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One Week of Emergency Rule in Plateau

Vanguard (Lagos)
ANALYSIS
May 26, 2004
Posted to the web May 26, 2004

By Paul Odili

Vanguard politics takes a look at one week of emergenency rule in Plateau State
and concludes that there is little sign the crisis that led to the presidential
order removing all the democratic structures in the state has abated. This
review examines the style of General Chris Ali since taking charge and wonders
whether his presence has achieved the desired result.
It's already one week since General Chris Ali (rtd) arrived Jos to take over
the reins of power from Governor Joshua Dariye as sole administrator after
President Olusegun Obasanjo proclaimed a state of emergency in that state. The
president said in a national broadcast that the incumbent civilian governor had
failed to provide the right leadership and had, by his incompetence, failed to
halt the internecine warfare in his state, which had become contagious, and was
spreading to neighbouring states. The president claims that in order to provide
stability and stop further drift to anarchy as well as contain further
eruptions he was invoking section 305 of the constitution, which he says gives
him the authority to declare a state of emergency.
As expected, the action of the president has since provoked a national debate
with some supporting the action and others questioning the wisdom of his
decision. In Plateau State, which is the main theatre of this latest
presidential intervention, the first 24 hours was reportedly calm apparently as
people held themselves back to review the situation. However, it was not long
before the full import of what the president had done elicited a more radical
reaction from some elements in the state. One of the first to react was the
Christian Association of Nigeria, CAN, which challenged the emergency rule. The
body through its youth chairman, Rev. Mathias Ndian, outraged by Obasanjo's
decision asked indigenes of the state not to accept any appointment from the
sole administrator, he went further to say: "It is most unfortunate that the
president did not see the gruesome massacre of Christians in Kano as an act
that is repugnant and should be punished. When Christians are slaughtered, it
doesn't matter but when Moslems are killed in a reprisal, a state of emergency
should be declared. There have been crises in Delta, Taraba, Nasarawa and
Anambra states. Christians are being persecuted in states where the sharia
legal system has been entrenched. But it is only in Plateau State that the
president considered it wise to declare a state of emergency."
As if in a reply to the annoyance of CAN and other aggrieved elements in the
state, General Ali in his first state wide broadcast, warned that he would not
allow anyone to test the will of his government. "My appointment as the sole
administrator of the state and the suspension of the existing
politicalstructures is to pave way for the emergence of a smooth and cordial
atmosphere where the process of reconciliation, rehabilitation and
reconstruction can take place. I feel deeply touched and highly disturbed to
ponder what has become of this beautiful, peaceful state and its warm citizens
which was the envy of all. If within six months the people are able to convince
the whole country that they are now mature enough to live in peace, then we
will know what to tell the government. The options are open. The only thing I
can say is that those who pretend that the best way out of a problem is
violence will realise that they'll ultimately become losers."
However, the policy of carrot and stick which Ali probably thought could make
it possible for him to rally the people and support his stay, which is expected
to be brief, appears to have failed even before it started, because shortly
afterwards violence erupted. In what could be described as a snub, unconfirmed
reports had it that there was violence at Qua'an Pan local government.
Additional reports showed that five suspected ethnic militia members were also
arrested in Kanke area of Plateau State, Thursday, with possible attacks
suspected to have been fueled by Fulani militia, spreading to more villages in
Qua'an Pan and Shendam areas last Wednesday night.The five suspects were
intercepted by security agents by 4am Thursday with an AK-47 rifle and 19
rounds of 7.6 ammunition and 42 machetes and a live cow at Kanke junction.
Assistant Commissioner of police Sotonye Wakama, the officer in charge of
criminal investigation department, said the suspects claimed they were on a
mission to rustle (steal) cattle at Tabullung in Kanke local government area
but were yet to disclose the source of the gun and the ammunition.He said
police investigations were still on to determine their actual mission and the
source of theAK-47 rifle.
