Yet another shot at insurgency

Stakeholders in some parts of the North are not giving up on the search for a lasting solution to Boko Haram insurgency. They were at the Grand Central Hotel in Kano, last week to ascertain the remote and immediate causes of the problem. KOLADE ADEYEMI, who was at the conference on “Insurgency and the Boko Haram phenomenon”, reports that participants proffered solution on how best to tame the monster.

FOR three days, participants battled to unravel the mystery behind Boko Haram insurgency, mostly ravaging the Northeast and some parts of the Northcentral. Though their views varied, they were, however, convergent. They agreed that a more proactive approach must be taken by the Federal Government to end insurgency.

It was at an International conference on insurgency and the phenomenon of Boko Haram in Nigeria at Grand Central Hotel in Kano. And the presenters were clerics, academicians, government officials, traditional rulers, members of the Civil Society Organisations (CSOs), humanitarian organisations, security chiefs and technocrats, among other stakeholders

The talk shop was organised by the Centre for Islamic Civilisation & Interfaith Dialogue in collaboration with the Nigeria Office of the International Institute of Islamic Thought (IIIT), Kano State Government and other collaborating partners.

In turns, they spoke on the conference theme, “Insurgency and the Boko Haram phenomenon” and condemned terrorists who have brought untold hardship to Nigerians, describing insurgency not only as unIslamic, but inhuman.

President Muhammadu Buhari, who was represented by Interior Minister Gen. Abdulraman Dambazau, restated his administration’s resolve to end insurgency. He spoke at the Coronation Hall, Kano Government House, when the conference was declared open.

He said: “It will be an understatement to say that the unprecedented insurgency and the phenomenon of Boko Haram has been a source of pain, anguish and agony to the immediate victims and the larger Nigerian society since it started in 2002, especially, after its explosion in 2009.

“Some of the episodes are too painful to recall, including the unfortunate destruction of schools and the adoption of school girls. I commend the efforts of my fellow Nigerian citizens who opened their hearts and their homes to take in the victims.

“The present administration is determined to end the insurgency, and eliminate the acute suffering of the victims. A great of technological and socio-economic change continue to impact on our society. We must ask ourselves – how do we safeguard our young people from disillusionment that lead to despair and radicalisation? What can we do as individuals, and as a nation, to make sure that lack of employment does not become a ticket to a machinery army of destabilisation of the very nation we hold so dear? How can we strengthen our socialisation agencies and institutions to guide our young from blaming their situation on the society to the extent of visiting destruction on the same society?”

“What sort of process is the current globalisation unleashing that could not be helpful and empower children of the poor, but rather unleash negative process that misguided youths with sophisticated weapons to destroy their country?

“It is my sincere hope, therefore, that distinguished colleagues gathered at this conference will dig out the root of the phenomenon and clinically examine them, study the facts and broad lines that aided the growth and development of the unfortunate insurgency, as well as identify the decadence and sign that will predict the demise and total elimination of the phenomenon.”

“The Federal Government wishes to again, commend the efforts of the Borno State and other Northeastern state governments; along with other states of the federation such as Kano, who have fed and taken care of the IDPs from the humanitarian crisis generated by the insurgency.

“The government also commends the efforts of international and local NGOs, CBOs and FBOs. Let me therefore commend Bayero University Centre for Islamic Civilisation and Interfaith Dialogue, the International Institute of Islamic Thought and the Kano State government for this excellent initiative.”

Host and special guest of honour Governor Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, who regretted Boko Haram activities, which he recalled, once hampered economic and social activities in the state in 2012, when members of the sect staged what has been described as the deadliest single-multiple coordinated bomb attacks that exploded simultaneously at different locations across Kano metropolis, killing scores of innocent citizens, including security operatives.

Ganduje also regretted that the insurgents went as far as launching attacks in places of worship, schools, higher institutions, as well as the convoy of the former Emir of Kano, the late Alhaji Ado Abdullahi Bayero.

According to him, his administration has continued to ensure peace and protection of lives and property of residents through the synergy created among security agencies, traditional institutions, religious leaders and opinion leaders, which has brought about peace and tranquility currently being enjoyed in the state.

The Emir of Kano, Muhammad Sanusi II in his remarks, raised the alarm over population explosion in the north, describing the trend as an imminent security threat worse than Boko Haram insurgency. The Emir stressed the need to grow the economy to address the issue of demographic explosion.

Sanusi projected that in the next 20 years, Nigeria will have 100 million people aged between 20 and 40, who are expected to be gainfully employed, adding: “if you don’t brace the economy, if you don’t address the demographic explosion, especially in northern Nigeria -Boko Haram will be a child’s play compared to what will happen.”

The emir, who wondered how an army of young people would survive in a shaky economy, blamed the proliferation of insurgency and radicalism to the inability of the Federal Government to regulate religious preaching and teaching.

He said: “We need to regulate religion. You cannot just stand up in Saudi Arabia and Iraq and start preaching without permission. How do you regulate religion without infringing on freedom of worship?”

