₦airaland Forum

omenka:
By the crack of dawn, I see a couple of folks passing out on sighting this thread.

Those strong enough to put up a feeble defence would go: "Aisha Rice working", "they are Tinubu paid idjiots", "useless betrayers (as though they signed any deals with them)", "APC propaganda", or their most favourite "THEY ARE YOLOBAS".

#FireOnBuhari!! All Nigerians of good conscience are solidly behind you.



By the way, LRNZH, how dare you create such a thread?? Hope you got your bullet proof and all other protective gear intact cos they've definitely come for your head for this.

Omenka you didn't see me o, I am currently in hiding. They sent bloodykiller already but whosai?

...who is FFK? The boy that sings for rice and chicken?

WHAT INDEED IS THE RULE OF LAW?
Written by Kay Lord

I remember one of President Obama's key promise during his first term campaign;

"I will shut down Guatanamo Bay prisons. It is hypocritical of America to be preaching democracy and rule of law to the world yet own a facility where suspects are kept without trial for many years. The shutting down of that illegal detention centre would be one of my first executive order once I am sworn in as the President of the United States. " (Paraphrased)

As I write this, Obama is nearing the end of his second term in office and Guatanamo prison is still standing and the US are still detaining high risk suspects there, some for upward of 10 to 15 years without trial or prosecution in any law court anywhere in the world.

Obama came to office as a green horn in security matters. He did not know that security issues are not subject to campaign rhetoric. I remember John McCain, his Republican challenger, a war veteran and a Senator of over 30 years, who had chaired several Senate security committee in the US Senate telling Obama he does not know what he's talking about!

You will wonder why Obama kept silent on Guatanamo till now? Now, he knows better. That's why I laugh reading Facebook 'activist' and unrepentant Buhari bashers pontificating and sermonising over the rule of law after what President Buhari said about granting bail for individuals that has serious case against the state that pertains to security issues.

What folks don't understand is that the rule of law itself is subject to the rule and right of a nation when it pertains to the security and wellbeing of the people of a country against that of a few individuals. That's why, the USA that calls themselves the land of freedom and the bastion of democracy in the world do not care about the rule of law when it concerns the security of her people. That supercede any rule of law. Cry from today to eternity, you are just wasting your time and effort, America will ignore you and do what they have to do.

Check this; the US flouted every international law when the President of the US ordered special combat forces to go into the territory of another sovereign nation, Pakistan in order to get Osama bin Laden. Not only was Osama ordered to be killed extra judicially but his corpse was even buried at sea. When I read a book detailing the preparation for that mission by one of the members of that special force that entered into Pakistan under the cover of the night, you will realize that when it comes to the security and safety of the United States, they are ready to flout any law. Now, do you want to accuse Obama of illegality? Has Pakistan sued America at the World court? Also, please who amongst the vuvuzelas shouting themselves hoarse on Facebook will pick up the gauntlet and sue the President of the US for killing Osama bin Laden extra judicially? Ohhh don't they think Osama bin Laden has fundamental right to fair hearing? Yeye people!

One of the reasons I supported president Buhari came to fore during his media chat. I am an advocate of the rule of law and I believe in it but personally I believe we have to draw a line when the rule of law comes into conflict with security, safety and the well being of citizens of a given nation. You can't flagrantly abuse the security and well being of the people and come around to shout about rule of law when it's time to face the consequences of your action. Our judicial process must be overhauled to conform with the reality of the moment. America knows this better. For once, this country has a President that is ready to lead! It's not that PMB does not believe in the rule of law. After all, this is a man that was rigged out of election on about 3 occasions but followed the rule of law by going all up to the Supreme court to seek redress.

What the President is saying to whoever care to listen is that, when it comes to the safety, well being and progress of this nation no individual would use the rule of law to escape justice. That's why he said point blank concerning the Shi'ite issue that you can't have a state inside a state! It's either folks are ready to shape up or ship out! This country has been thrown to the dogs, it's high time we take it back and put it on the path of sanctity. Enough of lilly livered leadership, it's time to run this country according to dictates of the time we live in.

