The Position of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) Plateau State Chapter - on the Declaration of the State of Emergency Rule in Plateau State by the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo on Tuesday 18th, May, 2004
Introduction
Following the proclamation on Tuesday 18th may, 2004, of emergency rule on Plateau state by the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, and the subsequent appointment of a Sole Administrator, Major-General (Rtd) Chris Mohammed Ali, we the entire Christian Association of Nigeria, CAN, Plateau wish to present our position regarding the present political impasse.
It is our prayer that our position will be useful in the onerous search and task of restoring peace to the State.
The Church has come under constant violent attacks and Christians have been killed or maimed in their thousands. It is this reason that we as a Church, have deemed it important to sound an alarm that the said declaration of a State of Emergency, by suspending a democratically elected and legitimate government in Plateau State is only a smokescreen heralding future events that may later unfold.
To say the Church on the Plateau and the body of Christ in Nigeria is worried over this unfortunate political development is by far understating the obvious. Not only is the Church disturbed over these sad happenings, we are grief-stricken that our beloved President, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo did not avail himself with all shade of opinion in the State before declaring State of Emergency.
It is also sad to point out that what our detractors could not achieve since 200years ago, when in 1804 Usman Dan Fodio launched his Jihad on ethnic minorities of the north, is now largely being achieved through exploiting constitutional loopholes, cantankerous political atmosphere and our loose democratic culture.
Brief History of the Jos Crises
What is regarded today as the protracted crisis in the State that led to the proclamation of the State of Emergency on the 18th May 2004 is traced to the creation of Jos North and Jos South out of the defunct Jos Local Government Authority (LGA), in September 1991, during the regime of military President, Ibrahim Babangida. Infact, the exercise which was highly condemned by the indigenous tribes gave the Hausa/Fulani Muslims an upper hand as the said creation was at their instance.
In 1994, during late Sani Abacha, a Hausa/Fulani man was imposed to head the local administration in Jos North which was opposed by indigenes. The strong resistance against the appointment snowballed into a fracas that later escalated and took away many lives including the burning of houses and places of worship.
In 1997, 10th April, there was another skirmish that broke out in Gero Bukuru, a surburb of Jos, following a disagreement over the plucking of a garden egg that resulted later in killings. Just as the Gero community clash was taking place on the same date, a communal clash in Changal in Mangu L.G.A. reared its head and lives and property went up in flames.
Also, in Langtang North, a little fracas broke out that later left the warring communities of Lohmak and Sabon Layi in a pool of blood on the 22nd February, 1997. In Qua’n Pan, following the return to civil rule in 1999, marauders, believed to have come from Chad Republic invaded and killed a Christian man and some members of his family on 27th March 2001. The marauders are said to be mercenaries who were brought in by their Nigerian collaborators.
Events Leading To the Declaration of a State Of Emergency:
2nd May 2004: On this date, two Christian women were murdered in cold blood. The victims were returning to their homes since they left Yelwa Shendam following the February 24th, 2004, when the slaughtering of 48 Christians took place in the Church and the burning down of eight churches.
Following the killings and the vacation of Yelwa Shendam by all non-Muslims, the Muslims in February subsequently declared the town as part of Zamfara State, the first State to adopt Sharia as the Islamic legal system in 1999, by which the lives of all citizens in that State were to be governed, irrespective of religious persuasion. The declaration marked a mock celebration of an “Independent” state of Zamfara and the hoisting of the posters of the Saudi Arabia born fugitive, Osama Bin Laden, and leader of the Al-Qaeda terrorist group that attacked the Twin Towers of the W.T.C. in New York on 9/11/2001. Infact, the mock celebration was to mark the total eradication of the “infidels” and all that belongs to them, including eight churches that were burnt to ashes.
Before the reprisal attacks by the aggrieved and displaced persons took place the next day, 3rd May 2004, where about 67 Muslims were killed, there had always been silent killings of the Christian natives in surrounding villages. These villages comprising Nshar, Bakin Ciyawa, Ajikamai, Lakushin Tumbi, Tukung, Gaedo Mangoro and Pandam villages who were targets of the Muslim fundamentalists in Yelwa Shendam. This was in spite of the heavy security mounted in the area. Infact, it is well known fact that the raid on these villages was systematically carried out and to some extent with the knowledge of some of the security men who were Muslims. These terror attacks continued unchecked leading to the killings of four Mobile Policemen who were sent to go and investigate an earlier report that some Muslim militias were training at Shimankar in Shendam LGA.
The ambush and attack on the four Policemen was a confirmation to the fears of the suspecting villagers who had earlier on noticed the unusual movement of good items and trucks. The presence of security men in those areas notwithstanding did not make any difference at all as their weapons were said to be far more sophisticated weapons than those of the Mopols.
Infact, the raid on Yaimni village on the 22nd February, 2004, left the village completely razed down. Preceding this was the attack on Hamale village on the 12th February 2004, when the security men were tactfully dislodged in Wase town and the border villages of Duwi, Yaudara, Kirim, Hamale and Tsamiya, most Christians were affected in these raids with casualty figure rising to about 50 as well as the stealing away of their 46 bicycles and a motorcycle with their houses burnt down completely.
The figure of the reprisal killings of Yelwa Shendam was put at 67 people and not 630 as was widely overblown in some National Dailies especially, Daily Trust, and the international media, BBC. Reuters, Dutchevelle, VOA, CNN and Sky News.
