Boko Haram: How far has Nigeria gone with the dialogue process?

Dapo Falade Friday, 26 October 2012

Dapo Falade writes on the ongoing dialogue process as part of the concerted efforts aimed at put to an end the Boko Haram insurgency ravaging most part of the northern parts of the country.

ACTIVITIES of members of the Jamaatu Ahlis Lil Daawati wal Jihad, popularly called Boko Haram, has become the biggest headache of the Nigerian nation, as far as security issues are concerned, in recent times. Members of the group have made the task of governance more burdensome in the northern parts of the country with their incessant and precise bomb attacks which often leave hundreds of people dead and destroying property running into several billions of naira in their wake.

At the height of their renewed insurgency activities, members of the sect once had the effrontery to ask President Goodluck Jonathan to either renounce the Christian faith and embrace Islam or resign from his present job as a pre-condition for entering into truce and embrace peace.

Concerned by the level of threat inherent in the renewed Boko Haram insurgency to the national security, several prominent Nigerians, particularly from the North, suggested that the best way out of the pogrom is for the Federal Government to embrace dialogue and listen to whatever are the grievances of the sect. this, it was suggested, was with a view to see how its members can be persuaded to renounce their warring posture and allow peace to reign in the land. Of course, some other equally prominent Nigerians were opposed to the idea of dialogue as they were of the opinion that doing such would only encourage more dissenting groups to take up arms in pressing home their demands and agitations.

Eventually, the pro-dialogue campaigners appeared to have their way as the Federal Government proved receptive of the idea. Former President Olusegun Obasanjo embraced the peace initiative and took a bold step, by taking the message to the Lion’s den. In his attempt to broker peace, the former president was in Maiduguri, Borno State, in 2011 where he met with an in-law of the late leader, Muhammed Yusuf, whom (the in-law) they thought could be of assistance in ensuring the success of the peace process.

However, the visit turned out to be a misadventure as the sect passed a death sentence on Obasanjo’s host and clinically executed it by killing the man and some members of his family. The ugly incident was a clear signal that the dreaded sect was not in, any way, prepared to enter into dialogue with the government.

Demonstrating its opposition to the dialogue process, the group, in a half-hour video made in Hausa and posted on the social media, YouTube, offered no logical explanation or reason for its demands and positions. A leader of the sect, Abubakar Shekau, claimed in the video that it does not kill “women and children,” but those “who have offended us, arrested our people and killed them.” He also said some people were committing evil acts in its name and that it would go after such people, and rejected any plans by the government to legislate on the number of children Nigerians can have, describing such proposal as blasphemy.

However, the Federal Government appeared to be undeterred in its commitment to dialogue with the Boko Haram sect a major instrument that would help to curtail the group’s insurgency in the North. The National Security Adviser (NSA), Sambo Dasuki, at one time pledged to seek ceasefire with the group before the commencement of the Islamic month of Ramadan last August. However, the pledge turned out to be a mere boast as the sect became more daring in its violence during the period, as its activities extended to attacking police formations and the residence of Vice President Namadi Sambo. Two emirs in Borno and Yobe states also managed to escape death in separate suicide bombings which had been linked to the sect and which has caused the deaths of several people in the region.

Undeterred, the government, on 18 August, 2012, again reiterated its readiness to listen to the grievances of the group. It expressed the hope that the process would lead to the restoration of peace, security and tranquility in the North. It also said that it was receptive to any initiative that would usher in peace to the most troubled region in the country at the moment, given the security challenges facing the country.

Minister of Information, Labaran Maku, while expressing the government position, was reported to have said; “The Federal Government welcomes any initiative that will usher in peace, security and tranquility in the country…In this text, we welcome the statement by the Jamaatu Ahlis Lil Daawati wal Jihad acknowledging that they have been in contact with the Federal Government through its representatives and have started negotiations with the objective of reaching a final solution on this crisis.”

Another indication of the seriousness attached to the peace option, via the instrument of dialogue, was the peace initiative under the leadership of Dr Ahmed Datti who was appointed as the mediator between the government and members of the Boko Haram sect. However, the Datti-led initiative, which was the first major move by the government to reach out to the sect, appeared destined to fail, even right from the onset. Some members of the sect were said to have opposed the peace move as they perceived the Datti-led committee to be a political tool that would be used against the wish of the sect. Datti was also said to have had his internal problem with the sect leadership and there was a communication breakdown between them.

Lending his voice to the call for peace, the Shehu of Borno, Alhaji Abubakar ibn Garbai, whose domain had been savagely affected by the Boko Haram menace, renewed his appeal to the sect to embrace dialogue and end its violent campaign. Speaking at an emergency meeting with some Borno elders in his palace in Maiduguri two weeks ago, the Shehu said, “I want to make special appeal to members of the sect to please sheathe their swords and embrace dialogue with the government. They should please consider the hardship being faced by the people due to their violent campaign.”