If you don't like it, sorry, we have a country to run and you will have to excuse us.

Kay Lord, 2 January 2016
(All Rights reserved)

Mbaka’s Prophesy: ‘We’ll shutdown Nigeria if anything ugly happens to Buhari’

UMUAHIA—FOLLOWING Rev. Father Ejike Mbaka’s prediction of possible assassination plot against President Muhammadu Buhari, a group, Buhari South-East Youth Movement, BSEYM, has threatened to shut down the country if anything ugly happens to the President.

[img]http://cdn1.vanguardngr.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/412x311xMbaka-Buhari-e1451943152750.jpg.pagespeed.ic.Lnlc4aGyCA.webp[/img]
Mbaka-Buhari

The group advised anyone or group with such evil plan to have a rethink “because such will spell doom for not just the country.”

In a statement in Umuahia, Abia State by its leader, Mr. Nwabueze Onwuneme, the group expressed its support for President Buhari’s anti-corruption war.

It called on anyone with any knowledge of any ploy against the President or the country to immediately divulge such to law enforcement agents.

According to the group, Mbaka’s prediction should not be dismissed with a wave of hands because “corruption really fights back dirty when attacked.”

It called on all well-meaning Nigerians to resist the evil work of “this small group that wants to kill this country,” and which had improvised the masses, and support President Buhari in his effort to sanitize the country.

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2016/01/mbakas-prophesy-well-shutdown-nigeria-if-anything-ugly-happens-to-buhari/

cc: Lalasticlala; Mynd44; Obinoscopy

https://static01.nyt.com/images/2016/01/04/world/04SHEIKH2/04SHEIKH2-articleLarge.jpg
Sunni and Shiite demonstrators prayed together during a protest denouncing the execution of Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr in Beirut, Lebanon, on Sunday.

Saudi Arabia’s execution of the Shiite cleric Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr could escalate tensions in the Muslim world even further. In the Shiite theocracy Iran, the supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, said on Sunday that Saudi Arabia, which is ruled by a Sunni monarchy, would face “divine vengeance” for the killing of the outspoken cleric, which was part of a mass execution of 47 men.

Sheikh Nimr had advocated for greater political rights for Shiites in Saudi Arabia and surrounding countries. Saudi Arabia had accused him of inciting violence against the state.

Here is a primer on the basic differences between Sunni and Shia Islam.

What Caused the Split?

A schism emerged after the death of the Prophet Muhammad in 632 A.D. He died without appointing a successor to lead the Muslim community, and disputes arose over who should shepherd the new and rapidly growing faith.

https://static01.nyt.com/images/2016/01/04/world/04SHEIKH1/04SHEIKH1-articleLarge.jpg
Shiite pilgrims at the shrine to Imam Hussein in Karbala, Iraq, in December. Each year millions visit the city to mark Arbaeen, the end of the 40-day mourning period for Imam Hussein, one of Shiite Islam's most revered figures.

Some believed that a new leader should be chosen by consensus; others thought that only the prophet’s descendants should become caliph. The title passed to a trusted aide, Abu Bakr, though some thought it should have gone to Ali, the prophet’s cousin and son-in-law. Ali eventually did become caliph after Abu Bakr’s two successors were assassinated.

After Ali also was assassinated, with a poison-laced sword at the mosque in Kufa, in what is now Iraq, his sons Hasan and then Hussein claimed the title. But Hussein and many of his relatives were massacred in Karbala, Iraq, in 680. His martyrdom became a central tenet to those who believed that Ali should have succeeded the prophet (it is mourned every year during the month of Muharram). The followers became known as Shiites, a contraction of the phrase Shiat Ali, or followers of Ali.

The Sunnis, however, regard the first three caliphs before Ali as rightly guided and themselves as the true adherents to the Sunnah, or the prophet’s tradition. Sunni rulers embarked on sweeping conquests that extended the caliphate into North Africa and Europe. The last caliphate ended with the fall of the Ottoman Empire after World War I.

