Murder of the innocents in Apo

Murder of the innocents in Apo

By

Abubakar Sulaiman Muhd

26/09/2013

alfalancy@yahoo.com

Well, Nigeria, according to Karl Maier the author of this house has fallen, is a place where a writer could find something to write everyday. The reason, perhaps, behind his assertion is the terrible happenings he had been seeing during his service in the country as a foreign reporter. It is true for one will be battling with what not write not what to write on the range of issues unfolding everyday in the country peculiarly those that catch public interest. Just recently a Karota driver chased a bus driver dangerously at Mariri here in Kano, in his effort to escape; his car somersaulted resulting the driver and the passengers, bystanders and pedestrians to kick the bucket instantly. Further investigation has shown that the Karota driver has no driving license but was given the car of the governmental agency to drive and more disgusting is that the agency is in charge of the road traffic regulation. This means that the agency is just a bundle wagon of ignorant human beings. This is not the first time Karota has been the cause of the accident on the road as many people are always complaining about their attitude. But this is not what we shall discuss here for Karota alone is a topic on its own.

I was travelling to Bagwai my village with a brother to attend a personal assignment on Friday, 20 Sept., 2013, when just I opened my gadget and found the latest bulleting reading the “Apo killing” on Daily Trust twitter page. The report briefly said that shootout erupted between Boko Haram and the security operatives in an uncompleted building in Zone E of the Apo legislative Quarters. Actually it took me some minutes before I relayed the update to him mulling over the matter silently in my mind knowing how difficult it must be to smuggle weapons into such sophisticated area, a home to one of the prestigious MPs on earth, let alone attacking security operatives in such area.

The uncompleted building where the security killed at least seven and later the toll rose to eight by Monday, was found to be the possession of Mrs. Adunni Oluwale Salisu, believed to be the sister to the former president Olesugun Obasanjo. Document from the Abuja Geographical Information System (AGIS) showed that the property with C of O OG247326 situated at No 8 Bamanga Tukur Street, Gudu District, belongs to Mrs Salisu, said Premium Times.

Immediately after the killing the SSS said to the world that the incident was s shootout with Boko Haram militants when the security launched a raid at the place following a tip-off they received form the members of the sect in detention. They said that they were searching weapons when they came under fire by the sect members. But the survivors of the attack, Sani Abdurrahman Safana, Abubakar Auwal Bichi, Yusuf Abubakar Moriki and Bashir Usman insisted that they were not BH members but were jus squatters at the building as they could not pay the cost of renting expensive houses in Abuja. They contradicted SSS assertion that they were given a week eviction notice by a retired military man and all of a sudden they were attacked just three days after the warning.

Apo killing left many questions unanswered for at first place the spokeperson of the Service Marlyn Orgar said that the security men were not murderers but are paid to secure lives and property of the people.  Behold the irony here, how would they kill people under the discretion of one person and said unfazedly they are protecting the lives and property of people? When bombarded with a seamless flow of press interrogation after it was discovered that the killing was extra-judicial, she then said that she stood by her previous words that the operation was carried out after the SSS obtained information from the militant members in detention that the building was a hideout where the militants stashed their weapons. But she later shun any response to the question regarding the incident when the SSS failed to showcase the weapons they found in the building. A kind of stupidity that nobody would believe. For how the institution that has zero tolerance on terrorism would fail to display to the world the progress they made in the fight against terror? Another damning proof that confirmed the inkling that the killing was a ploy to annihilate human being is that the security men has failed, one more time, to present even figures indicating the number of the operatives, even one person killed or injured from the shooting since it was an indiscriminate fire exchange. The public are still waiting to the Service to produce a proof of the shot or injured person from their operatives as we saw those shot and injured from the other side. And if they fail, which they definitely would, their action would translate their grave crime of attacking unarmed persons. This has two implications. Fist it shows that the SSS has failed to apply the civilized professional methods of fighting in conflict situation which is meant mainly to capture not kill in order to eke out more information regarding the rebels. Second if the SSS killed the seven squatters out of wanton destruction of lives to fulfill the personal desire of one individual, they should know that they committed war crimes according to the Fourth Geneva Convention to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of Arm Conflicts which was first adopted in 1949 based on the part of the 1907 Hague Convention IV. These killers if found guilty for this charge alone would face the same punishment that landed Charles Taylor in jail to serve 50-year prison term. 

