http://arewadaily.com/how-many-more-tragedy-can-a-nation-condone-with-by-nkannebe-raymond/

Fellow compatriots, it is with a deep heart full of grief for our Nation that I write this particular column. The events of the past week and those before it aggregated together, elicited the question that informs the title of this piece and which I must state once more for emphasis purposes-How Many More Tragedy Can a Nation Condone with?

A nation can manage all sort of problems that comes its ways in its effort to better the lot of the citizens but when such problems include insecurity, the type served by terrorist cells hiding in different nooks and crannies of the state to hatch and propagate their campaign of blood-letting, it suddenly brings a nation to its knees. It embarrasses that nation in the international scene, it makes all of it effort in combating such despicable anomaly come to nought and finally it deals a huge blow on the psyche of the citizens of that country, and in many cases, propel them to ask the painful question-To what end is governance if it cannot protect the lives and properties of its citizens?

Fellow Nigerians, it is such scenario painted above, that have visited us and sits comfortably in the living rooms of our national affairs. Growing up as an inquisitive lad who would always rush to his father’s room the moment he goes out to have a look at the day’s daily, I had thought terrorism was a thing reserved for some particular countries like Israel, Irak, Iran, Pakistan, Afghanistan etc which I always saw back then on the Pages of Newspapers being home to one bombing or the other. But now that I am a full grown man, it appears I was wrong all along as the tide of terrorism has also enveloped Nigeria and not just her, many other parts of Africa. Kenya, Libya, Mali,Somalia, Sudan etc, are all literally, hot beds of one terrorist organisation or the other, that carries on their campaign of bestiality with impunity of the highest apogee.

Nearly 90 days ago, young school girls were kidnapped or if you like, abducted from their school and until this day, their whereabouts are either unknown or cannot be confronted for a possible rescue of the girls. As I was putting the final touches to this piece, word came to me that 7 parents of the girls still at large, had died from the consistent thought of having a daughter whom you cannot see, whom you do not know how she fares, the food she eats, whether she takes her bath, how she manages to change her clothes and most bitterly, the state of her health and sensitive organs? That is how bad it is.

I have a younger sister whom I wouldn’t for anything let anyone hurt her, much less live with the knowledge of her being abducted by hoodlums for close to 3 moons. Putting all these into consideration, vindicates the submission of some of the parents who out of frustration, told newsmen, that their burden would have been lighter, had their daughters been confirmed dead and they by any chance were able to receive their corpse for burial. The condition they are confronted with, is like putting a man in a burning oil and pulling him out at the point of death to immerse him in the furnace again.

But that is not all that we are forced to condone with. That is not all the tragedy this nation has been forced to put of with. After the sad episode of the abduction of the future mothers of this generation, bomb explosions has continued to go on torrentially like rain drops after a scorching midday sun. From Kano, to Adamawa, from Adamawa to the Plateau, from the Plateau to Bornu, to villages in the NorthEast, down to the State Capital of all places. Now for those who may not have figured out what it means for IED’s to detonate in a Nation’s capital and the seat of the presidency, here is the direct implication: it is a bold statement by agents of destruction that the Boko Haramite are, that the Country is no longer safe. The international community does not want to hear that a nation’s capital has come under attack, for in their estimation, it amounts to the entire country being literally annexed by terrorists. That is why the EMAB Plaza explosion at WUSE II Abuja, should be a cause for worry for every single Nigerian alive. In its wake, it left no fewer than 25 persons dead with so many others injured and properties worth millions reduced to debris. Fellow compatriots that is the situation we are battling with.

Last week Tuesday, the day broke well in Maiduguri, the Borno state capital but before the chickens could come home to roost at dusk, a suicide bomber in a salon car, detonated explosives around the busy monday-market area. When the dust settled, no fewer than 50 persons bidded us farewell from this parts (although untimely) and transcended to the great beyond leaving families, friends, and relatives in a state of emotional imprisonment. Not forgetting the many who as I write, are still admitted in various hospitals in the state nursing various degrees of injuries and putting to God blame questions such as: what was their sin(s) to deserve the treatment that life has condemned them to. Heavens! What was our sins? And what sacrifices do we make in atonement? Must we all pay with our blood and those of our fellow citizens?