Taking an exception to those who were against the dialogue option, the traditional ruler challenged the Borno elders to come up with suggestions on how to end the Boko Haram insurgency which he noted had crippled both economic and social activities in the state. He also appealed to all residents of the state to embark on prayers and fasting to seek divine intervention on the crisis.

In the same vein, Borno State governor, Alhaji Kashim Shettima, added his voice to the call for dialogue as he had also appealed to members of the Boko Haram sect to cease hostilities. Inaugurating a 12-man committee to compensate victims of the 8 October blast in Maiduguri, the governor said, among others; “Members of the sect should know that what they are doing is not advancing the cause of Islam; we call on them to embrace dialogue because violence only leads to destruction.” He also assured that government was willing to rehabilitate members of the sect who decided to lay down their arms and dialogue.

A former Head of State, Chief Ernest Shonekan, also joined the growing list of the pro-dialogue advocates as he, penultimate Sunday, called for dialogue with leaders of those responsible for the spate of insecurity in parts of the country. Speaking at the graduation ceremony for participants in Executive Intelligence Management Course (EIMC) 5, of the Institute for Security Studies, Abuja, Shoneka was of the view that dialogue was necessary to ascertain why they (members of the sect) engaged in violent act and to find ways to end the crisis.

“They are Nigerians and, to that extent, we must find ways and means of engaging them in robust dialogue to make them see reason and eschew violence. Such dialogue will also enable us to know the reasons behind their actions and how to end the violence”, he said, noting that there could not be sustainable socio-economic and political transformation in a country where there is no security of life and property.

Going beyond the immediacy to the underpinning factors, the former ING Head of State also identified the breakdown of the age-long cultural values of honesty, hospitality, respect for elders and constituted authorities, ignorance and unemployment as some of the factors responsible for the current insecurity. “We must therefore retrace our steps by returning to those age-long much cherished cultural values and also include them in the curricula of schools so that our children can learn the proper ways of behaviour”, he said.

Unfazed by the apparent lackluster attitude of the members of the sect to the dialogue process, an optimistic Federal Government, on 18 October, again renewed its call on members of Boko Haram to stop the attacks and incessant killings of innocent Nigerians. The Minister of Interior, Comrade Abba Moro, who described the various attacks as horrendous and unacceptable, urged members of the sect to embrace dialogue in resolving their grievances. Moro, in a statement issued by his Special Assistant on Media, Mr George Udoh, said the attacks and killings, almost on a daily basis, were unacceptable, sternly warning that “no responsible government would fold its hands and watch members of this sect unleash violence and making life miserable and agonising for Nigerians.”

However and in spite of the repeated calls for dialogue, the belligerent members of the Boko Haram sect appeared to have stuck to the gun namely a violent means to express their grievances (justified or not). A leader of the sect, Abubakar Shekau, had denied statements from the government that the group is in any way involved in peace talks. While President Jonathan had once said that the authorities were in dialogue with Boko Haram, via back channels and that the approach was helping neutralise the threat the sect posed, Shekau had insisted that no such talks were going on. “Let it be clear that we never sought dialogue or to sit down with government agents or representatives ... they (Nigerian leaders) will never know peace while they attack our members”, he quoted to have said.

It was in the light of the militant posture of members of the sect that many people are saying a dialogue between the government and the Boko Haram sect would be an exercise in futility. Advising the government to drop the process, an activist, Olawale Okunniyi, in August, cautioned against wasting time and public funds on the intended dialogue with the sect, saying that it may never happen or yield any positive result.

Okunniyi, the spokesperson of the Pro National Conference Organisation (PRONACO), said this against the backdrop of a statement credited to one of the sect’s leaders to wit: “We are calling on the government to know that once it is not Sharia Law that will be adopted in Nigeria, and Quran as book of laws in Nigeria in setting aside constitution that is mainly infidel’s product, then the government should not dream about peace in Nigeria. There is no single day that Mujahideens will stop fighting in Nigeria until that is achieved and we are hopeful to triumph over Nigerian government.”

Noting that the demand put forward by the Boko Haram sect was purely based on faith and ideology, Okunniyi opined that the Jonathan government needed no soothsayer to know that any official interface and negotiation with the sect is futile. According to him, the sect would not have trust and believe in any negotiations not involving other aggrieved groups and regional interests on the political and constitutional restructuring of the country leading to an autonomous federation for the country.

Stating that the group had the right to demand for self-determination and political autonomy based on Sharia Laws and the Koran as against the unitary structure imposed by the 1999 Constitution, the PRONACO scribe said; “However, we wish to advise that rather than continue to maim and kill innocent and poor people whether Christians or Muslims, whom are also fed up with the current frustrating political system imposed through the undemocratic constitution in Nigeria, they should urgently device a tactical method of organising to popularise their position in the North in proving that they are not in the minority in their region, as this will help them get the sympathy of other federating peoples of Nigeria, who have similar aspirations in wooing the international community based on the United Nations charter on rights of indigenous peoples for political autonomy.”