Many people are opining their views that why the building was not demolished just instantly when the security found the building because it shelters terrorists? We know how tight the Security men are in the fight of terror whenever they discovered a building to be the den of the militia, but still the building remains standing. Another evidence revealing the fact that those people were killed innocently and the elements behind the murder are those men close to power. But no matter how powerful they appear, they will get their nemesis sooner or later, here or in the hereafter. We also know how extreme the Security are to pursue a person even on a spurious allegation of him being a member of Boko Haram, which resulted the exile of many people because of the fear that once caught they will not get fair treatment. The survivors of the attack remained at large in Abuja, Asokoro General Hospital.

Attacking civilian population through the conduit of war against terror is not uncommon event in Nigeria. It has become a norm to see security operatives maiming and killing helpless citizens without a slightest crumb of compunction because they know they will go unpunished. The killing in Baga is the case in point. Here in Kano for example, people have succumbed to be loyal to the security men on whatever condition and maltreatment they mete out to them because they just want to go unscathed with their life along. A refusal to give even twenty Naira to the security men will take a person to his grave.

The blood of our fellow citizens would not go in vain. I believe advocates of justice across the country are struggling fervently for the victims’ right as many people especially form the states where the victims hail visited and continue visiting the injured in the hospital and are still chanting songs of solidarity to see justice prevail. What I expected initially was to see the face of governors, senators, national and state assembly members from the victims’ states receiving the corpses and even taking them to the twin chambers for special sitting.  We want to see an army of our politicians from Kano, Katsina, Zamfara, and Yobe infesting in the case to ensure that justice is done. Their involvement will make the matter to be taken more seriously since the victims are particularly helpless and less privileged persons. Compensation alone will not do away the havoc it wrought on the victims and their family but it is still recommended since many who have fallen into similar case previously have been compensated. The SSS should publicly apologize to the victims for their wrong action.

Vote of thanks goes to Mal. Sani Shehu a-kaduna based activist for his presence during the reception of the corpses in the hospital. A train of commendation to Dr. Aliyu Tilde for the effort made to raise awareness to the public and his ceaseless search for information to relay to the public. Also Mal. Lawan Abubakar the Imam of the Triumph Juma’at mosque for his visit to the victims.

Finally, I hope the Senate Panel set to investigate the killing will do their job with justice, and the NHRC report will thoroughly be considered to ensure that justice is done to the victims and the murderers punished.

Sulieman Imran Katsina, Mamman Abdullahi Katsina, Ashiru Musa Katsina, Nura Abdullahi Katsina, Ahmad Musa Zamfara, Buhari Ibrahim Kano and many others who were killed, be received in a perfect peace. Amen! 

  

Women in Tribulation, Help Them

Women in Tribulation, Help Them

With

Abubakar Sulaiman Muhd

The peace for women is the peace for men and   the peace for men is the peace for the world. I am not advocating or giving room for women to come out to vie with men, nor am I subscribing the paganistic belief in the doctrine of ancient Greece and Rome that women are Venetians and deserve more than enough respect. Of course not me accepting the belief in the doctrine of original sin which subjects women to a certain hatred and torture.

It pains me to the core seeing women in suffering simply because I have great desire, love, passion and sympathy for them. These callings I have for them are not just for concupiscence or rather gratification of sexual lust. Nay, neither. It is as a result of understanding their situation and the urge to help them free from the social bondage.  

Women have to be respected and considered as life associates not as slaves or second-class human beings. Women at homes or schools and everywhere need special attention and consideration because of their natural body structure.

Empowerment of women educationally is the first step to grant women their freedom, right, chance and opportunity, and it’s the best weapon to fight them freedom from the grip of the macho, wicked and unconcerned society. In school the urge to help women makes me and will continue to make me appear a poodle, a candle burning itself to give light to others. Though the general perception in the course of male/female relationship especially in schools is assumed to be exploitative. Female students exploiting their male counterpart. Far from this, my belief is that I vow to take the pain upon myself to succour   women in any situation where I am able to do so because my indulgence is a contribution of fostering women education, the best way out of their predicament.  

Education as I described earlier as the first step of empowering women, is a means with which they can acquire skills not only to work in public and private organizations but can also apply their knowledge in their matrimonial life to breed a good posterity for future generation and to serve as a civil mediators in resolving conflict with the people around them.