Cattle rustling has been a major cause of communal clashes in the southern part
of the state for some time now as the rustlers allegedly attack Fulani herdsmen
and steal their cattle. The Fulani who are believed to be unforgiving always
launch reprisal attacks on villages where the rustlers are suspected to have
come from and sometimes recruit mercenaries from neighbouring countries to
assist them, resulting in constant skirmishes. Reports from Qua'an Pan local
government said the attack on villages by suspected Fulani militants had spread
to other villages leading to more deaths and destruction of property. The
attacks were said to have continued up to last Wednesday night but the number
of casualties could not be ascertained. Villagers in the area are said to have
fled to safer areas, leaving Bakin-Ciyawa village where the attack was first
launched on Thursday and environs deserted. But when contacted, the Plateau
State Police Commissioner, Mr. Innocent Ilozuoke, said he was yet to receive
any report on the fresh attacks."
The last one week must have been perhaps one of the hardest for Ali, who far
from providing stability and peace, the raison d'etre for his appointment as
sole administrator, found himself faced with hostile behaviour from the people
who even though have not attacked him personally, but seem either by
indifference and, or continued violence, to question the decision to have him
in charge of the state. If Ali is rattled by what he saw, his plan to find ways
of encouraging the people to give up their arms is seen as the right step,
though it is thought that this initiative might yet take awhile before it
produces results. Thus, last week, in his first major move to tackle the
problem, Ali offered financial rewards and immunityfrom prosecution to those
who voluntarily surrender their arms. General Alli promised a cash reward of
N100,000.00 for sophisticated weapons and N25,000.00 for locally made guns
between now and June 7.
He also promised that those who could provide information on where these
firearms are hidden would get a minimum cash reward of N20,000.00. The
statement from the sole administrator's office announcing these measures say,
"as a result of the on-going efforts to ensure that warring communities are
reconciled and the peace for which Plateau State was once known is fully and
permanently restored, the Government has decided on measures to rid our
communities and individuals of fire arms which are instruments of violence."
Meanwhile, with public anger growing in Plateau over the emergency rule, the
suspended Governor, Joshua Dariye, blamed by the President for inept
leadership, and widely seen as incompetent, at least in the estimation of
President Obasanjo, broke his silence when he spoke to his supporters.
"As I have always told you, the dividends of democracy can only come if there
is peace, so I urge you all not to do anything capable of breaching peace. I am
also anxious for a return of total peace to the state and I will be happy if
you work with the administrator to achieve this in the overall interest of our
state and her people." Dariye, for reasons not yet clear have so far failed to
speak on his plans, and his present stature.
However, public commentators who fault the president's action, say there is no
provision for a suspended governor in the constitution, and that Dariye has the
option of going to the court to seek judicial clarification on this matter. It
is the thinking of these commentators that were Dariye to take up this
challenge he would most likely obtain favourable judicial opinion. Indeed, no
less a person than Chief Rotimi Williams has come out to criticise the
president for his emergency proclamation and the fate of Dariye, which he says
is unconstitutional. So far, Dariye has shown no inclination to pick up the
challenge and fight to see how he can restore his mandate and leadership pulled
from under his feet by the president.
However, even as Dariye contemplates his future, and Ali continues to struggle
to make sense of his task, body count from reports show that killings in the
rural communities have not abated. According to a group, the Gamai Unity and
Development Organisation (GUDO) said weekend that 74 people were killed in last
week's attack on five villages in Qua'an Pan Local Government Area and over 200
houses razed. A statement by the secretary general of the organisation, Mr.
Stephen Sarki Musa said the eyes and other vital organs of some of those killed
were removed by the assailants in what it described as a well organised attack.
According to the statement, 24 people were killed at Bakin Ciyawa, 18 at Gidan
Sabo, 15 at Jirim, 10 at Sabon Gida and 7 at Saminaka villages while most of
them were in complete ruin and foodstuffs worth millions of naira destroyed.
"As peace loving people, we consider the latest attacks on the Gamai race and