At about 3pm yesterday, I received a call from my Father. Normally he hardly calls at about that time. So it was normal for me to be quite jittery when I saw his call. I had quickly picked up my phone and after the usual exchange of greetings between father and son, my nerves was quite calm as the man had called to know more on the recent attacks by the Insurgents on a troop location in Borno that left a good number of the foot soldiers dead and few members of our forces fighting the war including a DPO and a colonel. When I thought it right to tell the man, that the attacks were not in the state capital, he immediately reprimanded me and said, “wherever it is it has taken place, we are talking about the lives of innocent citizens”. I agreed with the Old man.

Fellow compatriots, the situation we are confronted against, is one that we are not familiar with hence why we are yet to figure out a way out of it. We are up against a common enemy that has sworn to stop at nothing until they put a knife in the thing that bounds us together as a nation. But this we must not allow. We cannot say where and when the next explosion would take place, but the sad reality is, they are definitely going to come. I do not intend to speak like a prophet of doom and my apologies must go to readers who may get irritated by that ugly prediction. I have only stated so, to get us all prepared before hand. The goal of terrorists and terrorism any where in the word is leave behind carnage in the general population and rent an atmosphere of fear and anxiety in the people to set the stage for a possible take over of government and subsequent institutionalisation of the kind of surreal government they seek. Since we are opportuned before hand, to know this we must therefore not play into their hands. Though they wield the gun and are ideologically more motivated to do harm, what we hold is even greater. It is called the spirit of patriotism to mother land. It is more piercing than any dagger, and outlives any explosion. It is the weapon with which we hope to conquer soon.

While it may appear that the insurgents are winning the war on terror as against our troops, we should always have it at the back of our minds that it is always easier to destroy than to build, and however a man secures his house, it is only a matter of time before he comes to robbery. Our troops must therefore be motivated every now and again as in the final analysis, they are still the defenders of the union and the unity of the country rests on their backs. They must not be allowed to suffer the least thought of inferiority before the fundamentalists as the consequences are better imagined.

Fellow Nigerians, Permit me to conclude on a positive note. While our country has been battered by the enemies of Boko Haram and their sponsors in high places both at home and abroad, our greatest consolation lies in the undeniable fact that time changes everything. However the soyinkas of this world may have us believe that the Boko haram insurgency is the worst menace to have hit us, I beg to disagree as this country has seen more troubles but became even more stronger after them. A case in point is the Biafran civil War that almost robbed the nation of the Unity in Diversity it continues to enjoy to this day. Like the 30 months of carnage, we shall also get past this episode in the Soap Opera of Nation Building. The best democracies in the world at one point or another in their history, witnessed similar events but surpassed them. This writer also shares in that Faith but also is not oblivious of the price in terms of human lives that would be lost to it.

I’m prepared to die for the sake of the togetherness of the country, at least not one lost to the shenanigans of the Coward fighting Boko Haram in some low forests of the country. It is better to die for this cause than with two eyes watch bunch of never-do-wells foist a government on us. God forbid.

While we continue to step up the fights against the terrorists, too many people of my generation have continued to ask, sometimes unconsciously, How Many More Sorrow Can a Nation Condone With? God Bless Nigeria


The writer is a Law Student in the Faculty of Law, University of Maiduguri. Talk with him on twitter @RayNkah

An igbo name been use to write all kind of things thru northern blog or site arewadaily.com
The APC and their supporter of APC footsoldiers should be held responsible for all the bombing.

@Redoil this is exactly the problem we have in Nigeria(Tribalism/Politics). Just because the name is Arewa does not mean its a northern blog and any good writer should be able to post on any platform

Raymond:
"The tree of liberty is watered by the blood of patriots and tyrants".
Pray, you are not found wanting when you answer the call.