Wrote the piece below last year. Many missed, for, there wasnt network. You may wish to read it now. ************************************ Civilian Anti-Boko Haram and Pessimisms, or are they Cautions? [I] Abdulhamid Al-Gazali algazali04@yahoo, 17th August, 2013 I would have titled this piece the “Origin of Civilian JTF” but for two reasons. One, the appellation: ‘Civilian JTF’ is unfit, or in fact, downright wrong. It would have fitted well had it been given to a group whose emergence, breeding and training is the making of the military JTF’s genius—or who right from its onset, chose to refer to itself so, or so I think. In our cult, History, setting politically bended records straight as best as we could is a holy duty, that, on whose pursuit we know no break. Two, for the ‘pessimism’, understandable to an extent, that has possessed most minds now about just what the youths may turn to when they finish, as they hopefully will, wiping out the Boko Haramites (BH). Here too, I would have used ‘cautiousness’ instead, but for two reasons. One, some of the cautions are not genuine, but raw cynicism, if anything, garbed by it. There are certain odd numbers out of the ‘cautioners’ who, owing to their selfish, truth-phobic mental framework, find the instantaneous hunt-and-crush exercise of the group hostile to their interests for reasons that their bosses have been put to the target-list, some in fact only luckily survived attempts. Two, some express their ‘caution’, if we can call it that, in an exclusively pessimistic tone, because they just cannot wish or utter good with their lips. These folks have already given up anticipating good tidings in their lives. They are bent on finding all the wrong things about the group and running away from its positive sides, unsuccessfully though. Taking to red herring, which is what at best the cautions may be translated to mean, in times of realities when striking at the real issue at stake itself seem to fail to address it, is just not the best way to clear people from false accusations, if indeed they are not really ‘real’. If for instance the alleged complicity of Ali Sheriff in the crisis carries elements of truth, there is no way finding the fault lines in those who put the allegation forth and ready to provide redoubtable facts for it, clear him, or could befriending security chiefs and going on an overabundant gift-spree; instead, questions about it should not be run away from, but faced and answered, as innocent men do. If the allegations are aimed at a mere character assassination, or the alleged feel as such of it, I don’t see how it is difficult for them to file a case against their accusers, be they the civilian Anti BH or political opponents, to see to it in a court of law; for such accusations are not mild by any degree to be forgiven or taken stoically, even by the biggest of hearts. Ours, seated here in the sidelines, is to uphold the truth, and clearly, as unrepentantly, say it, without fear or favor, against whomsoever it be. If we must lie, we keep shut, rather; but keeping shut is not also an option, especially in the face of the enormity of what has continued to confront us—therefore we say the truth, and unequivocally so. I have monitored several stories in the national dailies, none carried this story, for, as I understand, fear. If all we can do about our iniquities, or those of few of us, is to pretend that they are not there, it will always prove contrariwise. I entertain no doubt even in the slightest that most of those whose names are mentioned are clean, as I do in all matters of allegations; but that does not mean they should not be taken to question, because, I am just anything but the law—and WINKS. The fear that some conspiracies can be concocted against you if you dare talk, because those in question are influential or have some extra worldly powers, should not and cannot stray us away from talking the truth. Some have funnily recommended a pen name, but, I for one, never felt the need, God is there and here and everywhere to protect the powerless. When I sometimes find myself folded in envy, as I sincerely do, of senior colleagues and old men around, for the time-long experience they have acquired on accounts of their ages, much to the dismay of us the ‘striplings’, I often find consolation on the fact that, through reading this and that, rereading and re-rereading, patiently listening, observing… one has already learnt, or even acquired the most intricate experience that nobody who stands by the truth, fails in a battle fighting for it with those against it; even if the enormity of the natural challenges involved in doing so seem to ground him, they only make him stronger and more invincible. Back to point. Indeed most do not yet recognize that the emergence of the volunteer force itself, the strides it has made and successes it recorded, were, including the Boko Haram phenomenon, the making of the Almighty, and therefore go on a free ride to postulate a lot of irrelevant stupidities. I call it stupidity yet for two reasons: One, to give grounds to their arguments, these peddlers of utter rubbish, in a sheer show of “as-usualities’ (being my personal invention) helplessly take to sophistry and rhetoric where even logically sound ones cannot stand. The most popular, perhaps for its simplemindedness, is the alarm now raised about 2015 elections—and not even so much the unsalable falsehood that some political hands have already infiltrated the group’s ranks or in fact the most unforgivable (politically convenient) misrepresentation of facts, which doubly fails, that the group itself was the making of the political machinery. To those of us who, in some aspects, follow the Marxist school of thought, it is its making, no doubt, but only in that awkward sense that it (the political machinery), or its order, has finally reached the point of developing its own “contradiction”—in a way only intelligible to us. And this is not a boast! The ‘caution’ goes that the youths