How Do Their Beliefs Differ?

The Sunni and Shiite sects of Islam encompass a wide spectrum of doctrine, opinion and schools of thought. The branches are in agreement on many aspects of Islam, but there are considerable disagreements within each. Both branches include worshipers who run the gamut from secular to fundamentalist.

Shiites consider Ali and the leaders who came after him as imams. The 12th imam, a boy, is believed to have vanished in the ninth century in Iraq after his father was murdered. Shiites known as Twelvers anticipate his return as the Mahdi, or Messiah. Because of the different paths the two sects took, Sunnis emphasize God’s power in the material world, sometimes including the public and political realm, while Shiites place great value in martyrdom and sacrifice.

Which Sect Is Larger, and Where Do They Live?

More than 85 percent of the world’s 1.5 billion Muslims are Sunni. They live across the Arab world, as well in countries like Turkey, Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, Malaysia and Indonesia. Iran, Iraq and Bahrain are largely Shiite.

The Saudi royal family, which practices an austere and conservative strand of Sunni Islam known as Wahhabism, controls Islam’s holiest shrines, Mecca and Medina. Karbala, Kufa and Najaf in Iraq are revered shrines for the Shiites.

Saudi Arabia and Iran, the dominant Sunni and Shiite powers in the Middle East, often take opposing sides in regional conflicts. In Yemen, a Shiite movement from that country’s north, the Houthis, overthrew a Sunni-dominated government, leading to an invasion by a Saudi-led coalition.

In Syria, which has a Sunni majority, the Alawite Shiite sect of President Bashar al-Assad, which has long dominated the government, clings to power amid a bloody civil war. And in Iraq, bitter resentments between the Shiite-led government and Sunni communities have contributed to victories by the Islamic State.

http://mobile.nytimes.com/2016/01/04/world/middleeast/q-and-a-how-do-sunni-and-shia-islam-differ.html?partner=rss&emc=rss&referer=

cc: OAM4J; Lalasticlala; Mynd44

This is another very insightful quote.
Honestly one can use this to make current affairs / memorable pamphlet and sell in traffic o.
Please don't steal my business idea for 2016.

“If Sanusi hadn’t been suspended he would have come up with a different figure… If anyone steals $50 billion or $20 billion anywhere America will know, they will tell you where it is; it is their money.”
https://media.premiumtimesng.com/wp-content/files/2014/06/640x480xPRESIDENT-Goodluck-Jonathan.jpg.pagespeed.ic.jBjczD5xhJ.jpg
Former President Goodluck Jonathan while addressing the issue of ‘missing’ $20 billion.

Lalasticlala, Mynd44... food dey burn for fire o..

https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/375/cpsprodpb/17FC5/production/_87354289_composite_getty.jpg

It has been a roller-coaster year of African news, from the historic elections in Nigeria to the momentous visits of the Pope and the US president.

To sum up the last 12 months, here are some of the best quotes:

1. "I belong to everybody and I belong to nobody"
Nigeria's President Muhammadu Buhari on the day of his historic inauguration in May
https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/375/cpsprodpb/ACB8/production/_87361244_4e532937-198f-4c55-af27-3ed8416ec934.jpg
Muhammadu Buhari

2. "We must change our lawless habits, our attitude to public office and public trust. We must change our unruly behaviour in schools, hospitals, market places, motor parks, on the roads, in homes and offices.
"To bring about change, we must change ourselves by being law-abiding citizens"
President Buhari said four months later on Nigeria's independence day

3. "The time for vision has come. I request our South African government to help us clean our land of lice. We need to remove all itching bedbugs and lay them bare in the sun.
"We request that all foreigners should take their baggage and be sent back"
https://ichef-1.bbci.co.uk/news/375/cpsprodpb/FAD8/production/_87361246_gettyimages-98922316.jpg
South Africa's Zulu King Goodwill Zwelithini, who denied that his comments in March fuelled xenophobic violence

