive issue of great threat to the national security are fool hardy, particularly, the partisan politicians avowed to make Nigeria ungovernable to President Goodluck Jonathan. It is the candid opinion of this column to consider the recent magnanimity demonstrated by the presidency as a decoy or what the Igbo adage would prefer to see as making the sacrifice while the ferries (Ghosts) take the blames. Although the Boko Haram appears to gain more sophistication daily, and almost defying every military solution, their reversion to go into dialogue with intention to call for truce shows that their strength is not invincible but liable to capitulate in submission one day. Why they are suddenly resolved to engage the FGN in dialogue? They stupidly demonstrated their willingness freeing nationals in their hostage. This is sheer cowardice. The Boko Haram should summon the deserving balls to declare for a sovereign state of Islamic nation of the North just like the then Biafrans led by the Late Dim Ikemba Odimegwu Ojukwu. Otherwise, the Boko Haram should openly challenge the armed forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria just like the Niger-Delta Youths did under the leadership of MEND with valiant men like Asari Dokubo and Tompolo visibly brandishing sophisticated modern firearms, grenades, scud-missiles, machines guns, bombs and other arsenals openly scaring away and kidnapping oil workers in the oil rich regions.
Unfortunately, the Boko Haram stratagem to operate like ghosts typical of gorilla war-fare is treacherous. They must not be taken for granted. The FGN should consider the reparation of the myriads of lost lives and property of innocent Nigerians caused by the Boko Haram madness. An evil and atrocious religious extremist, Boko Haram, turns around to dialogue with the FGN and probably get amnesty. Left for me, no negotiation should be made with the heinous criminals, except the type of conditions meted out for their mentor and undoubted sponsors the crushed Osama Bin Laden and the dare-devil Alqaieda group by the USA and allied forces in the resolve to quench terrorism. Doubtless, the Boko Haram is the off-shoof the Alqaieda and their dastardly clandestine activities must be checked by matching them fire for fire. Should the FGN succeed in identifying their foot soldiers, a decisive strategy aught to be adopted to crush them. Presently, their henchmen are frantic, engrossed in a palpable fear that the FGN could be deceptive in their proposed dialogue such that most of them are already jittery, dissociating themselves from the nonsense group. Recently, one of them turndown the offer of being included in the committee set-up by the FGN to dialogue with Boko Haram. Consequently, a conundrum unfolded in a retaliatory berating and lash back at the man for refusing to join the committee on the grounds that he was not pre-advised by the FGN before including his name, Shehu Sani.
The likes of Gen (rtd) Muhammadu Buhari, Mallam Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, Alhaji Adamu Ciroma, Senator Yerima, Senator Ali Ndume, Sultan of Sokoto and the rest of them, all now calling for the FGN to grant amnesty for the Boko Haram should retire to their graves in shame for being the agents of trouble fomenting in a multiethnic nation wont to be the marvel of the world, just now that true peace have actually departed the shores of Nigeria. A spilled oil cannot be recovered. Everybody is now alive to the truth that the Nigeria project may soon be abandoned to the overzealous religious fundamentalist whose avarice pushed the entire masses to the walls and locked them in a tight-corner where the rub icon is confronted. For the apologists of the amnesty clamour as the logical placation of the cruel hooligans Boko Haram already intoxicated by the blood of righteous innocent souls slaughtered every day in the span of about 10 years, there is no hiding place for evildoers at the appearance of light. This is the time to strip the Boko Haram insurgents naked and parade them along the streets like common armed robbers or have their kingpins chased into the holes like Late President Saddam Hussein and Osama Bin Ladin their idols. If truly, Islam, as a religion is prestigious as it claims, the faithful must eschew rascality in dealing with issues as sacred as lives. It is beast-like to relish in human blood sucking under the erroneous brainwashing that killing is justified when orchestrated by religious passion of which the reward is in heaven with a perfidious gift of virgins for marriage. This is the arrant vacuous lesson doses dished out to these animistic human faithful by perfidious Islamic scholars who delight in mind enslavement far more than the deserving inculcation of sound doctrines imbued with moral rectitude and good spirituality.
The bitter pills here to swallow is that peradventure the Boko Haram now succumbed to the toady for a truce through the extended olive branch by the FGN to dialogue with them and fails to secure amnesty, their end is at sight, yet their dreams will remain an illusion. No matter what they try, the Boko Haram cannot actualize the vision of Islamizing the entire Nigeria. At worst, they will herald the balkanization the project Nigeria which will never be governed according to the dictates of Sharia laws, their desire. The worst case scenario will be to call it a quite with a refrain taken from the ancient Israelites wisdom under king Rehoboam whereby the masses will be compelled to chant, to your tents oh! Nigeria. To this end, history will vindicate the righteous and the wicked like Boko Haram will be worse for it, their shame.
