No 'Glass House' in Jos North.

Terver Atsar

The people of Jos North Local Government Area in Plateau State have of late found an anomalous pastime of getting into the news for all the wrong reasons. Not too long ago, the nation woke up to a rude shock of unpremeditated violence following the Local Government elections in the area. Human life was wasted in the most unjustifiable and bestial attacks on innocent citizens including Youth Corps Members on national assignment. Millions of Naira worth of property was destroyed in a savagery fashion becoming only for delinquent minds.

Penultimate Monday the People of Jos North again helped some Newspapers to boost their sales by finding an alternative use for the stones and rocks that abound their countryside, albeit a rather inglorious application, that is, stoning of President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua’s convoy while the later was on his way to pay condolence to the Plateau State Traditional Council on the death of the Gbong Gwom Jos, Late. Dr. Victor Dung Pam.

This despicable action by the ‘youth’ who are reported to have shouted ‘thief’, ‘thief’ at the President’s convoy while pelting them with stones, is by even the most lenient standards condemnable. It is not just unwarranted but barbaric and uncultured. It is uncalled-for. It is sad.

And let me divert a little and lament the bane of our nation’s youth. Anytime you hear of violence, be it religious, communal, ethnic, cultic or political, the ‘youth’ are in the front row. It is an indication of non-utilisation of their productive energies to positive use. Our future as a nation is doomed if the youth (who are the future leaders) are not patriotic enough to cultivate positive values for nation building. 

Granted the people may have some genuine grudges against the President and could excusably find his visit as an chance to express their feelings, which is acceptable in a democratic set up, but going as far as stoning and damaging the vehicles in the President’s convoy was out-and-out criminal, a breach to public peace, an infraction on the security of the President and in fact an action akin to attempted sedition.

There are several constitutional channels for seeking redress or seeking the attention of the President over real or perceived grievances that are open to all citizens including the people of Jos North, and stoning is not one of them. It is ill-mannered and wrong to throw stones at people even if you are not living in a glass house. Rather than heroic it is actually an act of cowardice spiced with a generous dose of ignorance and hate.

One cannot fail to take positive note of the fact that the security details in the President’s convoy exercised restraint and declined from opening fire on the youth. And this is quite commendable. It accentuates the aura of tolerance around the President towards civil agitations and the rights to freedom of expression.

Before some anti-Yar’Adua group accuse me of ‘sycophancy’, let me state that this is not about the person of Umaru Musa Yar’Adua. It’s about the office of the President of the Federal republic of Nigeria as established in the Constitution. You may not like his face but this is about the symbol of State sovereignty. That symbol deserves the respect of all patriotic citizens even if they believe in or identify with his policies or not. Throwing stones to the President is like tearing the National Flag to pieces or even a declaration of war against the Federation.

When an Iraqi journalist hauled his shoe at former President Bush of the United States of America, despite the failing popularity of Bush at home and abroad at that time, that action was condemned across the globe including even in the Arab world that hates anything west. Our local Media were not left out. Some did editorials while others published scathing articles against the notorious journalist. The Iraqi government on its part prosecuted Muntazer al-Zaidi who has now been sentenced to 3 years in prison. But interestingly, apart from reporting the incident (of course for its market value) no Nigerian Newspaper found it worthy of censure through an editorial.

In Bible times, hauling stones at someone was ranked among the highest form of humiliation or punishment. A man or woman found to have committed a ‘sin’ like fornication or adultery was placed in a public square and stoned to death. Even in today’s culture, stoning is nowhere near the most courteous welcome one can give a visitor much less if that visitor is a President.

But just what exactly was the grievance of these youth?

The only clue one could get is from their chants of ‘thief, thief’ at the President and his convoy. One is then moved to ask what then has Yar’Adua stolen from Jos North Local Government? Yar’Adua happens to be the only Nigerian President that publicly declared his assets on resumption of office. Before this he had done that twice before, when he took over as Governor of Katsna State and when he left. So anyone calling him a thief would need more grounds than the mere fact of his bitterness against him. Yes Yar’Adua may be perceivably slow but he is certainly not a thief. It is tantamount to libel to call somebody a thief without any shred of evidence.

Let us assume that these youth have other ‘genuine’ reasons to be angry with Yar’Adua, like the non-improvement in the Power situation across the country or the inability of the Federal Government to shield the nation from the impacts of the global economic meltdown or his perceived sympathy to the Hausa community in the conflict between the majority Housa ‘settlers (?)’ and the minority natives. Even then it would still be wrong to engage in a public display of this antediluvian practice of aggression. Whatever statement the stone-throwers of Jos North wish to make with this barbaric act is practically unhelpful and counterproductive.

These attackers and their masterminds must be apprehended and made to face the law. Governor Jonah Jang who incidentally was in that convoy must act decisively to bring the culprits to book. Failure to do this could create the impression that the attack was stage-managed to embarrass the President in furtherance to the ongoing face-off between the State Government and the Federal Government on the controversial probe panels set up by the two tiers of government on the last but one Jos Mayhem. 

Robot  # 1 | 13.03.2009 07:09

No 'Glass House' in Jos North. Terver Atsar The people of Jos North Local Government Area in Plateau State have of late found an anomalous pastime of getting into the news for all the wrong reasons. Not too long ago, the nation woke up to a rude shock of unpremeditated violence following the Local Government elections in the area. Human life was wasted in the most unjustifiable and bestial attacks on innocent citizens including Youth Corps Members on national assignment. Millions of Naira worth of property was destroyed in a savagery fashion becoming only for delinquent minds. Penultimate Monday the People of Jos North again helped some Newspapers to boost their sales by finding an alternative use for the stones and rocks that abound their countryside, albeit a rather inglorious application, that is, stoning of President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua’s convoy while the later was on his way to pay condolence to the Plateau St...Read the full article.

Shugaban Kasa  # 2 | 15.03.2009 05:16

Mr. Terver!! Mr. Terver!! Why have choosed to consistently deploy your intelligence and brilliant writing prowess to SYCHOPHANCY. It is no longer a pro-Mike Aondakaa, or Pro-Madam Waziri, now it is Yar`Adua (you have moved up the ladder). Even a class five pupil knows that the president's asset declaration is not enough reason to say he is not corrupt. Asset declaration we all know is a ritual in this country because no one ever takes the trouble to verify those assets. Even if we agree with you that President is not corrupt. Then why has he being hobnobbing with well known thieves? And has even allowed them to make cardinal decisions in his government. In primary school we were told by our teacher not to make friends with thieves, because a `friend of a thief is a thief`. Mr. Terver Freedom of expression is a right, but it is not a good reason for you to insult our intelligence by doing a PR job for anyone on an elightened forum like this.

PAPIG  # 3 | 15.03.2009 14:53

Thank you Shugaban Kasa You have said it all. It is quite instructive the author of this apologia for Mr Yar'Adua refused to acknowledge the ongoing violence of this government against a people he NEVER GOT A POPULAR MANDATE FROM. No one wants him except criminal elements in the PDP like IBORI and OBASANJO. He does not deserve to be respected. If he insists on being respected, he must do the lawful and honourable thing. Submit himself to a free and fair election. Is this asking for too much? When the author gets a job as an information adviser, i suggests he rides in a private jet to prevent stones from reaching him and his house must be well proofed from objects with tensile strength more than stones.