4. "If I had known this lion had a name and was important to the country or a study obviously I wouldn't have taken it. Nobody in our hunting party knew before or after the name of this lion."
https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/375/cpsprodpb/5E98/production/_87361242_9d1226ce-9528-437e-aa1f-4a0745278f23.jpg
Cecil the lion
US dentist Walter Palmer, who killed Zimbabwe's famous Cecil the lion in July


5. "Dear white people in the fashion world!... Why do I have to bring my own make-up to a professional show when all the other white girls don't have to do anything but show up.
"Don't try to make me feel bad because I am blue-black - it's 2015"
https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/375/cpsprodpb/4FC0/production/_87361402_gettyimages-481605784.jpg
South Sudanese model Nykhor Paul, who got more than 20,000 likes on Instagram after she posted the comment in July

6. "I have seen more demonstrations and strikes in my first two years. I don't think it can get worse. It is said that when you kill a goat and you frighten it with a knife, it doesn't fear the knife because it is dead already. I have a dead-goat syndrome"
https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/375/cpsprodpb/9DE0/production/_87361404_e9ae731c-df96-4b65-80e3-a6095199efba.jpg
Ghana's President John Mahama, being dismissive in March of the protests against his government. The quote has earned him the nickname "The Goat"

7. "This is surreal for me, I'm not going to lie, growing up in the dusty streets of South Africa, I never dreamed that I would one day have two things really: An indoor toilet and a job as host of the Daily Show.
"And now I have both, and I'm quite comfortable with one of them"
https://ichef-1.bbci.co.uk/news/375/cpsprodpb/EC00/production/_87361406_d475a6f9-62f4-4bd1-a35f-033632b5b6da.jpg
South African comedian Trevor Noah as he made his debut hosting Comedy Central's satirical news show in September

8. "I've just concluded - since President Obama endorses the same-sex marriage, advocates homosexual people and enjoys an attractive countenance - thus if it becomes necessary, I shall travel to Washington DC, get down on my knee and ask his hand"
https://ichef-1.bbci.co.uk/news/375/cpsprodpb/A48E/production/_87362124_gettyimages-96741695.jpg
Zimbabwe's leader Robert Mugabe, mocking a US Supreme Court decision in June to legalise gay marriage

9. "I love my work. But under our constitution, I cannot run again... I actually think I'm a pretty good president - I think if I ran I could win. But I can't.
"When a leader tries to change the rules in the middle of the game just to stay in office, it risks instability and strife - as we've seen in Burundi. Nobody should be president for life"
https://ichef-1.bbci.co.uk/news/375/cpsprodpb/13A20/production/_87361408_e388fb91-a8bb-4415-a470-b843ee621d4f.jpg
US President Barack Obama on his visit to Ethiopia in July

10. "We are going to create a special wheelchair for President Mugabe until he rules to 100 years because that is what we want. That is the people's choice. We want a leader that respects us"
https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/375/cpsprodpb/DD28/production/_87361665_418920bf-87d0-440b-b152-ffdf4faaead6.jpg
Zimbabwe's first lady Grace Mugabe in November, after her 91-year-old husband was caught on camera struggling to walk

11. "The way to treat a boil is to squeeze it out, and I have made it my responsibility to do that. I know squeezing out a boil hurts but unfortunately there are no two ways about it"
https://ichef-1.bbci.co.uk/news/375/cpsprodpb/12B48/production/_87361667_c73264c8-976f-4ad2-9967-547ffba9a95e.jpg
Tanzania's newly elected President John Magufuli, telling parliament in November about his drive to root out corruption and lazy workers

12. "I organised a meeting in 2005 to solve our family issues. When I asked them about their opinion, they said I should build each family member a house and give each of them a monthly wage... I just want other African families to learn from this"
https://ichef-1.bbci.co.uk/news/375/cpsprodpb/17968/production/_87361669_gettyimages-463754814.jpg
Togo football star Emmanuel Adebayor, denying in a Facebook post in May claims that he failed to support his family financially