are likely to be used by politicians come 2015 (… daz ol). Used to do what, they cannot say. It is forgotten that even if there is no such group, come election, it is the youths who will decide the turn of the election. What matters is how they are used or choose to use themselves or to be used. Do they mean they will be used to unleash terror? Or, as supporters of a particular party? They should have been definite to state in which way they will be used; and also add how such future could be turned away—if at all they mean well. This by the way is only limited to those blessed with unique wisdom—intellect, in a common parlance. The ability to foresee the future is what every ‘well-fed’ man can do, if he wishes to put his mind to work, but what makes the difference is his ability to not only foresee it, but understand what it portends and how to avoid it. Other cautionary call that goes on, according to the earthly revelations of those ‘cautio-pessimist’ prophets of doom, is that the group will turn against the state, once they are done with BH, arguing that the Boko Haram itself started with the use of clubs and machetes and are also jobless as well. This, with all the revelation-like certitude it is asserted, besides being flat-out false, is too simplistic. For instance, as much as we know, Boko Haram did not start with clubs, and even if they did started with it, they did not use it to hunt terrorists who take up arms against the state; and the point of joblessness is equally false: there are in fact many civil servants who denounced their jobs to join the sect. Unlike the Boko Haram, Anti BH have not also fought the state, but fought for it, because it failed to exclusively fight and win for itself. It is however true that they are jobless, and therefore a potential danger; but who does not know that joblessness is responsible for all the social crises the world has been through? As Anti BH or not, idle youths are always a liability and a potential danger to their communities. Therefore, they should be given jobs not because their being Anti BH foreshadows a grave danger to the corporate survival of the state, but because they are part of this country, and therefore, like every citizen in his country, qualify for a job. It seems funny that the ‘cautio-pessimists’ are just realizing it on this incident. Two, with all these theorizations, none of them has pointed out an alternative to the youth group, or even has any; and on occasions too numerous to count, they are always first to celebrate the peace they help bring, which would never have happened, had it been left in the hands of their bosses who they blindly dutifully defend, who are, withal, in one way or the other, responsible for all the “heck!”. Instead of all they have been saying, which has nothing do with the peace that is about being restored, but everything with chasing away of it, isn’t it more level-headed to pray for the good? Or if you know you are the kind who finds it difficult to keep your mouth shut, isn’t it more helpful to, while, since you must talk, also add solutions to the bleak future which you, as a usual visionary of bad tidings, foresaw? It will help those who are in the position to influence the group’s direction to advise them so as to shape what future it will make for itself or even, how to go about its activities. I for one, never took to rhetoric, once I am critical of their action I run to those who are either close to the group, or some of its members to suggest to them the need to rethink what they do and how they do it. For instance, just few days ago, I confronted one of them, who appears to be the leader of some of its branch, to suggest to him to not only restrict their stop and search focus on women only, as it has now become their wont, but the men too, and also the buzu, Tuaregs. The Tuaregs being the most troublous inhabitants of West Africa—they are as disguising as a camouflaging chameleon. They can pretend to live as mad men for years in a community, with their ‘litham’, their faces disguised, even disfigured, and be seen as such by it, while on a spying mission. I related some stories to him and he was happy, and I was to be even happier the following morning to see my advice implemented—the Tuaregs are being stopped and searched with all thoroughness. This is a movement that changes with changes; they change when they realize the need, and always welcome sincere advices and implement them. Few days ago, some Boko Haram members disguised in the fashion of the Civilian Anti-BH, in a 406 Peugeot, and to cut a short story shorter, when they were eventually arrested and gunned down to death, the group felt compelled to change its style. These are few success stories about the group that have been chosen to be ignored. The insinuation that the group is composed of wretched people and hobbledehoys is of course true, but unfair and even foolish. Unfair and foolish because those who see themselves as organized, while unable to keep quiet, are unwilling to join or take over from them. Who is more wretched between BH and the Anti-BH? Unless, it should be reminded, we bring ourselves to bear some of the hard realities of the moment, and swallow some of the bitter pills it has to offer, no matter how un-swallow-able; and accept to be at least, if we cannot work the real work, ideologues to the ‘temporary’ movement, it can never always go the way we want. On a closing note, after these somehow seemingly disconnected preliminaries, we will move on to examine the origin, expansion and dynamics of the Civilian Anti-BH, under which we will also consider some of the genuine cautions, next week In Shaa Allahu. This is not because I feel I am in a special position to determine what is genuine and fake, but what, in my opinion, amounts to one. And the caption will remain the same, but II. Abdulhamid Al-Gazali, algazali04@yahoo Borno Writers Forum
Posted on: Sun, 06 Jul 2014 09:38:08 +0000
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