Warning the Federal Government that since the Boko Haram insurgency is faith-based and suicide-inclined, he said it cannot be treated as the Niger Delta militancy which could be contained by an amnesty deal. “The only deal and I repeat advisedly, the only deal that can resolve or isolate the Boko Haram suicide insurrections in Nigeria is not a negotiation with those that the sect believes are ‘infidels in government’ holding all other federating peoples in country hostage under an imposed constitution, but a popular collective negotiation and mutual agreement by all the natural federating nations and aggrieved groups in Nigeria on how they want to exist within Nigeria”, he said.

The pessimism and doubt expressed in some quarters about the success of the dialogue process notwithstanding, some people are however saying the process can still be pursued to a logical end, facilitating an end to the Boko Haram offensive in the North. In an interview published by 247 Ureports on Wednesday, Sanusi Muhammed, a member of the disbanded National Democratic Coalition (NADECO), said he had a relationship with the sect which dated back to 2006 and offered to proffer solution to the menace. Muhammed, who claimed to be in the fore-front to convincing the dreaded Islamic sect to accept to dialogue with the Federal Government, said he had met with its founder at three different occasions before the eruption of violence.

According to him, getting across to the sect was not as difficult as claimed, but the problem is thaithe proper channel is not followed. “What blocks the government from reaching out to them, from my understanding, is the inability of the people to cooperate with the relevant security agencies to achieve that specific purpose.

Secondly, most of those trying to assist in reaching out to the sect are either insincere in the assignment or are completely ignorant of the modus operandi of the sect. Thirdly, the sect itself has created artificial barrier between it and majority of the people through the loss of confidence in anything government based on what they say from past experience.

“There was a wrong approach to the Boko Haram issue right from the beginning through the application of force. The other point is that the international media contributed to the escalation of the problem, most especially Aljazeera and BBC television stations by airing the killing of some arrested members without going through the legal process as if Nigeria is a banana country. That film was terrible and it revealed a lot of things to the people relating to the security system in operation. And, most of government efforts are thwarted by unnecessary statements from some of its agents”, he said.

Faulting the previous attempts at reaching out to the sect, Muhammed said that former President Obasanjo did not meet with any Boko Haram member but an in-law of the late leader who was not mandated by the sect to speak for them or to even make any reference to them. According to him, that was what provoked them as he (the in-law) had, at the meeting with Obasanjo, forwarded some financial requests that include the payment of compensation as ruled by the Supreme Court and the sect felt betrayed and insulted.

As regards the failure of the Datti committee to attain a truce with the sect, Muhammed said he had expected the committee to liaise with the sect leadership and bring them to the negotiating table to present their case, instead of being represented. “Dr Datti erred by agreeing to dialogue on behalf of the sect with the Federal Government if that was a correct information. And I don’t think he had the mandate of doing so. Boko Haram should be encouraged to negotiate its problems by itself, rather than through representation once they accept to dialogue”, he said.

On the way out of the problem and to ensure a successful dialogue process, it has been suggested that the Federal Government should show sincerity, determination and commitment towards a genuine dialogue. In this wise, the government should identify those that the desired contact with the sect and enjoy their respect and confidence. These people should be secretly appointed as members of a secret committee with specific terms of reference and within a time-frame to accomplish the task of reaching the sect leadership to discuss the modalities of ending the problem.

As noted by Muhammed, “One most important thing the government should know is that the sect is more than what it is rated to be. They have branches all over the federation as I was reliably informed with members even in government. The government should be ready to face the challenges associated with brokering truce because of the high risks involved and should be careful in appointing those to represent it for the dialogue if it eventually holds.”

In the same vein, the governors of the affected states should come into the process by sincerely setting up reconciliatory committees in their respective states to reach out to the sect. This view is against the backdrop of the yet-to-be assuaged feeling among the members of the sect that, given the extra-judicial killing of their leader in 2009 and the demolishing of their houses and places of worship in some states in the North-East, as well as what they saw as indiscriminate arrest of their members on the orders of some state governors, they may not want to agree to listen to any request from any of those state governments without an intermediary.

As claimed by Sanusi Muhammed, some of the belligerent Boko Haram leaders, including Shekau, may want to enter into dialogue with the government, but on the ground of the conviction of adequate security arrangement for him and his lieutenant at such peace meetings. To achieve this, as noted by Muhammed, “government should first appoint a contact committee to reach the sect and prepare them for the dialogue which should include suspension of all attacks as the arrangement goes on. Then, a dialogue committee should be appointed to meet with representatives of the sect for the final resolution.”
Source http://tribune.com.ng/index.php/the-friday-edition/49861-boko-haram-how-far-has-nigeria-gone-with-the-dialogue-process-