13. "Christians and Muslims are brothers and sisters.
"Together, we must say no to hatred, no to revenge and no to violence, particularly that violence which is perpetrated in the name of a religion or of God himself. God is peace, God salaam."
https://ichef-1.bbci.co.uk/news/375/cpsprodpb/44D0/production/_87361671_gettyimages-499243002.jpg
Pope Francis on his visit to a mosque in the Central African Republic in November
Pope of the poor makes big impact in Africa

14. "Relaxing your hair was a rite of passage. My hair suffered a lot with those chemicals and I cut it all off and my hair grew and I realised it wasn't that bad after all"
https://ichef-1.bbci.co.uk/news/375/cpsprodpb/92F0/production/_87361673_gettyimages-492717908.jpg
Kenya's Oscar-winning actress Lupita Nyong'o told the BBC

15. "A court is the guardian of justice, the cornerstone of a democratic system based on the rule of law. If the state  does not abide by court orders, the democratic edifice will crumble stone-by-stone until it collapses and chaos ensues"
https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/375/cpsprodpb/13CE6/production/_87362118_gettyimages-477108150.jpg
Sudan's President Omar al-Bashir attended an African Union summit in South Africa in June
Judge Dunstan Mlambo, who criticised the South African government for letting Sudan's President Omar al-Bashir leave the country in June despite an International Criminal Court arrest warrant

16. "It's not about unmasking Anas. It's about all of us putting our hands together and ensuring we have a better continent. I think that anonymity has always been my secret weapon and I have always used it to the benefit of society"
https://ichef-1.bbci.co.uk/news/375/cpsprodpb/AB06/production/_85928734_8517760262_f8ee8f20b2_o.jpg
Undercover journalist Anas Aremeyaw Anas, whose documentary this year exposed corruption in Ghana's judiciary

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-35160583

cc: Lalasticlala, Mynd44, Ishilove

[img]http://media.premiumtimesng.com/wp-content/files/2014/03/633x348xAnyaoku.jpg.pagespeed.ic.-dPOQUyCKK.webp[/img]

The year 2016 inspires hope of real change for the better in Nigeria’s national circumstances, former Commonwealth Secretary General, Emeka Anyaoku, has said.

Mr. Anyaoku made the remark in a signed statement made available to News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Monday in Abuja.

He expressed hope that the pervading insecurity in Nigeria would be brought under control.

He also expressed hope that corruption which had remained the greatest bane to national development would be effectively tackled.

“The infrastructural deficit in power supply, transportation including roads, education and health will receive attention.

“Youth unemployment together with the widespread poverty of the masses will be productively addressed,’’ the statement quoted Mr. Anyaoku as saying.

He described 2015 as a year of historic events which began with insecurity and devastation in the North-Eastern part of the country.

He said the outgoing year also witnessed growing threat of destructive violence to the national electoral process with potential unacceptable consequences for the integrity of the nation.

“But thanks to the initiative by some elder-statesmen led to signing of the Abuja Accord of violence-free campaigns by the 14 presidential candidates and their political parties.

“The elections were peaceful which enabled the country to progress its evolving democracy by having for the first time a peaceful change of government from a ruling to an opposition party,’’ he said.

Mr. Anyoku said the challenge facing the Muhammadu Buhari-led administration is to work with all the regions of the country for the realisation of these hopes.

He added that the challenge also calls for collaborative response from all the citizens.

http://www.premiumtimesng.com/news/top-news/195848-anyaoku-hopeful-nigeria-will-effectively-tackle-corruption-insecurity-in-2016.html

cc: Lalasticlala, Mynd44

..

Na so.we dey see am O...

Mogidi:
[/quote][quote author=Pidggin post=41390015]Shame, a Nigeria president granting interview in Hausa all the time.

