.We must defeat terror instead of living in fear
Katsina State might have been the only state in the north, nay the country, to officially announce the cancellation of any elaborate inauguration on May 29, which is the date the civilian administration that we have in the country came into being in 1979; there is no doubt that some other states must have celebrated the day in fear. Ordinarily, the date should be a watershed in the country’s history because it was the day when soldiers left the political stage for politicians after about 16 years of military interregnum.
The fear of Boko Haram and other security threats would appear to be the beginning of wisdom for many Nigerians living in the troubled parts of the country. And this fear is not unfounded. Of the 2.3 million people displaced by the Boko Haram conflict since May 2013, at least 250,000 have left Nigeria and fled into neighbouring Cameroon, Chad or Niger. Boko Haram killed over 6,600 in 2014 alone.
Moreover, the group has carried out mass abductions, including the kidnapping of 276 schoolgirls from Chibok in April 2014. Indeed, the terrorists have rendered some parts of the north desolate, churning out orphans, widows and widowers with reckless abandon. At a point, the sect had sacked several local governments and installed its own governments in those places before the country’s security agencies reclaimed those seized territories. Sadly, the Federal Government and the security agencies do not seem to have the solution to the question posed by the terrorists.
Katsina State has not been particularly immune from the security fears posed by the activities of the terrorists and other criminals who seem to have seized the nation by the jugular, given the sheer number of people they have dispatched to untimely graves. In this kind of scenario, it is easy to understand the fears of the Katsina State government to only mark, but not celebrate the inauguration of the new government in the state.
Many would wonder about why this kind of thing will be happening in the home state of President Muhammadu Buhari? In other words, why Katsina State? And, if we may ask: why not Katsina State? Is Katsina State not in Nigeria? Is it not in the northern part of the country where all manner of bandits have been threatening the country’s security in recent times? Won’t Nigerians also complain if the state is immune to the activities of these criminals? Won’t we accuse the President of nepotism?
However, while we appreciate the concern of the state government in protecting the lives of citizens of the state by not unnecessarily exposing them to avoidable danger, perhaps due to security alerts, we make bold to say that the solution does not lie in giving the impression that the state is helpless, despite the weapons of coercion at its disposal. We must not advertently or inadvertently give the impression that will continue to embolden the terrorists.
The government and the security agencies do not have to keep telling us that they have degraded the terrorists; rather, this must be seen and felt to be so. A situation where the criminals strike after government has made claims of degrading them does not engender the trust and confidence of the populace that the government is on top of the situation.
What we are saying, in essence, is that having a low-key celebration due to fears of terrorists attack is only a short-term measure. What if this continues till next year, will the state government cancel the celebration again? What if this happens in a place like Abuja, will the Federal Government simply throw up its hands in frustration and helplessness? No. What is required is a pragmatic approach that will substantially knock out the criminals. It is about time government and the security agencies reviewed their tactic. They cannot be doing the same thing repeatedly and expect different results. Under no circumstance should the terrorists go away with the impression of having psychological victory or gaining an upper hand in the war against them.