The foremost royal father blamed violent extremism in northern Nigeria on inequality, poverty and poor ideology among youths.

Lamenting the ranking of the North as habouring “the poorest population” in the country, he blamed the development on “corruption and bad governance.”

Conference Chairman Prof Ibrahim Na’iya Sada, of Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, noted:  “As you all know, the Boko Haram insurgency in the Northeast devastated the region beyond description. With less than a decade, the crisis consumed over 30, 000 lives and displaced over three million people from their homes.

“On the other hand, hundreds of towns and villages, valuable government and public facilities, like schools, hospitals, health centres, courts, police stations and prisons were destroyed.

“School children were killed and young girls were adopted from their schools. Women and children were forcefully adopted and separated from their families. While the three states of Borno, Adamawa and Yobe bore the worst brunt of this monumental calamity, no state in the region was left untouched.

“The mass killing at Kano Central Mosque during a Friday prayer was one of the worst in the world leaving hundreds dead in one single attack. Other minor attacks and bombings in Kano, Zaria, Kaduna and other towns need not to be mentioned. All of us in the region will never forget the curfews and the lengthy humiliating and time-consuming road blocks we suffered.”

Senate President Bukola Saraki, who was represented by his Senior Special Adviser on Security, Maj-Gen Saleh Maina, said: “I am aware that there are no ready-made fixes for overcoming the challenges of insurgency. Every nation is saddled with its own unique kind of insurgency, depending on geo-political, social and economic factors.

“Let us remember that missiles may kill terrorists, but it is enduring legislations and policies that promote good governance and the rule of law that kill terrorism.

“We must remember that human rights, accountable institutions, equitable delivery of services and political participation are among the most powerful weapons for preventing and countering insurgency.”

The Vice Chancellor, Bayero University, Kano (BUK), Prof. Muhammad Yahuza Bello, recalled that from 2009 to date, billions of naira were injected (and still being injected) by the government to fight insurgents and end the insurgency. He regretted that the insurgency persists.

He said: “Education is one of the worst affected sectors by the raging and ‘spectacular violence’ of Boko Haram insurgence in northern Nigeria. The insurgents attacked many schools, hundreds more were shut down and d millions of children are denied access to universal basic education because of the activities of this group.”

In his paper titled: “Politics and the politicisation of Boko Haram”, Brandon Kendhammer, an Associate Professor of Political Science, Ohio University, Attens, United States (U.S.), stated:  “I’m going to be speaking today about the failures of domestic political actors across the spectrum, and I want to emphasize that, even as I mention specific figures by name, my critique applies broadly to the political class as a whole, and not just to one party, one current or former administration, or one community or region’s leadership. I also recognise and applaud the incredible sacrifices made by Nigeria’s fighting men and women in both the armed forces and in various civilian groups in the battle against Boko Haram.

“I hope that you’ll understand that my discussion of how politics has often gotten in the way of an effective military response to the crisis is in no way meant to diminish their service.

“And finally, while I have occasionally in the past spoken to various people and agencies in the U.S. government about Nigerian politics and the Boko Haram conflict, I am not an employee, or representative of any of them. My research and my findings are my own.

“So, where do I start? In short, the argument I’m making today is that the durability and indeed success of Boko Haram and its various factions in sustaining the conflict and inflicting such a great loss of human life and capital in the Lake Chad Basin is driven by systematic failures in the Nigerian political system.

“In particular, these failures have made it difficult for key actors in the system and across the country to understand exactly what’s going on, identify effective courses of action for ending the violence, and summoning the will and resources to carry them out.  Now, there are a number of angles here that I could take to make this argument.

“As my friend and colleague, Matthew Page, has demonstrated, for example, the phenomenon of ‘security votes,’ a nearly N250 billion annual disbursement of funds with almost no oversight, has played a key role in the under-equipping of Nigeria’s fighting men and women in the field against Boko Haram.

“Money that is needed to better train, equip, and support front line troops has instead gone to state and local governments who have little need of it, at worst simply lining the pockets of these officials.

“Even at best, the result risks the duplication of efforts and poor coordination between state and federal security actors. We could also plausibly discuss the challenges of military coordination across the various regional partners of the MNJTF and the role domestic Nigerian politics in complication those relationships, or even the historical ups and downs of international cooperation between Nigeria and its western partners.

“But, instead, what I’m going to focus on here today are two specific and, I believe underappreciated explanations for the gridlock around adopting effective anti Boko Haram policies.

“The first is the Nigerian political class’s persistent belief in the threat posed by even small religious movements that criticise and challenge the state’s legitimacy, and their related belief in the ability of state coercion and force to effectively silence them.”

In a communiqué issued by Dr. Muhammad Babangida Muhammad and Mallam Ismaila Bala, chairman and secretary of the Communiqué Committee, the conference held that the ability of Boko Haram in sustaining the conflict and inflicting such a great loss of human lives and property in the Lake Chad Basin and causing the displacement of millions of people has been driven by and made possible due to systemic failures in the political system.