Wailers, PMB also granted English Interview:


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U_UkFkiPsLA

[img]http://media.premiumtimesng.com/wp-content/files/2015/12/860x490xPIC.-4.-PRESIDENT-BUHARI-PRESENTS-2016-APPROPRATION-BILL-IN-ABUJA1-e1450809555614.jpg.pagespeed.ic.5odL1d7r5K.webp[/img]

President Muhammadu Buhari has explained that despite the fall in the international price of crude oil, measures taken to block leakages in the nation’s revenue generating agencies would ensure enough cash to fund the N6 trillion budget he recently submitted to the National Assembly.

The president gave the explanation in an interview with Mansur Liman of the BBC Hausa service on Christmas eve. He also spoke on his government’s ‘success’ at defeating the Boko Haram insurgents.

PREMIUM TIMES’ Sani Tukur translated the interview;


BBC: You recently submitted the biggest budget estimates in Nigeria’s history to the National Assembly, and this came at a time the price of oil has drastically gone down in world markets. How do you intend to get money to fund the budget?

PMB: As a government, we inherited N1.5 trillion domestic debt and when foreign debt is added we have about N2.2 trillion. Everybody knows Nigeria is not a poor country, we are rich, and we have human resources, the problem had been that leadership did not take seriously, curbing corrupt tendencies.

Apart from highlighting our debt profile, we have also shown the changes we have made in the Customs for instance, how; much we are making from the Customs service, how much from petroleum, that is NNPC; how much we are making from the ports. There have been lots of leakages in these sectors. If we block these leakages, we would make much more money to run the country despite the fall in the price of oil.

BBC: Are you sure you can block all the leakages? Because if one looks at it, it was just the leaders of these agencies that were changed while most of the lieutenants who were part of the system of the “leakages” are still in place. What do you think would change to make sure that “business as usual” does not continue and Nigeria would get those monies?

PMB: It is generally believed that a fish begins to rot from the head; once the head is rotten, the whole body is also rotten. We have tried to remove all the heads of the organisations, and most of the lieutenants have been changed.

A lot is happening in this government that people do not appear to understand; many permanent secretaries of ministries have been changed; we used to have 42 ministers, now we have 36 because the constitution requires that each state of the federation must have a minister; we used to have 42 ministries, now we have 24.

BBC: You have also allocated 30 per cent of the budget to capital projects; what informed that decision?

PMB: It is a must. Remember during the campaigns, we said Nigeria is facing three things and nobody disputed that assertion. Firstly; there was widespread insecurity, war in the north east, while the country’s oil was being stolen at random in the south; secondly; there is massive unemployment, 62 per cent of the nation’s population are youth from the age of 35 years downward; most of them are unemployed, including those who went to school and those who did not, that is a serious problem. Therefore, it has become necessary to restore peace and create employment.

That is why we are returning to agriculture and mineral resources. Thirdly, bribery and corruption was basically suffocating the country. If we don’t kill these monsters, this country would go down.

That is why those who stole monies meant for arms procurement and shared it among themselves are being arrested and are being shown documents, so that they would be asked to refund the money or face prosecution; we would use those documents to prove what they stole, collect all the assets acquired from the proceeds and then jail them.

BBC: You have initiated a programme in which poor and vulnerable Nigerians would be paid N5,000 monthly; what have you put in place to ensure that there is justice and fairness in the running of this programme?

PMB: It is not possible for everyone needing it to get it; but the Federal Government has said it would collaborate with the states and local governments. At the local government level, almost everyone knows each other. It would be easy to identify those to give who would go into trading and how to get it back. It would be like a cooperative and we all know how it operates.

Also, state governments would identify those who have capacity to employ more people and all we need to do is to empower them. Our people already know how to go about implementing these modalities to create employment for the citizens.

BBC: You earlier mentioned Boko Haram. After your assumption of office, you gave a deadline of December to bring an end to Boko Haram insurgency. We are almost at the end of December, does it mean you and the armed forces have failed?

PMB: I want people to understand that after I settled down and got good grasp of what the country is going through, we removed all the service chiefs and appointed new ones. We also undertook an investigation and found out how the monies meant for arms procurement were diverted and shared by officials in the last administration.

