While every state has its own
peculiar brand of violence, it is not an excuse to suggest high rate of extra-judicial violence is the norm. Nevertheless some
states and spaces within states seem to possess high levels of state sanctioned extra-judicial violence and Nigeria in the last decade has moved into this category. I use the
term ‘state sanctioned’ to extend the context of permission by states’ omission
or commission that encourages such extra-judicial violence. Of course the context is amplified
by the contradiction between state’s condemnation and inability to
comprehensively deal with it.
Pockets all Along
Nigeria’s history from its
artificial creation in 1914 to its ‘independence’ has been littered with pastiches
of violent flare ups here and there. The typology not only presents
associations with imperial impositions of the British, they also express
uncomfortable outcomes & resistance of the impositions in the socio-economic
and political space. On the other hand, other violence expresses ongoing and
unsettled conflicts between communities surrounding their economic situations. Nevertheless the melding of many peoples by
force and without their consent opened up loaded opportunities with expected
consequences as years wore on.
Examples can be found in 1929 Aba
women Riot were the British State killed tens of unarmed women protesting imposition of
tax. Yes, the British ordered their death from bullets of trigger hand police
force. Similar incidents are scattered around the
country as examples of gallant resistance against imperialism and anti-people
accumulation.
Politics by Other Means
As British pacification
sustained, space and time opened up for divide-and-conquer. That time shock
& awe was still in infancy. The machine of London could only get its hands
on Nigerian resources by distracting the peoples. In addition to misreading of history
by pre-independence political leaders, some of them resorted to engaging in
unbridled violence, pogrom and genocide to advance their goals. Some ethnic nations
have singularly borne the brunt of violence with impunity and with unsuccessful recourse to justice. Introduction of religion into the toxic mix exacerbated. In
this guise Islamic religion in the North Central and other geopolitical zone of
Northern Nigeria found vent for extra-judicial industrial killings. This
pattern and trend has continued to the present day. The unique signature is its
extra-judicial component.
Clash of the Titans
By the time ‘independence’ arrived
with none of major leaders clear about its effect and consequences, the crevices
were already wide open for conflicts confirming that the independence space is
disconnected to the real people as it is disconnected from the unreal and
posturing leaders. The erstwhile Western Region became a battle ground between
a giant who taught himself the only one in the jungle, and a new giant who
taught differently. The difference was expressed through violence and the
entire space turned into a hot bed of extra-judicial violence and high
flavoured impotence of the state.
The turn of events reached its
apogee in 1966 when the military struck for power despite its immaturity,
uncertainty and romanticism about real power. Unfortunately her immature leaders played a poor
hand and only replaced one form of violence with another while at the same time
running as un-appointed umpire of pogroms, massacres and genocides.
Nigeria-Biafra War
The political confusion resident in Nigeria
concentrated over time and space in the abuse and sustained abuse of resources
in the genocide called Nigeria-Biafra War. In retrospect the war was lost
before it began because the bulk of the victim populations have been wasted by
systematic genocide & massacres in various parts of Nigeria and lack of vision of leaders
ready to prosecute the war. Even after the war, it turned into a sad footnote
of which no one care or worries to even seriously obtain its strategic lessons.
Nowhere
is genuine discussion directed towards deeper understanding of reasons behind
the war, or debate to avoid a repeat or even a review of how to move forward
through appreciating the weight of the past. Rather a litany of stupidities took hold including but not limited to the exuberance of victory
by the victor over the vanquished, poverty of absence of genuine
reconstruction, baseless reconfiguration of political architecture devoid of
peoples input and lastly poisonous attention to Gowon Syndrome i.e. 'rightful' waste of national resources rather saving.
‘Nascent’ Democracy
As the military made a bargained
exit from the political space, violence devoid of war received a new lease of life. With institutional
breakdown, rule of law collapse, astronomical corruption and higher investment
in failing state status; restrained violence opened up and started dispersing
to wider areas around the country with expected consequences. Extra-judicial violence
has become a huge industry in Nigeria that limited effort is geared towards
containing it. One day it was MEND who succeeded in their strategic objective
and ‘gracefully’ bowed out of the scene. What happened to their victims? Any
legal redress and legal compensation for the victims? No, MEND was compensation
with proceeds from oil ‘flowing with pressure’ from under their land/water.
In the mayhem, Boko Haram entered
with a big bang and refused to leave the scene rather is consciously emboldened
with its success of incessant killings and abductions. Boko Haram has turned
into an untouchable state of its own not only trading on its chances rather on the
vulnerability of the Nigerian state. They have finally exposed the folly called
Nigeria crippled on every turn, with a military force that can barely match a
conglomerate of aggressive snails and an intelligence service that fluctuates between
comatose and death.
New Normal
Hardly a day passes in Nigeria
without a report of violence from bombs and or unidentified gunpersons. With no
recourse to justice and in the absence of state protection, extra-judicial
violence has arrived to stay in Nigeria not only as companion but a stakeholder
with clout and influence. One can even surmise that pretending organs of the
state unashamedly compete with Boko Haram in the pedigree of extra-judicial violence on the
innocent. Sadly, this is not a unique experience. No state can sustain such
undeclared war that consumes its peoples and be successful without coordinated
confrontation towards eradication. It
may come to her end or it may not!
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