Women shouldn’t necessarily seek knowledge with firm do-or-die determination to work in public offices. Women are naturally preserved to be delicate, precious, priceless and prestigious. The history of women in labour force began around 18^th -19^th centaury. In the heyday of industrial revolution where women were forced to come out by the economic strain, to work in the British factories in order to supplement the meager income of their husbands just to survive the dire social hardship and the pressure rooted by the compartmentalization  of social order based on material well-being. This is just the root cause. It is not something worth copying for it did not originate from a good civilization, intellectuality or educatedness, or stylistic way of adorable life. It was from hardship, deplorability, austerity and the ilk. It was from the regimented course of European life for a family to be able to exist – to survive  paying the tax,  living on their own under a situation that have no human face of humanitarian assistance from kith and kin which African cultural humanity, communality and togetherness warrant. In fact this is what led to a concept we now call individualism. A social setting where husband works for his only self, the wife for her own survival and the children sent off at tender age of eighteen to fend for themselves in the jungle of today’s capitalistic society. This is the fountain from which our people source their wrong civilization and assumed the practice as the prerogative of the civilized ones, the elites. 

I am not completely debunking the idea of women going to work because nowadays their work is giving rather contribution to the family and the society at large. All I am doing is decrying the people who hold the belief that it is civility or educatedness leaving women to come out for work; to rescue those people out of the darkness shrouding their shallow brain and to make them in the know of the source of their civilization.

Our life is naturally built to depend on the contribution of each sex. For even in Islam, women have their role to play. Referring back to the life history of our beloved prophet (SAW), we can see many examples where women went out, going to the battle ground to give humanitarian services, relief assistance and medical care to the male soldiers. Women have all the right to acquire education since Aisha (RA) the most loved wife of the prophet (SAW) set examples where she was noted to have reported more than four thousand prophetic traditions.

In our context, we need women in almost all spheres of life. We need female gynecologists to attend their fellow women hence to avert avoidable contact with male doctors. We need women lecturers to provide a sense of belonging and security to the female students against any unwanted elements on the campus. We need women bankers to accommodate the needs of women going to the bank for their business without necessarily engaging with unlawful males. We also need female journalists to present programmes to women audiences about the problem related to their womanistic concerns.

On the other hand, I have a pillary against those who oppose women education. I challenge them to produce even a proof from the heavenly scriptures supporting their course. Besides what pains me about the behaviour of these people is this, they are mostly those who disapprove of taking girls child to the hospitals for medication on the ground that the personnel in service are male staff, people from the opposite sex. To their ignomable belief it is rather preferable to let a birthing women die of bleeding to taking her to the hospital. I appeal to their ignorance, for God sakeness, who they expect to be the doctors when all the society is deriving their girl children away from becoming medical personnel when they are married them off along their way to the profession?

I stand to a position that such people who disallow women education are masking their pure intention of continuing to perpetrate crimes against women. Or such that they are those who are trying to escape their turn of harvesting the evil they planted, the sexual exploitation they committed to other people’ daughters. If not for these reasons why will they deny women right to education despite all these ample examples from the prophet and Sahaba down to the Salaf and to the brilliantly educated Nana Asma’u the daughter of Usman Dan Fodio and many others of our contemporary scholars? And if they are saying western education is bad, so I ask this: do they enroll their daughters in proper Islamic school to study the religion widely?, because all knowledge is the same. No, they only put them in a local Allo school where they wouldn’t be paying money. Anybody believing in denying women education should better investigate in the family of any scholar they trust, I am rest assured, by God, to make an uncompensatery swear; they would find none among their wives or daughters is illiterate.

Women are always at the receiving end, whether literate or illiterate, traditional or modern girl. By traditional I mean the one who is utterly ignorant both side (ba Arabi ba Boko). Her life is much more in jeopardy, suffering and predicament than any other woman. At the age of 18 she was already divorced with three children or the husband abandoned her to care for them. The children from all indication, like their mother would not get access to education, health care and economic right. Already before her marriage she was an excellent hawker in the street who witnessed several cases of sexual molestation. She will now end up toiling, serving as a maid in the homes of riches eking out her living. Her children would be sent away to serve as almajiris who will also later end their lives as mendicants, wondering and begging in the streets. If there is a girl among the children she would follow suit like her former mother, hawking groundnuts and kolanuts in the streets. The mother will never see them again until they complete big almajiris, cobblers, solo dancers and or notorious pick-pocketers around ‘Yan Kura-Bata axis.

A modern girl also faces the same tragedy but in different form. She is the one in the university. A striking lass may be forced or willingly succumb to the demand of her lecturer in exchange for better grade. It is still exploitative because of the unequal power dynamics. The girl will not work hard but she is sure that she could get all she wants by trading her body, her chastity, her beauty and her thigh in order to pass her course. Such girls even their admission in to the schools is invariably connected to sexual liaison not the meritocracy.    