They sent the boys to the war front without arms and ammunition, leading some of them to mutiny after which they were arrested and detained.

We have been able to raise money and fund the war. Go and ask the people of Borno, Yobe and Adamawa; how many of their local governments were under the control of insurgents? And how many are currently still under the insurgents?

May be we would not win the war completely by the end of the month, but the insurgents have now resorted to putting on explosive vests on young children, mostly girls aged 15 and below and then sending them to markets, mosques and churches to detonate.

Boko Haram themselves know that the era of them taking over communities and local governments are over. If people would be fair to us, they would know that the Nigerian Army has basically met the deadline and are winning the war.

You cannot find any significant number of Boko Haram members in Adamawa, and Yobe, only may be in about three local governments of Borno in the area around our borders with Chad Republic. They are not in a position to threaten Nigeria now, so we have won.

http://www.premiumtimesng.com/news/top-news/195790-buhari-speaks-how-we-intend-to-fund-nigerias-n6-trillion-budget.html

Original interview video with BBC Hausa Service: http://www.bbc.com/hausa/multimedia/2015/12/151223_buhari_special_interview

cc: Lalasticlala, Mynd44

In this interview, the spokesperson for the Nigeria Army, Colonel Sani Usman, explains the circumstances that led to the bloody confrontation between members of the Islamic Movement in Nigeria, IMN, led by Sheik Ibrahim El-Zakzaky, and the Nigeria Army, penultimate Saturday. Not the first of its kind, but the activities of the IMN and the handling of the matter by the army personnel have, this time, generated a lot of attention. Excerpts:

What is the update on the leader of the Shiite sect, El-Zakzaky, especially his whereabouts?
I can tell you that, contrary to the rumour that is going on, he is alive.

What exactly happened that Saturday that led to the clash and bloodbath?
One thing I want you to understand is that there wasn’t any procession that day. What happened was that quite a number of important activities were going on in the country on that day including the Chief of the Army Staff Annual Conference, in Dutse, Jigawa State. The Emir of Dutse was also celebrating his 20th anniversary on the throne; so it became incumbent on the Chief of the Army Staff to wait behind and be part of the programme.
That same day, we were having the Passing Out Parade of the 73 Regular Recruits Intake in Zaria and then there was the graduation ceremony of the Kaduna State University.

Now, part of the tradition had been that whenever a very important dignitary is in Zaria, which is the headquarters of ZauZau Emirate, it is imperative for such a guest to pay a courtesy call on the Emir; so we were on our way from Dutse to Zaria, first and foremost to pay the courtesy call on the Emir of ZauZau, who had to cut short his engagements in Kaduna where he had attended the convocation ceremony to be with us.

[img]http://cdn2.vanguardngr.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/412x320xBuratai-e1442856804316.jpg.pagespeed.ic.XvGnC3Ngp9.webp[/img]
Chief of Army Staff, Lt-Gen. Tukur Buratai

So when did the crisis begin?
Sometime around 2:30pm, along Sokoto Road, by the Railway Clinic, a group of youths started coming from the PZ end, close to the spiritual headquarters of the Islamic Movement in Nigeria.

What they did was to start encircling the convoy of the Chief of the Army Staff. We came down, we pleaded with them and we wanted them to see reason but, before you could say Jack Robinson, some of them had started throwing stones and you could hear loud bangs.
People who were responsible for the safety and security of the Chief of the Army Staff had to clear the way for the Chief of the Army Staff.

They had made bonfires and there was stone-throwing all over the place and no amount of pleading could get them to see reason.

They made it clear that they had done it to several other people and that the Chief of the Army Staff was nobody and he could not pass through that road.

Remember again, there were series of arguments. They alleged that some days ago, some security operatives went to a particular village and murdered their people. Meanwhile, there was nothing like that. What actually happened was that there was an altercation between the Islamic movement and some other Islamic sect over the location or ownership of a mosque. Then they changed the argument that they were having a funeral procession.

