Nigeria requires anti terrorism laws

Sir: I seize this opportunity to again appreciate those who try to interact with me through social media. I am not on social media, and only God knows how long that will last. May He bless all and sundry. This letter-article is motivated by the terrorism visited on the Olubadan, traceable to the political powers that be, personalised in Governor Isiaka Abiola Ajimobi, Oyo State; reminiscent of the terrorism visited on the Boko Haram (BH) Islamic sect community, and that visited on Nnamdi Kanu, the leader of the Independent People of Biafra (IPOB), sometimes visited also on some branches of the Academic Staff Union of (Nigerian) Universities (ASUU).

Abuse of power by those who occupy positions of authority, including the presidency and gubernatorial positions, has been the order of the day since the military era, and continues to prevail from 1999 till date.

During the presidency of General Olusegun Obasanjo (OBJ), 1999-2007, Nigeria experienced “Voting or no voting, PDP will win,” PDP being the Peoples Democratic Party, to which OBJ belonged. After OBJ, his immediate successor, Umaru Musa Yar’Adua, abused his own presidency to attack BH that didn’t attack anybody until attacked, and killed the BH leader, Mohammed Yusuf, extra-judicially in Police cell, handcuffed and leg-chained. Yar’Adua’s deputy, who became the Acting President when Yar’Adua died, abused his powers to secure his own election as the President, to the extent of depleting Nigeria’s foreign reserves.

His election against the north that should serve second term presidency compounded the BH crisis, and for the first time, the term “terrorist” and “terrorism” were (and are) used to describe BH. Before it happened, Jonathan was warned to seek peaceful resolution and he eventually set up the Sheikh Lemu Committee, but he ignored the recommendations of the committee, and relied on might is right, playing Christian and Biafra joker cards.

Eventually, the warning ignored by Jonathan materialised in BH teaming up with some international terrorist organisations.Unfortunately, President Muhammadu Buhari (PMB), elected to remedy corruption and mass abject poverty, chose to toe the line of war against BH, perpetuating squandering of human lives and economic resources. Hence, even though PMB increased fuel price, from N97 to N145, and is recovering looted funds from past rulers who have not joined his own political party, and borrowing huge sums of money, the economy keeps degenerating, and mass abject poverty is killing common Nigerians.

As PMB closes his eyes to the terrorism perpetrated by the Fulani herdsmen, Senator Bola Ahmed Tinubu closes his own eyes to the terrorism of southwest governors, politicising religion and demolishing people’s houses and shops. Tinubu refuses or fails to check the excesses of Ajimobi abusing power to trample on the Olubadan institution. Where is social sanity? Nigeria’s rulers need exorcism from terroristic instinct that is degenerating unabated. They neglect infrastructure, to promote football and perpetrating inhumanities. Some are even campaigning for a second term for Buhari!
• Prof. Oyeniran Abioje wrote from the University of Ilorin.