Dear Beloved, Assalamu alaikum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh. I write to you today in peace, the utmost gospel of our Holy Prophet Muhammad (SAW). I understand that the past few years have been busy; so, I don’t intend wasting your time with frivolities. I must agree with you that Western education is a sin- it is a curse! In fact, it is evil! Its effects have dragged our nation into a very sorrowful state. Our girls and women of pride now dress naked in the name of civilization. Our youths have lost regard for the old, tradition has been thrown away and our culture and heritage forgotten. This is unacceptable and should be addressed. I must say your actions and in-actions has sent a clear signal, not just to Nigeria but to the rest of the world, that this great country will not continue to be a puppet and tool in the hands of the Western world.
Dear Beloved, Assalamu alaikum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh. I write to you today in peace, the utmost gospel of our Holy Prophet Muhammad (SAW). I understand that the past few years have been busy; so, I don’t intend wasting your time with frivolities. I must agree with you that Western education is a sin- it is a curse! In fact, it is evil! Its effects have dragged our nation into a very sorrowful state. Our girls and women of pride now dress naked in the name of civilization. Our youths have lost regard for the old, tradition has been thrown away and our culture and heritage forgotten. This is unacceptable and should be addressed. I must say your actions and in-actions has sent a clear signal, not just to Nigeria but to the rest of the world, that this great country will not continue to be a puppet and tool in the hands of the Western world.
The echo of your cause is glaring on the faces of children you have made orphans, wives you have made widows, mothers you have made barren and the hopeful that you have made hopeless. However, I must say you have failed. Yes, you have. Your message has been heard but not by the people who ought to hear it. You have proved your stand but only to the helpless citizen who cannot make your dream come true. From the church bombings, park killings, house attacks to the street unrest- you have only succeeded in adding to the pains of the already pained Nigerians. Ask yourselves how many relatives of the people in power have been affected by your actions? None. You no longer give the president sleepless night as he now sleeps comfortable in the arms of his wife. Aso Rock has an already-prepared speech on “condemnation” which is periodically edited to suit every new attack you make. The only attention you now get is from the media who are only there to profit from the news you create. You have succeeded in adding more to the hardship of the people you claim to be fighting for as no individual or company can afford to invest in the North. People now run away from that area, including your kinsmen. Who then would the Sharia law operate on, the ones you have killed or the ones that have fled over to the south? Prophet Muhammad (SAW) once said,“To acquire knowledge is binding upon all Muslims, whether male or female.”
He went further to say,“The ink of the scholar is more holy than the blood of the martyr.”
These principles I believe you know as a strong believer of the faith. These are not knowledge of how to make the society ungovernable or bring death upon the people but knowledge to know right from wrong, knowledge to seek the truth and act in the way of light.
I hope I’m not getting on your nerves. Please, let me know when I’m crossing the line.
Some people believe you are ghosts. I don’t. Ghosts don’t kidnap foreigners, attack military barracks, blow up parks, kill students and traders and get arrested. Ghosts are not blood suckers, they only scare.
Some say you are politically sponsored. Again, I defer. Even though most of your leaders have been arrested in various government lounges and guest houses, one of which is a Bayelsa government house in Lagos, I share a different view. I see some groups of people who are tired of the misrule and corruption. I see people who want an end to the wastefulness of the people in power. I see people who are frustrated enough to carry arms. I see people who are tired of life.
I have been in Sokoto State for two years, I understand these feelings. I understand what it feels like to be a Northerner. I understand the pains and agony of the starving children who roam the street in groups looking for daily bread. I have watched on several occasions as these children get knocked down by cars and vans. I understand the difficulties experienced in feeding the large family and why female children are given out quickly in marriage to make ends meet.
I understand there may be no other way to draw attention to your plight as the nation doesn’t feed on agriculture but rather oil. I must let you know you are not alone. The situation in the South is no different. The only reason you have heard little of our cry or action is because we smile even in death. The footprints of poverty and starvation are evident in Makoko, Ijora, Badia, Ajegunle, and Mushin in Lagos; the creeks in Bayelsa, Rivers,Ondo and other Niger Delta regions and; the villages in the East and West speak for themselves. Misrule, poverty, corruption and administrative neglect are mutual. The fight should not be against the people but rather against the government. It should not be about segregation of the North but rather freedom for Nigeria. It should not be about Sharia but a restoration of our morals and tradition which our society is missing. If this is new cause you wish to take, then your strategy must change.
Government officials don’t stay in parks and markets. Our collective enemy doesn’t stay on streets and in stores. They live in huge mansions behind high walls. They reside in duplex covered with tiles and marbles guarded by heavily armed security men. We should work together, as collective and deprived Nigerians. The planned attack in Lagos should be shelved. The killings of the Igbos should be stopped. The massacre of the Hausa should end. We have to sit down together and draw a new mode of operation to civil liberty. We need not go back on shedding innocent blood, you have done enough. You have proven to be men of action rather than cheap talk- this is good but your actions should be right and just. No Nigerian would raise a voice at you if you go to the right target. Our nation needs you, our future requires your skills not to cause us more pain but bring to anend this tears that has made our eyes home.
Ma Salam
Adekoya Boladale is a political scientist and wrote via [email protected]
Twitter: @adekoyabee
The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect the editorial policy of SaharaReporters
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