In a crescendo voice I say: we have to respect women, to praise their effort and appreciate their commitment. We have to lead them in peace and love, like a farmer does to his herd not the boss does to his servant. Please and please and please, do not abuse, harass, violate, assail, assault, attack, annoy, bang, batter, beat, bother, bug, pester molest, torture, maltreat, hate, distress, pain, exploit, disturb, intimidate, whip, pounce, persecute, afflict, pinch, hit, hammer, strike, threaten, frighten, hurt, injure, harm, damage, scare, coerce, terrorize, bully, overawe, wound, impair, upset, daunt, discourage, dishearten, deter, overwhelm, put off, terrify, petrify, alarm, shock, horrify, panic, dread, thrush, punch, women!

The Comedy of Suntai’s Return

The Comedy of Suntai’s Return

With

Abubakar Sulaiman Muhd

10/09/2013

The biggest event that permeates the front banner of the national gossip is the debacle in Taraba State. Last year October 25, 2012, Governor Danbaba Danfulani Suntai met his fate of flight accident which led to his illness. As human beings, nobody is willing to accept the inevitable. Death. But fortunate enough to Governor Suntai for he did not die instantly, taken back to history as did his associate who was along with him when the crash occurred. To this end, he was taken to off abroad to practice the best of all medication on earth.

Since his departure, about a year ago, no credible updates was reaching the public about his health condition as though he was not a high public profile figure because some people barricaded any access to him in fear of revealing the veracity about him to the public. Only that people knew was that he was abroad seeking medication. This is not just the matter, for since his exit, some influential cabal kept busy assiduously and fervently, struggling to take advantage of his illness to manipulate the control of the state resources from the background, a vague scene, for their own benefit. Their crave for power shows them naked, how avaricious they are towards the state resources for instead of concentrating their pure concern on his health condition, they deploy it  on how to make their own way to the resources to reap the benefit.

The news of his return to the country last August 2013, stirred the political atmosphere and generated a heated argument. The entire country stood spectator to witness the return of the ailing player into the arena. But the charade arrangement of his return proved failure, a comedy and embarrassment to the schemers when he emerged from the plane flanked with handlers aiding him descend the stairs. A damning proof that he is yet capable. On the scene he was seen to display some of these features: blank gaze or empty stare, sudden outburst of speech or disjointed speech, tied-tongness, loss of cognitive sense (permanent or temporary loss of memory), repetition of a word or statement etc., which are all attributed by psychologists and psychoanalysts as Post Traumatic Brain Injury (PTBI). Think of it twice, how we expect a person who fails to control himself could to a State bearing tens and thousand of inhabitants. As if this is not enough for them to take lesson, the cabal behind the ploy took pretex under his impression to issue the signatory of dissolving the State Executive Council.

All these disgusting things unfolding in Taraba State, before our eyes like a farce drama, have backing sipirit of some officials in the presidency. Instead of leaving the constitution to reign, those nefarious people have narrowed their civilization so low as to revert to avoid the dictum of the rule of law they swore to protect and abide by. They should know that, if they are ignorant, it’s incivility to change the rule at the middle of the game.  The presidency supposed not to take side, supposed not temper with the constitution, supposed not to forget that it was the same constitutional provision during a similar case in Yar’adu’s regime that guaranteed its supremacy to confirm the incumbent president his position when some powerful few tried so hard to hijack the regime to dupe the country. These powerful few tilting to the Suntai’s side have lost their conscience and without regard to our intelligence, want to prevail their interest above that of the teeming populace of Taraba State which is in concord with the State constitution. Here we are!

We are not saying that the good people of Taraba State do not love their governor or have now turned against him. No!, what we are saying is that they are on the safe ground for they are the same people who initially, out of support, cast their vote for him. And what if the people changed their mind? To me those people should let Suntai a rest for if they are hankering for power, he had already written his name in the Guinness Book of political record for being once a governor, a prerogative of few among many.  And the Taraba people wouldn’t be chastised when they have arrived at a reasonable and justifiable conclusion that Suntai is incapable of continuing as a Chief Executive.

In a very civilized way and formal manner the Taraba State Assembly called things to order when the demanded Governor Suntai to appear in flesh before the House to prove his capability by addressing the Legislature. When he failed to show off, a realization that, even the signatory was a purported one, he was not fully recovered capable enough of continuing as a Chief Executive. The legislatures allowed him a decent and dignified exit to go and recuperate from his illness. The Taraba State Assembly have shown itself men of conscience and, we hope they would continue to prove honourable if they adhere to the constitutional provision to allow whoever he is, the deputy, without prejudice or distinction as to the tribe or religion, to take charge of the State affairs as conferred by the constitution.