Buhari Pushed the South East to the Brink—We Must Not Repeat the Mistake
By Mike Odeh James
All these Muslim organizations and clerics urging Nigeria to join South Africa in filing a human rights suit against Israel, and opposing Nigeria’s cooperation with Israel in counter-terrorism, should pause and reflect. Nigeria is neither an Arab nation nor an Islamic State.
They must also recognize that half of Nigeria’s population is Christian—and many Christians do not sympathize with the Palestinian cause, largely because groups like Hamas and the PLO have long relied on terrorism to advance their agenda. For Christians, this is not far removed from the same violent tactics used by Boko Haram, ISWAP, and other extremists who have devastated our communities.
This is why caution is necessary. By amplifying divisive rhetoric, these organizations and clerics risk deepening Nigeria’s fault lines and pushing the country toward dangerous disintegration. Already, Islamist groups such as Boko Haram, Ansaru, ISIS affiliates, and the militia known as Lakurawa have rendered large swathes of Northern Nigeria ungovernable.
History gives us lessons. The actions and policies of former President Muhammadu Buhari pushed the South East to the brink of alienation. If care is not taken, similar rhetoric today could push other regions in the same direction.
What should concern these clerics most is the possibility that Southerners—and indeed many others—may one day conclude they no longer wish to remain in a union where the voices of extremism seem louder than the voices of unity and peace.
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