We strongly believe that the media and coverage given to the Yelwa Shendam crisis of 3rd May 2004 while ignoring what triggered it on May 2nd, was not only calculated at tarnishing the corporate image of the State but was directed at sacrificing Plateau to placate some powerful interest groups. Such interest groups are represented by the Arewa Consultative Forum, ACF, their militant youth wing, the supreme Council of Islamic Affairs and the Council of Ulamas who had earlier paid a courtesy call on Mr. President on the 11th May 2004, and demanded for a declaration of a state of emergency in Plateau State.
We also believe that our dear President, for whatever reasons which must have informed his decision to embark on such an expensive democratic exercise of presidential power did not make wider consultations on this matter. His pronouncement fell short of the popular expectations of the people who believed he went too far on the matter by declaring a State of Emergency in Plateau State.
OUR STAND
(1) Having given a critical look at the speech of Mr. President on the State of Emergency declared in Plateau State, CAN wishes to call on the President to kindly reconsider his stand by rescinding his decision in the interest of nurturing our nascent democracy. (2) The President’s visit and meeting with all stakeholders at Government House, Rayfield fell short of expectations as he openly vented his anger by calling the State CAN Chairman “an idiot”, and referred to “CAN my foot.” It was in this rare executive recklessness that we knew Mr. President had not only taken sides but was bent on placating the Council of Ulamas who had given him a seven day ultimatum to declare a state of emergency in Plateau State
(3) While we believe the President reserves the right to exercise his legitimate and perform his constitutional duties. We wish to humbly observe the following disturbing scenarios:
That the declaration of the state of emergency imposed on Plateau when the situation was gradually returning to normalcy is like a stirring the hornets nests. That the politically motivated reprisal attacks carried out in Kano State after the Yelwa Shendam crisis where over 3,000 Christians were mercilessly murdered, also calls for the declaration of a state of emergency in Kano State. We strongly believe that the decision by Mr. President not to have taken a similar firm stand on Kano only confirms speculations that he was under intense pressure to use his rod on Plateau State as punishment to Christians. This is evident in the series of consultations as televised on NTA network news broadcast he held with the Council of Ulamas on the 11th May 2004, which at their prompting he came to Plateau State on the 13th May 2004. CAN also views with concern the lack of attention given to the February 24th 2004, killings of 48 people in a Church in Yelwa Shendam where over 8 churches were destroyed completely. In addition non-Muslims were sent packing out of Yelwa Shendam. This remains a sad commentary in a country believed to practice secularism. By this singular act, are we supposed to believe that a state religion has been adopted in this country where some people have the guts to call for war and yet get away with it or while some sue for peace, yet are branded as trouble makers? CAN is still maintaining her call on the President to be magnanimous and humble enough to tender an unreserved apology to the Christian community not JUST in Plateau State but in Nigeria. This, we believe will go a long way in assuaging already frayed nerves as a result of the verbal assault meted out to the CAN Chairman of Plateau State. We equally call on the government to as a matter of urgency arrest the security situation in Plateau State by clamming down on the terrorists cells so far identified. The locations of these cells are found in Rafin Pa; Yan Dankali; Rikkos; all in Jos North L.G.A. and Bashar Lamba, Wase and Yelwa Shendam. Of importance also is the identification of leaders of these groups who are well known to the government. In December 18th 2003, the joint military and Police raid on these groups known as Maitasine sect was carried out where about 9 of them were gunned down following exchange of fire with the security personnel. Their leader, one Mallam Maimai was caught but today he is still walking the streets a free man. CAN also call on the government to expedite action in releasing all the judicial commissions of inquiries that were set up to look into the communal and sectarian crises since 1994-2002.
These commissions are:
(i) Justice Fiberesima Commission of Inquiry set up in 1994 to look into the communal crisis in Jos. (ii) Justice Niki Tobi, 2001, Jos ethno-religious disturbance. (iii) Felicia Dusu Commission of Inquiry set up in 2002 to look into the Plateau Southern Senatorial Communal clashes.
It is our candid opinion that the release of these reports will go a long way to healing wounds ad restore the desired peace we all cherished.
On the arrest and detention of some selected Christian leaders
CAN seriously observes that since declaration of a state of emergency in Plateau state on 18th May 2004, not only has, the Hausa community in the State, been celebrating, but some of our Christian and community leaders have been arrested and charged to court for culpable homicide while preparations are in top gear to further implicate more people so as to arrest them.
A case in point is the arrest of some two Tarok Christian Community leaders’ Hon. Sylvester Chirmen and Hon. Ransome Samuel who are now languishing in Police cells for speaking against the destruction of Kadarko in Wase LGA.
We call on the government to as a matter of concern to expedite action on these cases so as to avert a possible further break down of law and order.
Again the harassing of Christian victims in Vom Christian hospital should be stopped and armed soldiers guiding the hospital be removed. Government should speed up the issue of resettlement of displaced persons in the southern senatorial zone and ensure their safety. This we believe will assuage the feelings of the people who have been displaced for over two years now. We strongly call on the government to start a process of rebuilding and compensation of all Christian places of worship, houses and properties destroyed in the wake of the hostilities in the southern senatorial zone. In Wase today, no Christian sanctuary is found there and we request that they be restored.
In conclusion, we want to thank God for this opportunity to share with our country men and women as well as the global community our position regarding the current political logjam in Plateau State. We wish to state here our willing to make available any additional facts whenever required.
___________________ Awo's political idea was based on the assumption that any town beyond Owo was Igbo or Hausa. Awo was not socialised; he was not a good mixer because he did not have the opportunity, which the secondary school offered. ~TOS Benson, Baba Oba of Lagos Posts: 2644 | From: United Kingdom | Registered: Apr 2001
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