Time Boko Haram was brought to book
arenna

A screen-grab taken on Monday from a video of Nigerian Islamist extremist group Boko Haram obtained by AFP shows a girl, wearing the full-length hijab talking to the camera at an undisclosed rural location. Boko Haram claimed the missing schoolgirls had converted to Islam and would not be released until all militant prisoners were freed. A total of 276 girls were abducted on April 14. – AFP

THE “I can’t be bothered” attitude is a human trait that is well articulated in Martin Niemoller’s “First they came” statement: “First they came for the socialists, and I did not speak out because I was not a socialist. Then they came for the trade unionists and I did not speak out because I was not a trade unionist. Then they came for the Jews and I did not speak out because I was not a Jew. Then they came for me and there was no one left to speak for me.”

The abduction of more than 250 schoolgirls by the Islamist insurgent group Boko Haram “in the name of Allah” at a boarding school in Chibok, Borno state, northeast of Nigeria, on April 14 has left many across the world shell-shocked.

More shocking were the brazen claims by the militant group’s leader, Abubakar Shekau, that he would sell off the girls into slavery and marriage.

This was the last straw, for Africa cannot countenance another slave trade. It might have been a bargaining chip, but Boko Haram got the international attention it wanted. After the international outcry, Shekau, on May 12, outlined conditions for the release of the girls: they would only be released “until after you (government) release our brethren” (militants in custody).

But the bottom line is still that the lives of more than 200 girls are at stake.

It is not only unthinkable but it is also shameful. How could more than 250 girls vanish without trace? By abducting these schoolgirls, Boko Haram is not only saying that it is anti-Western education, but that it is an enemy of women, the girl child in particular. This is why the outpouring of support is more intense than ever before.

There are a number of questions that we have to pose to President Goodluck Jonathan’s government.

Boko Haram is a home-grown insurgency that has killed, maimed and destroyed property since 2009 not only in the northern part of Nigeria where they operate from, but even in the capital Abuja. This year alone, it is alleged that they killed close to 1 500 people.

When they attacked the Christian community, the impression was that they were representing the northern states that are predominantly Muslim. They also wanted their cause to be defined from a religious perspective.

However, when they went on to attack fellow Muslims the writing was on the wall that this was a cause whose motive is yet to be defined.
The attacks united Christians and Muslims in condemning Boko Haram’s barbaric and evil acts, but the Nigerian government, which has also been a target, failed to capitalise on the unity in order to crush the insurgency.

When Boko Haram attacked the UN offices and media outlets such as This Day, it was clear that the group was trying to internationalise its cause, using Nigeria as the epicentre of its operations.

The failures to discern these fundamental elements in the defence and security of Nigeria have angered not only the Nigerian people, but also global citizens who have watched successive dramas unfold.

This level of insurgency was not expected in a country that for decades was under successive military juntas. Security should have been the priority of the civilian government since former president Olusegun Obasanjo became the first democratically elected leader.

Nigeria is also Africa’s economic powerhouse, but if it cannot strengthen its security systems using its own resources, and has to rely on assistance from the West, China and Israel, it is problematic.

The language and actions from the president’s office are also worrying. There have been claims and counter claims of what they knew and did.

Questions are also asked: if Nigeria had not hosted the 2014 edition of the World Economic Forum would the kidnapping of the girls have been a big issue, three weeks after it happened? Why has it taken Nigeria so long to collaborate with the international community in order to crush Boko Haram?

Why did it take so long to issue an official statement, and when will President Jonathan visit the town of Chibok to show solidarity with the people’s plight and to also reassure them that government is in charge?

It does not bode well when Amnesty International alleges that the Nigerian government was alerted about the impending attack at the Chibok Girls’ School four hours before the girls were abducted.

Even after the abductions, there are no indications that there were security reinforcements in that part of the region since more girls were abducted, and an alleged 300 people were killed in another town.

There are also claims that the girls have been put into four groups and are likely to be in neighbouring countries. However, President Jonathan maintains that the girls are still in Nigeria. If they are, why not rescue and take them back to their families?

Preparations are underway for a rescue mission, but fears are that the mission might end tragically. Who benefits – the Nigerian government or Boko Haram?

Questions continue to be asked about the regional bloc Ecowas and the African Union’s positions. Why are they conspicuous by their silence? Is it sustainable for Africa to allow outsiders to take leading roles in security operations?

According to media reports, the Nigerian leader is also denying ever saying that Boko Haram had infiltrated his government. However, in January 2012, the Nigerian media was awash with that story.

On January 9, 2012, Vincent Ikuomola wrote in The Nation: “From President Goodluck Jonathan came a stunning revelation yesterday: members of (the) Islamic fundamentalist group (Boko Haram) have infiltrated the three arms of government and the military. President Jonathan spoke during the inter-denominational service to mark the 2012 Armed Forces Remembrance Day at the National Christian  Centre.”

The president was quoted as saying: “The situation we have in our hands is even worse than the civil war that we fought.

“During the civil war, we knew and we could even predict where the enemy was coming from, you even knew the route they were coming from, you could even know the calibre of weapons they would use and so on.

“But the challenge we have today is more complicated. I remember when I held a meeting with elders from the northeast and some parts of the northwest where the Boko Haram phenomenon is more prevalent, somebody said the situation is so bad that even if one’s son is a member, one will not even know. That means that if the person will plant a bomb behind your house, you won’t know.

“Some of them (Boko Haram) are in the executive arm of government, some of them are in the parliamentary or legislative arm of government while some of them are even in the judiciary. Some are also in the armed forces, the police and other security agencies. Some continue to dip their hands and eat with you and you won’t even know the person who will point a gun at you or plant a bomb behind your house.”

Nigeria might seem to be so far away, and the day-to-day issues they grapple with might not necessarily be relevant to Zimbabwe.
However, violence and instilling fear among people knows no bounds. The girl child is also a part of every society. This week, Zimbabweans joined the international community in celebrating Mother’s Day. It was a day some communities, especially churches, spared time to pray for the abducted girls and their mothers.

A majority of Zimbabwean parents also sent off their children to boarding schools. A large percentage is girls.

Zimbabwean parents do not expect to hear that something amiss has happened to their children. They will hold the school authorities and Government accountable.

It is in this context that all parents join families of the Nigerian girls abducted by Boko Haram. Let there be an outcry from parents across the length and breadth of Africa. Let there also be a human chain of support for these Nigerian families living in anguish and extreme fear of the fate of their daughters.

A clear message should also be sent to Boko Haram that they will no longer have that opportunity to pen more terror scripts in the name of nefarious causes. They should be crushed and brought to book, including their supporters and sponsors.

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