According to the communiqué, there are a lot of unclear issues pertaining to the history of Boko Haram as well as incorrect information in the narratives of some writers. Prominent Muslims scholars and Islamic organisations have made spirited efforts to intervene and curtail the spread and consequences of the Boko Haram ideology. Boko Haram represents a deviant tendency that relied on wrongly quoted or out of context Qur’anic verses and Islamic literature through misrepresentation of the texts and distortion of facts in supporting and justifying their actions.

The communiqué insisted that corruption and the material benefits being derived by some groups within the political, military and civilian circles are responsible for prolonging the fight against insurgency.

Funding for fighting insurgency is grossly inadequate, considering the sophisticated arms and logistics in the hands of the insurgents.

Absence of national consensus among Nigerian elites on the insurgency and the expropriation of the conflict along religious and ethnic divides are responsible for the apparent failure and embarrassing consequences of the sad and colossal failure to curb and arrest insurgency. Poverty, ignorance, bad governance, injustice and social inequality are identified as contributing factors to the emergence and sustenance of the Boko Haram insurgency and political instability.

The communiqué maintained that the Boko Haram insurgency has brought about massive displacement of people and communities, loss of thousands of lives and destruction of property; exacerbated poverty, food insecurity and negative image of the country.

Lack of trust and cooperation from the public, slow judicial process and ethno-religious bias are some of the challenges being faced by the security and intelligence gathering outfits.

Sometimes, the reportage of Boko Haram by the media is sensationalised, distorted with sentiments and prejudices, which further aggravated the situation in favour of the insurgents.

Boko Haram has targeted and destroyed mosques and other Islamic institutions, Muslim towns and villages in the Northeast far more than it targeted and destroyed churches and Christian institutions since 2012, which exposes the false claim that Boko Haram is fighting an Islamic jihad.

The conference, however, resolved that the Islamic system of education should be mainstreamed into the national educational system in order to ensure inclusiveness and effective integration of its products.

The government, in collaboration with religious groups should make more effort toward integration and fostering national unity by breaking barriers and building bridges among the diverse citizens of the country.

The need for government to hasten the establishment and constitution of the Northeast Development Commission to cater for the reconciliation, reconstruction, rehabilitation, resettlement and the general socio-economic development of the region.

A robust legal framework of transitional justice should be established to foster proper reconciliation, resettlement and reintegration.

It further resolved that Mosques should be effectively utilised to serve their full core purposes beyond physical acts of worship to include educational, socio-economic and other services for the benefit of the society.

A counter-violence narrative should be seriously embarked upon by the Ulama and Islamic organisations through sensitisation and enlightenment of the general public, especially the youth, in order to counter the danger of violence, conflict and insurgency.

It noted the need to build public trust in government and its security agencies in order to enhance collaboration and assistance in intelligence gathering about the insurgency. The operations of other insurgent groups across the globe should be studied in order to deepen our understanding of the operations of Boko Haram. The government should continue through its current social interventions, to provide more jobs to the youth who can easily be mobilised and deployed against the country.

The conference is also of the view that reporters should be trained on peace journalism, while media reporting in case of conflict must be regulated and monitored by government to avoid bias and fuelling of the crisis. Traditional leaders should be empowered and incorporated along with the Ulama and Islamic organisations in promoting dispute resolution (sulh) and addressing conflicts and violent extremism.

Opportunities and medium for interaction between the youths, elders, religious and political leaders to exchange ideas and information regarding religious practices, teachings and sustenance of peace in the society should be encouraged.

The Muslim community and particularly parents, should monitor what teachings their children are exposed to in the mosques, internet, social media groups and other avenues.

A synergy should be created between the Nigerian intellectuals, university-based centres and security agencies for the provision of academic and researched- based findings with regards to security and peace. The Federal Ministry of Education should ensure revisiting of school curricula to include courses on preventing violent extremism.

In attendance were: Bauchi State Governor Mohammed Abubakar, Jigawa State Governor, represented by the Special Adviser on Religious Affairs, Katsina State Governor, represented by Secretary to the State Government Mustapha Muhammad Inuwa, Shehu of Borno, represented by the Shehu of Bama, the Mai of Potiskum and Sarkin Askira.

Other participants were drawn from the academia, religion, educational institutions and diverse civil society groups. The conference also drew international participants from Europe and the U.S.

The lead papers were presented at the plenary session were presented by Prof Salisu Shehu, the IIIT National Coordinator (Nigeria Office); the BUK,s Director, Centre for Islamic Civilization & Interfaith Dialogue Dr. Bashir Aliyu Umar;  Prof Alexander Thurston from University of Miami;  Dr. Muhammad Sani Umar RijiyarLemo, Deputy Director, BUK Centre for Islamic Civilisation & Interfaith Dialogue, Malam Nuruddeen A.  Lemu and Research & Training of the Da’awah Institute of Nigeria Director Usman Bugaje, among others.

Other papers were presented at three sessions that ran simultaneously. More than 70 papers were presented.