Whence a dog has tasted blood, it is no good no more. Once a young man has tasted the power behind the barrel, only Almighty God can tame him. When in december 1, 2006 President Felipe Calderón assumed office as the President of Mexico he promised the drug cartels fire. With the help of America and her drug agency he delivered on his promise. He almost like wiped out all the major cartel drug lords. Unknowingly, he created another problem. Hear Time magazine of January 17, 2014; “...Many killers who worked for the cartels have become independent gangs of kidnappers trying to turn a quick buck, police say: ‘There are local gangs that have been left without the cartel bosses to pay them but they still have the guns and are looking for an income,”
Armed robbery was unknown in Nigeria until after the civil war. Like his style or not, I think late President Yaradua should be seen as one of the super visionary leader of this nation. When he proposed the amnesty agenda, in my mind is was like “this is a stupid, useless, lame idea that lacked intellectual understanding and depth”. My verdict; it was bound to fail. Lo! And behold, that unusual and “stupid” idea worked. I think it had to do with his kind of person and the company he encouraged. Those guns and other weapons of mass destruction that were WILLINGLY SURRENDERED is unprecedented in conflict resolution. Quote me. I had feared that whenever the Niger delta militants were defeated, the after effect will be like that of Mexico where the quality of your security team is the index of wealth. An imported American ex-seal team member in your team rates you a billionaire. BUT NO. The problem was solved and buried FOREVA.
The security challenges we have now; the Boko Haram insurgency, the Shiite Muslims grudge, the reawakening of the Niger Delta militants and the IPOB/MOSSOB agitation all call for a home grown, unusual, intelligent, tough but humane strategy. My fear is that the APC, the president’s kitchen and official cabinets are populated by hawks. The doves a very few to balance the equation of solving these security problems without creating mutants of the problems solved. I fear. I fear. I only pray that like in Yaradua’s case I will be wrong again. Honesty, I will be happy to be wrong so that Nigeria will be a safer place.