Boko Haram: a creation of northern elites 2 EMME EMMA GWANAH 08103860351 There are clashes of view and perennial lost of consensus that Boko Haram is an upshoot of the Nigerian Taliban movement that was first reported in media circles around 2001-2002. The sect recorded a drastic setback those years in their attempt to entrench their group in Maiduguri. The group relocated (under took Hijra) from Maiduguri city to a remote location in Yobe state (kanama) in 2002 to establish its own community that was governed in accordance with strict Islamic laws and culture (sharia). Following disagreements and clashes with neighboring communities over fishing rights and police action between 2003 and 2004, the group was dislodged from Kanama and it relocated back in Maiduguri in 2014. It could be vividly recalled that upon their arrival to Maiduguri the leader of the group Mohammed Yusuf mounted aggressive crusade to evangelize for fellowship through vehement preaching; with this the group membership grew astronomically and the profile of its leader increased to the extent that he was included in the Borno state committee of clerics following the introduction of Sharia. Around July 2009, the real colour of the group sufficed when they first massacred dozen of police officers in Maiduguri which consequently resulted to crackdown of the government on the sect, 1000 suspected Boko Haram members were killed including the founder Mohammed Yusuf and his in-law. In the aftermath of the clampdown, some members of Boko Haram leadership escaped and regrouped outside Nigeria, and linked up with other salafist groups in the sahel. Remnants of Boko Haram reportedly joined up with salafi-Jihadi groups such movement for oneness and Jihad in West Africa (MUJAO) and ALQAEDA in Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) underwent insurgency training in Jihadi camps in Northern Mali and Mauritania from September 2010; Boko Haram commenced ultra-violent attacks to mark the onset of the current insurgency. The evolutionary chronicle of Boko Haram encapsulated in this write-up speaks volumes that Boko Haram is transformed from movement group to insurgents group, and also from a moderate Sunni group to a Salafist- Jihadi group which primarily inched towards Islamizing the country that is why since their arrival to Nigeria from their Jihadist training camps their main target is to burn churches , hacked to death Christian brothers and to kidnap and abduct Christian sisters to captivity for Islamization agenda. These apostles of Jihad, Boko Haram are working vehemently and assiduously to translate into concrete reality the programme adopted by the world Islamic organization at conference in Mecca in 1974, since after that meeting things began to fall apart in the African countries. There were four major cardinal issues mapped out and stamped at the conference which comprises of “Muslims organization should set up centres to resist Christian missionaries activities, Muslims hospitals should set up intelligence centres about Christian activities, all Christian activities, no matter the secular expression, should be stopped, all Christian literatures should be banned in Muslims countries” One year after that declaration in Mecca, in 1975, when General Murtala Mohammed overthrew General Yakubu Gowon, was the beginning of the implementation of this programme in Nigeria. Many streets bearing Christians names were changed to Muslims names. Christian’s schools and hospitals were taken over by the state. Arabic inscriptions and emblems began to appear on Nigerian’s currency notes, and on emblems of the Nigerian armed forces. It was after this long plans that the chairman of the Bureau for Islamic propagation, Bashir Othman Tofa declared this traduce and insalubrious statement recently, “these dangerous devils calling themselves Christians, we Muslims cannot sacrifice our religion or our self-respect for any type of peaceful co-existence it is time to begin the offensive, let us begin by proclaiming Friday as our Sabbath. Do away with the Christian Red Cross symbol. Let us found our own Islamic jihad of Nigeria to counteract the devil machinations of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN). Let us act right now!!!” in fulfillment of this man’s aspirations the impeached Governor of Adamawa state Murtala Nyako who bought and distributed ambulances to all LGAs in the state converted the red cross symbol of the red cross to a symbol of his choice as long as the red cross symbol is not reflected on the vehicles. The tragic and gory circumstance northern part of our country is swimming in is a manifestation of seeds sown at the conspiracy meeting of OIC 1989. The organization OIC in Nigeria was founded on 28 November, 1989 in Abuja with the goal to win the whole of Africa for Islam, the organization OIC was formerly established in July 1991 and it was that period that statutes and goals of the meeting were ratified and that marks her formal definitive foundation. The starting point for the conference is the fact that Africa is only continent with an Islamic majority and therefore Africa should become completely Islamic. At the end of the meeting the joint conference finally ratified the admission of Nigeria as a full member of the organization of the Islamic conference OIC, and they further thanked the government and the people of Nigeria for having generously donated $21 billion US dollars to the Islamic development fund of the OIC, and sincerely requested the federal gov’t of Nigeria to implement all policies and programmes of the OIC to show the whole world that Nigeria is truly an Islamic nation. In February 1990, OIC wrote a letter with a seal of Babangida on it; Babangida was instructed by OIC “to place total ban thereafter on all forms of worships by Christians, Ahmadiya and tribal religious. To imposed sharia law on Nigeria, Islamize all universities, colleges and schools and courts of law in the federal Islamic sultanate of Nigeria as was Baptized with the sultan of sokoto as the spiritual head” In