Christians as a Jihad. We find it very necessary to caution that if not stopped
it may likely escalate and truncate the efforts already put in place to find a
solution to the lingering crises. While we pledge our support to all efforts
being made towards ensuring that peace returns, we call on the Sole
Administrator of Plateau State, Major General Chris Alli (Rtd.) to bring the
full weight of the law to bear on the perpetrators and to once and for all stop
the spate of cold-blooded murder of our people who have for a very long time
now been facing untold hardships."
Reports like these must be dispiriting for Ali, but clearly music to those who
believe the emergency measures were extreme and could hardly wait to see the
failure of this policy in Plateau.
By Weekend the Plateau administrator had begun to show signs of strain, when in
his strongest statement yet, he warned that he would use force to restore peace
if pushed to the wall. Under a military order Ali's statement could have
sufficed; but at the moment when there is a strong challenge to the legitimacy
of his appointment, General Ali can hardly afford to sound so rambunctious. In
some commentators' views, General Ali has not interpreted his assignment well,
and could, if he does not check himself, find his style escalating the crisis.
It is the thinking in some circles that Ali's best strategy is to present
himself as conciliator, who came for peace and to move at the earliest
opportunity to convoke a stake- holders meeting where they can thrash out the
issues and reach a consensus on how to achieve peace . But Ali who has his own
ideas gave the warning of using force to crush trouble makers during a tour of
some local government areas in the crises-torn southern zone of the state
following allegations that cattle rustlers numbering about 100 ambushed Fulani
herdsmen, abducted one of them and stole over 300 cows.
Within the week there was also reports of likely collateral damage which the
security agencies were working to contain. It was reported that the home of the
Deputy Senate President, Ibrahim Mantu, was targetted. Mantu as Deputy Senate
President approved of the President's action which by the day is becoming
unpopular with the people, and thus made him a likely target. Vanguard
exclusive captures the situation this way: " Security men have been deployed to
houses belonging to the Deputy Senate President, Alhaji Ibrahim Mantu in the
Plateau State capital apparently to prevent them from being attacked by angry
people accusing him of having a hand in the declaration of a state of emergency
in the state. The security men were sighted at his house along Mangu Road, off
Ibrahim Taiwo Road and at his castle, still under construction Saturday night
while reports say his sprawling compound at Gindiri was also being guarded.
A security source told Vanguard that the move was a routine preventive measure
to stop those who might be planning to create trouble by attacking the
property.This followed angry reactions from some quarters to his alleged role
in the suspension of the democratic structure in the state. The Plateau Youth
Council (BYM) fired the first salvo last week when it declared Senator Mantu
persona non grata to the state a few hours after the announcement.Another body
known as the Christian Orientation on Religious, Political and Security
Awareness had last Friday blamed some elders and politicians from the state of
"conspiring against the Governor and the entire state" and specifically
mentioned Mantu in this regard. This is a result of their belief, rightly or
wrongly, that he was part of the plot to remove the suspendedgovernor, Chief
Joshua Dariye.
Vanguard gathered that some prominent people from the central senatorial
district convened a meeting in Pankshin Thursday last week to discuss the
matter and possibly plan how to initiate a recall process, but the meeting was
stopped by security agents.
The meeting which was to hold under the aegis of the Plateau Central Unity
Forum, a socio-political body, was said to have been disallowed for security
reasons.A member of the forum who said he was not at the aborted meeting
explained that the people had a right to periodically assess the performance of
their elected representatives and take any action deemednecessary if they are
perceived as working against the interest of their constituency. But he was
evasive when asked if he was referring to Mantu.
With the crisis in Plateau not showing signs of easing off, the following weeks
could determine whether this policy was sound, because increasingly respected
public personalities have come out against it; furthermore, it seems what
happens in Plateau might well end up defining the Obasanjo Presidency and the
survival of democracy.

   

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