BOKO HARAM ... AN EPIPHANY : As 2014 begins: Our stand on Boko Haram ... Punch Editorial.

IN the past few weeks, key federal officials have made pronouncements suggesting that, at long last, the Nigerian state has come to terms with the dynamics of Boko Haram terrorism. From security chiefs to the political class and the local population, stakeholders have finally gained deep insights into the real, virulent nature of jihadist terrorism. The tragedy is that it has taken almost four years to admit the obvious, during which over 5,000 persons have died, the economy of the North-East zone shattered and the country polarised.

In the light of the recent admission that Boko Haram is driven solely by an exclusive, hate-filled religious ideology, we at The PUNCH would have been tempted to say, “We told you so.” But the unfolding tragedy, the gory body count and the foothold gained by international terrorism in the country as a result of inept handling make that a luxury. Rather, we strongly suggest that, going forward, the government and all other stakeholders should henceforth drop all partisan, sectarian and narrow interests and commit themselves to defeating terrorism.

The epiphany started with President Goodluck Jonathan, when, early in December, he declared emphatically that the Boko Haram insurgency is not caused by poverty as frequently and wrongly canvassed. Noting that this notion “comes from people who are not well-informed,” Jonathan vowed to crush the insurgency. Here is a President who at the outset of the terrorist campaign naively said it would “fizzle out,” while refusing to acknowledge its capacity for tenacious violence and its momentum. His failure to confront it with an iron fist enabled the group to consolidate, link up with global jihadists and operate partly unhindered for three years. Our repeated expositions of its jihadist modus operandi and calls for a state-of-emergency were equally ignored until about seven months ago, by which time Nigeria had been firmly sucked into the vortex of global terrorism. The figure of over 5,000 persons killed so far given by Human Rights Watch looks understated. The United States State Department has listed Nigeria as the scene of the second highest number of terrorism-related deaths in 2012 with 792 killed, according to an Associated Press tally.

Though it has always been obvious that Boko Haram is a salafist cult that rejects orthodox Islam and, like similar jihadist groups everywhere, seeks to violently overthrow the existing order and impose sharia rule based on its own narrow interpretation of Islam, partisan northern politicians and some misguided apologists continued to attribute its campaign to poverty, societal injustice, inequality and economic demands.

Sambo Dasuki, who took over as the National Security Adviser in 2012, touting dialogue as the solution, has, in a recent statement, now rightly acknowledged Boko Haram as part of a global  movement that represents an existential threat to Nigeria. Even the Sultan of Sokoto, Sa’ad Abubakar, who has led a phalanx of the Northern elite to hobble the war on terror by erroneously citing poverty and canvassing amnesty, is calling for the defeat of the murderous sect.

But perhaps the game changer is found in the confessions of Tanimu Turaki, Chairman of the Presidential Committee on Dialogue with the sect. “These are people that are salafists; insurgents hinging their agitation on ideology, based first on rejecting Western education. There is nothing economic about their agitation. These are people that are ready to die and go to heaven. In all discussions we’ve had with them, the issue of them asking for compensation never arose.” In response to his interviewer’s question on whether the terrorists complained of neglect or poverty, Turaki was emphatic: “None made such a complaint; not one.” This puts paid to his and others’ misguided calls for amnesty and dialogue, and the stock excuses of poverty and deprivation copied zombie-like from Western liberals.

Now is the time for the Nigerian state to declare total war on terrorism. Make no mistake: Boko Haram is part of the international jihadist terrorism movement committed to the establishment of a global caliphate. It is motivated by a virulent, hate-fuelled ideology in which mass murder, arson, abductions and anarchy are favoured tools. Its rabidity was confirmed last week in a statement by its leader that they had a divine mission to decapitate believers and unbelievers alike! Turaki and other would-be peacemakers before him have all testified to the sect’s core leadership’s rejection of amnesty.

For years, Northern Nigeria has been targeted by jihadists as a ripe base, and the chaos in Libya, Mali, parts of Niger Republic and Chad, coupled with our own security lapses, have facilitated the influx of jihadists and military hardware into the country. The US State Department that has sided with some misguided Americans in falsely blaming poverty for the insurgency is also changing gear. The United Nations has cited Boko Haram for crimes against humanity. Our government should drop the folly of thinking it can go it alone; no country successfully overcomes terrorism alone. We should actively seek assistance from all friendly nations to destroy this tumour. The war should be intelligence-led, for this is an asymmetrical warfare; the insurgents easily melt into the population and move in and out through our porous borders with Chad, Cameroon and Niger Republic.

We maintain that, ultimately, past federal governments and the northern state governments bear some responsibility for sowing the seeds of terrorism. Many northern states continue to violate the 1999 Constitution by promoting religion. Indeed, the encouragement by sections of the northern political and clerical elite of religious extremists from 1986 onwards laid the ground for the emergence of extremist sects. By using the apparatus and resources of the state to promote and fund religion, failing to prosecute sectarian rioters and mass murderers  and imposing penal aspects of sharia law, northern politicians provided fertile ground for virulent extremist groups. The recent destruction of 240,000 bottles of beer in Kano, for instance, not only violated the constitutional rights of the owners, but amounted to state-sponsored terrorism. Such irresponsible acts embolden extremists who feel such illegalities can be extended outside the purview of the state.

Instead of devoting resources to religion, which, over time, has fostered extremism, division, violence, mass illiteracy and poverty, state governors should embark on free and compulsory mass education, rural development and creative economic programmes to provide jobs.

In the meantime, the war against terrorism must never waver again. Thankfully, Turaki has laid to rest the bizarre comparison of Niger Delta militancy to the Boko Haram madness: the first was about economic agitation; the other is, in our view, only about treason. There can be neither dialogue nor amnesty for terrorists; only an iron resolve by the state to crush insurgency and bring mass murderers to justice. This is our stand.