the four days convention of OIC in Nigeria there were four high profile conspiracy plans stamped to execute in Nigeria and in the member nations of IOA after the end of the conference which comprises of: “to ensure the appointment of only Muslims into strategic national and international posts of member nations. To ensure the ultimate replacement of all western forms of legal and judicial systems with the sharia in all member nations before the next Islam in Africa conference. To ensure only Muslims are elected to all political posts of member nation” At the end of the meeting they devised some points as core essence of founding the organization in Nigeria and Africa at large which include, “to call on Muslims to review the syllabi in the various educational institutions with a view to bringing them into conformity with Islamic ideals, goals, and principles and to serve the needs of their community. To establish strong economic ties between Africa Islamic countries and other parts of the Muslims worldwide in order to facilitate mutual assistance and cooperation based on Islamic principles; to promote dissemination of the knowledge of Sharia and support its application to Muslims communities in Africa. They concluded the conference with this point, “the establishment of the sharia of Allah and the destruction of kafir from the face of the earth will remain our uttermost, it is this kafir system concern which gives these slaves (Christians) some dignity and it puts them on same level with us; it even raised the Christians higher than the Muslims. It is also necessary that we rise and destroy oppressors and the kafir system...Ulamal should rise up and take the lead for the annihilation of Kafir...Oh we are tired of kafir system of gov’t, Jewish laws and decrees and the rest acts of worships of Christianity on us. All the Christians must be brought out to public and be shot. From now on Thursdays and Fridays must be work-free days. Fight them until there remains no tumult (Fitna) on the face of the earth and religion (way of life) becomes for Allah” In their quest to convert the entire continent to Islam, they have dissolved a blueprint to push this initiative forward. This initiative has two main agendas; awakening and proselytization or what Ali Mazrui called revivalism and expansion. The four concentrates on revivalizing the Muslim community while the latter tries to increase the number of the Muslim community by extending the message of Islam beyond the community itself. Five arguments inform the Muslims initiation to takeover Africa. Under each argument I quote accept from various papers written and presented at various Islamic fora by Dr. Usman Mohammed Bugaje, Secretary General Islam in Africa organization. The presuppositions are: “that Africa is faced with a myriad problems, that these problems have been caused by imperialism and Christianity, that there is a need for an alternative prescription, and that the prescription is Islam” Nigeria is a country of conflict and contrast because our nation is not like other secular countries that carry single ideology in their constitutions. I know this fact may sound sentimental to you but that cannot stop the reality that Constitutionally, Nigeria is a Muslims country. Consider the following analysis; sharia is mention in the 1999 Nigerian constitution 73 times, Islam is mention 28 times, grand khadi 54 times, Muslims 10 times but there is no single mention of Christ, no single mention of Christian, no single mention of Christianity and also no single mention of church in the 1999 constitution. Another shocking reality is that section 1 of the 1999 constitution as amended state that 1999 constitution is superior to any other constitution, and section 38 of the same constitution guarantees right to believe, but another constitution in the country contrasted 1999 constitution by saying that if any one turns from Islam to any religion should be killed. This pathetic fact can best be described as two captains in the same boat and also a big contrast. I could remember in October 1988 the Christian council of south Africa wrote letters to the leaders of the church in Nigeria warning them that “there is a proposed plot by Northern Muslims and the Arab OIC supporters to destroyed churches, carry out mass murder of Christians in Nigeria with more intensity on the Northern parts of Nigeria.” The vision that was conceived 28 years ago by the Christian Council of South Africa seems to be a night mare and pathetic fallacy to the Nigerian church. Only recently every aspect of the vision began to unfold and sufficed as was exactly conceived; right before our eyes we saw how Christian brothers and sisters were hacked to death in their shacks and denied escape routes even when their shacks were on fire, this jihadist group were not just content with watching the gory sights but gleefully regaled in seeing dogs and vultures feast on the charred remains of the Christian victims. Nigeria fall among the 50 nations that persecuted Christians, as of today the worst nation where Christians are persecuted is Nigeria. Nigeria carries 66% of Christians killed worldwide. Between November 2011 and October 2012 we recorded 1201 killing of Christians worldwide which means we have average of 100 killings every month which 791 happens in Nigeria. Our sordid experiences as a nation in the wake of the emerging Islamic hostilities and violence is not therefore an accident but a clear premeditation. Nigeria especially Christians should therefore not handle Islamic hostilities with kid gloves. The unfolding events in Nigeria and Africa are a gradual implementation and unfolding heart-piercing revelations of a plot conceived by the Islamic world. It is sad enough to come face to face with this horrifying reality that what we are witnessing today is an open invitation to religious war. It is no longer subtle but glaring! . MORE DETAILS FOLLOW ME IN MY COLUMN IN PIONEER NEWSPAPER
Posted on: Wed, 24 Dec 2014 13:45:13 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015