From Sharia law Zamfara has descended into a lawless state and Obasanjo said sharia will die a natural death. Killings in Zamfara State today started because Sharia law was unconstitutional, not properly managed and the inaction of former President Obasanjo when sharia law was declared. From Sharia law , Boko Haram emerged and transformed to ISIS. Former President Obasanjo underestimated the introduction of sharia law, the emergence of Boko Haram and ISIS. Obasanjo wants to re-enforce failure of his party, PDP in 2019. He had the resources to stop Sharia Law in the north. I watched with concern several comments credited to Obasanjo who indirectly laid foundation for Sharia law and Boko Haram in Nigeria for his inaction over sharia in Zamfara. Former president Olusegun Obasanjo had blamed ‘agents of darkness’ for sparking the religious crises which engulfed the country during his regime in an attempt to destabilize his government instead of dealing decisively with the introduction of sharia. Obasanjo spoke at the 55th Annual Convention of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG) held at the Redemption Camp of the Church in Ogun state. He said the riots in Kano, Kaduna, Sagamu and others were a deliberate attempt to destabilise the country and bring down his government. Obasanjo is watching helplessly as Boko Haram that was founded during his administration is now terrorizing Nigeria and other West African countries. The number of deaths declared by Amnesty International so far in Nigeria would have be avoided if former President Olusegun Obasanjo had taken decisive steps to stop the implementation of Sharia law in Zamfara State and the emergence of Boko Haram. The military action that former President Obasanjo would have taken is now some West African countries are now using to fight Boko Haram.
Obasanjo’s inability to prevent the sharia was a gross dereliction of his constitutional duty that brought pains, organized crimes that have threatened the unity of the county. Obasanjo underrated the implementation of sharia which has led to the emergence of Boko Haram. In his characteristic penchant for acting god, he neglected the caution of many well-meaning Nigerians and members of the international community against sharia. My concern is the speech General Obasanjo gave at 55th annual convention of the redeemed Christian Church of God held at the Redemption Camp, Kilometer 46, Lagos-Ibada Expressway at which he incoherently declared that the sharia unconstitutionally introduced in twelve northern states The greatest was that he declared that: “Today, the so-called sharia introduced by the selfish governors is dead.” The question then is, if he knew that the sharia was a threat to the corporate existence of the country, why did he allow it, and even in spite of the deluge of complaints from both friendly and not-so-friendly members of the international community, as well as from within the country when he had all that was needed as the president to stop it in defence of the corporate existence of the country? If the Sharia is dead, why was Obasanjo blaming its architects? These incoherent statements make Obasanjo difficult to comprehend.
Rather than root down for constitutional justification for the sharia, he resorted to a biblical defence. Between 1999-2007, during former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s administration Sharia was introduced in Zamfara which laid foundation for the present anarchy in Zamfara State. Has Sharia died a natural death? No. Zamfara, Borno and Yobe killings are reprehensible and unacceptable as hooligans and wayward persons held Zamfara State to ransom just the same way sharia was introduced. Where was the federal government when sharia was introduced? Where were the security agencies when sharia was introduced? Where were the political, community and religious leaders when sharia was introduced? Where was our conscience when sharia was introduced? Where was the humanness in us when sharia was introduced? Above all, where is our Islam today? Where is the Qur’an and its pristine teachings today? Where is the Prophetic guidance in his Sunnah today?
For instance today, can selective imposition of Islamic law work? Is it Legal to do so? Which takes precedence: the constitution of the state or Islamic Law? Do individual states have a right to determine what laws govern them? Who or what is driving this initiative and for what gain since the people are already practising their faith in all parts of Nigeria without any hindrances?
In the heat of the religio-ethnic clashes between Christians and Moslems in Plateau, Obasanjo deemed it bravado to insult CAN, Christian Association of Nigeria, (the umbrella body of Christians in Nigeria) and abused her Plateau state leaders. Subsequently, he declared a state of emergency thereby ousting the Christian governor there. When a similar clash resulted in Kano with far more casualties, Obasanjo excused it as a reprisal from the Plateau case. Obasanjo argued that Christian clergymen and leaders, both within and outside Nigeria, were calling on him to stamp out the new phenomenon of wholesale sharia in states where there was a Muslim majority but with substantial contingents of Christians too. “Throughout this controversy, the only statement Obasanjo made was to the effect that if the sharia that the governor of Zamfara was touting was genuine, it would survive and thrive. If not, it would fizzle out”. “Muslims, who had expected me to kick against sharia, thereby giving them ammunition to cause mayhem, and Christians, who felt angry and disappointed that I did not roll out military tanks to crush the proponents of sharia, both felt winners and losers at the same time.
The entrepreneurs of violence in Zamfara and environs feel emboldened because they see themselves above the law and in a way, they are since the implementation of sharia law. The crisis in Zamfara state started before the coming of Governor Yari administration, “The impression that the problem started in 2011 is wrong, it started in 2009. In 2010, there were two attacks and others in 2011 before the coming of this government”. The crisis which started as a minor clash between herders and farmers has been taken over by armed bandits who are bent on running the state aground. As at today, we have about 10 major flashpoint in the state”, he said, adding that “over 40 attacks since 2009 , resulting in the death of over 3,000 persons, destruction of over 2,000 homes, business premises destroyed, including about 2,000 hectares of farmland, 500 vehicles burnt, villages over-run by the bandits and the abduction of over 500 persons for ransom”.
Boko Haram was founded in 2002 when Mohammad Yusuf opened a religious complex with an Islamic school in Maiduguri, Nigeria, which attracted students from poor Muslim families across the country. Reportedly, Yusuf used the school to convert and recruit future jihadis. Boko Haram expanded into Yobe state, where it set up another base, nicknamed “Afghanistan,” near the Nigeria-Niger border in 2003. Prior to 2009, the group did not seek to overthrow the Nigerian government, and Yusuf instead preached a doctrine of withdrawal. Open conflict erupted in July 2009 following a violent clash between Boko Haram members and the police, when militants refused to adhere to a law requiring motorcyclists to wear helmets. This incident incited violent uprisings in Bauchi and quickly spread to Borno, Yobe, and Kano.
The entrepreneurs of violence in Zamfara and environs feel emboldened because they see themselves above the law and in a way, they are since the implementation of sharia law. The crisis in Zamfara state started before the coming of Governor Yari administration, Obasanjo’s inability to prevent the sharia was a gross dereliction of his constitutional duty that brought pains, organized crimes that have threatened the unity of the county. Obasanjo underrated the implementation of sharia which has led to the emergence of Boko Haram.
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Inwalomhe Donald writes from Gusua, Zamfara State
