A former Head of State, Gen.Muhammadu Buhari, has
come under intense pressure to accept to play a mediatory role in Boko Haram’s
peace overture to the Federal Government.
The sect had on Thursday named Buhari, Dr.
Shettima Monguno; a former Yobe State Governor, Senator Bukar Ibrahim;
Ambassador Gaji Galtimari; and Aisha Alkali Wakil, and her husband, Alkali as “trusted
Nigerians” it was willing to negotiate on its behalf in Saudi Arabia.
Apart from the negotiations, it also demanded for
the arrest of ex-Borno State Governor Modu Sheriff, compensation for families
of its members killed in the course of its terrorist activities and the
rebuilding of its mosques by the Federal Government as its conditions for a
ceasefire.
Shortly after the sect’s pronouncement
second-in-command, Abu Mohammed in Maiduguri, eminent Nigerians and groups have
called on Buhari not to spurn the offer if it was all that was needed to
“restore peace to Nigeria.”
Most prominent among them was a former Head of
State, Gen. Yakubu Gowon, who implored Nigerians not to misconstrue the
intention of Boko Haram’s request for Buhari on the negotiation table.
Gowon told SUNDAY PUNCH in a telephone
interview that if it would bring lasting peace to the country, Buhari should be
given a chance.
He said Buhari was not going to be their
spokesman, but that he would only help to ensure that peace reigned again in
the country.
He said, “If Buhari leading the talks would lead
to lasting peace, we should give him the chance. People should not misconstrue
the intention by saying that Buhari knows them or their leaders. That I think,
may not be the intention.”
The Northern States Governors Forum on Saturday
also applauded Federal Government’s acceptance of the offer of negotiation by
Boko Haram.
A statement by the forum made available to
Channels Television in Minna, the Niger state capital, stated that “dialogue
rather than use of force, would help find a lasting solution to the worsening
insecurity of lives and property in the country.”
The House of Representatives also said the sect
call for a dialogue was a welcome development.
The Speaker of the House, Aminu Tambuwal, told
newsmen on Saturday at Ila-Orangun, Osun State, that the House would support
any step that could bring peace to the country.
“If the sect is now accepting that there should
be a kind of peace pact with the Federal Government, I am sure the House will
encourage that.
“There will be a dialogue and it may not
necessarily have to be all the conditions given will be met. I think government
should be engaged, and see how best the issues can be resolved.’’
Similarly, the President of the Ohaneze Ndigbo,
Ralph Uwechue, urged Buhari and others nominated for the mediatory roles to
accept it for the restoration of peace to the country.
Uwechue said, “Buhari is a senior citizen and an
elder statesman, I think he and others would do whatever would help solve the
crisis. We are only interested in seeing the end of the violence. So, the
people nominated should accept the offer if that would solve the problem. But
the Federal Government should verify how authentic this offer from Boko Haram
is.”
In the same vein, the Secretary of the Borno
State Elders’ Forum, Dr. Bulama Gubio, said the forum was happy that the sect
had accepted its appeal.
Gubio urged the Federal Government and those
nominated as mediators to set in motion, the rapprochement process without
delay.
He said, “We have been appealing to both Federal
Government and the sect. We have been appealing to them to drop their weapons
in order to stop the killing of innocent women and children. They have said
they are ready to listen to us. The choice of the mediators was totally their
own volition. We did not choose anybody for them. The people they choose are
those they can trust.”
Gubio said the ball was now in the court of the
Federal Government to kick-start the peace talks by getting the people the sect
nominated to the negotiation table.
“It’s not enough for the Federal Government to
accept the offer. Government has to set things in motion. Something has to
start somewhere. If government does not take action, the situation will remain
the same. We want Buhari, Moguno and others to accept the role so that this
whole issue can be resolved.”
Convener, Committee of Concerned Northern
Professionals, Politicians, Academics and Businessmen, Dr. Junaid Mohammed,
also told one of correspondents that Buhari could accept the offer as long as
he put aside his political ambition.
He said, “The negotiators must be people who are
neutral and acceptable not only to the sect but to other stakeholders. They
must be men of integrity who have apolitical status. Buhari must put his
political career on hold pending while the negotiation lasts.
“Any politician can use the process to work
towards actualising certain political ambitions.”
A former Minister of Information, Prof. Jerry
Gana, is also one of those pushing for dialogue.
Gana on Saturday said, “The Government of the
Federal Republic of Nigeria should take this matter very seriously because the
most important way to have peace is through dialogue and resolution. Every
crisis is not solved by violence; it is finally solved by a resolution.
“If there are good proposals that have been put
forward for peace, we pray that they should be given very serious consideration
and we pray that God will give the leadership the wisdom to resolve how to move
Nigeria forward. If there are good suggestions, they shouldn’t be thrown away;
they should be considered because you never know what key may open the door.”
But the National Democratic Coalition, however,
warned the Federal Government not to allow the Boko Haram dictate the pace of
the peace talk.
Mr Ayo Opadokun, the General Secretary of NADECO,
told the News Agency of Nigeria that the demand by the sect for peace
talks in Saudi Arabia, among other demands, “was a curious demand’’ and an
attempt by the “tail to wag the head.”
Opadokun, said even though he did not disapprove
of dialogue with the group, such talks should be held on the right terms and
conditions.
“The government must tread softly,” he
said.
He said if the government acceded to the demands
of Boko Haram, it could serve as a precedent which could propel other aggrieved
groups to employ the same tactics.
However, the Convener, National Patriotic
Movement, Senator Femi Okurounmu, criticised the nomination of Buhari as one of
the mediators for the sect. He said the threats by him that Nigeria would be
ungovernable, if the 2011 presidential election was manipulated, had raised
tension in the land.
The former Secretary-General of the pan Yoruba
socio-political group, Afenifere, said, “I am extremely baffled by Buhari’s
expected role in the negotiation. Why did the sect nominate Buhari? Why should
Buhari accept to take up the responsibility? Why will the government accept him
as part of the negotiators?”
Also, youths under the aegis of the Niger Delta Youth
Parliament have urged Buhari to distance himself from the Boko Haram sect.
The youths expressed shock that members of the
sect could pick a former Head of State and presidential candidate to mediate
between it and the Federal Government.
National Coordinator of the NDYP, Mr. Imoh Okoko,
said, “Buhari should reject his nomination as a mediator for Boko Haram. He
should also distance himself from the sect, which has been tagged a terrorist
group. It would be an insult for a former head of state and presidential
candidate to be seen negotiating on behalf of a terrorist group.
“President Jonathan should not negotiate with
Boko Haram members. If he (Jonathan) goes ahead to negotiate with them, then he
should be ready to negotiate with MASSOB and other aggrieved groups.
“Again, if the President agrees to negotiate with
members of Boko Haram, he would be indirectly saying that the Federal
Government cannot guarantee the security of Nigerians.”
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