For goodness sake, there was’t any funeral procession and, of course, when the leader was giving an interview on the BBC Hausa Service, he said they were hoisting a flag.

Please, which flag are you going to hoist at 2.30 in the afternoon?
And, in any case, in the Federal Republic of Nigeria, there is no flag that is more important than the National Flag.
I want to honestly tell you that all these things were premeditated, they were planned and, before you knew it, they started encircling.

And the advance party of the Chief of the Army Staff, some 15 minutes earlier, passed through the same place without any incident.
The arrival of the Chief of the Army Staff was well publicised and these people were aware that the convoy was that of the Chief of the Army Staff and they decided to ambush it.

Were these people armed?
Certainly they were armed
What sort of arms were they carrying?
The least were machete and catapult.
They also had petrol bombs and were always hiding behind trees

Had there been any issue between the authorities and the Shiite Islamic Movement in Nigeria before that day?
Many Nigerians and those who have had encounters with these people know that they have always constituted a nuisance. I would rather ask you to find out from those living in Zaria or those who traverse the road between Zaria, Kaduna and Kano; they will tell you of their agony, but I can tell you of a particular incident during one of their processions. There was a woman whose child was sick. Her husband was in Abuja and she wanted to get to the hospital but she was stuck in one place for over five hours. Some time last year, a soldier was attacked with a machete on the head. We have living witnesses. Even this recent one, the Chief of the Army Staff’s car was stoned and scratched.
Considering the ugly situation which happened last year when the sect leader lost three of his sons, and now this, don’t you think the situation could have been better managed?

Let me make this clear, the Nigeria Army does not have any problem with anybody or any group of persons. We are against criminals and criminality and whoever is not ready to operate within the ambit of the Nigerian law, something must be done about that. In any case, to be better handled by who? The perpetrators who made an attempt on the life of the Chief of the Army Staff or the Nigeria Army?

When you say assassination attempt, was there truly an assassination attempt?
What I want you to understand is that there is abundant evidence and there are witnesses to the circumstances that led to the events of Saturday. What I want you to know is that they were quite aware that the Chief of the Army Staff was passing and it was made abundantly clear to them that it was the Chief of the Army Staff and his entourage performing a legitimate official duty and they refused to budge. Rather than reason, they started taking position as per military tactics on a federal road.

So, how did the military get to his home and started exchanging gun fire?
Like I told you earlier, that aspect is subject to inquiry and I don’t want to discuss that.

The headquarters of the Islamic Movement in Nigeria appears to have been levelled. What would you say informed the decision of the Nigeria Army to take such a step?
What I want you to understand is that we are targeting criminals and criminality. And whatever transpired is subject to inquiry and I wouldn’t want to comment on that; I would urge that we await the report of the inquiry. Some people have tried to insinuate that we were seeking vengeance, but there is nothing like that. Possibly, it is the Movement that would have said it has grouses against the Nigeria Army, but the Nigeria Army has never been against any individual or any group of individuals.

Why would they have a grouse against the Nigeria Army? Has the Army offended them in any way?
Just as earlier said, like losing sons and earlier they were talking about the incident that happened in Zaria.
Let me tell you, when the present Chief of the Army Staff came on board, he requested for all the files, and he wanted to get to the bottom of the crisis that happened last year and ensure that justice is done.

People are worried because a mishandling of a similar thing in Borno led us to the crisis of Boko Haram? So, why didn’t the military take action knowing what it had known about the sect and not waiting until an alleged attempt on the life of the Chief of the Army Staff?
I can understand their worries given the history of Boko Haram, but I can assure that the Nigeria Army and every reasonable Nigerian has learned lessons from that ugly incident and we don’t want that kind of thing to repeat itself and that is why it needed to be nipped in the bud. And unlike the previous instance when the law was circumscribed, the law is being followed diligently and I will implore Nigerians to be patient.

*This interview was first aired on Channels Television last Tuesday.
http://www.vanguardngr.com/2015/12/our-el-zakzaky-story-by-the-army/