Definition of Terms:
Muslim – An individual who practices Islam as a religion.
Islamist/Islamism – A Muslim who practices Islam as a political ideology that holds that Islam is not only a religion, but also a political system that must dominate the society (Political Islam); antithetic to Democracy.
- Political Party is defined as “organized group of people who believe a country should be run in a certain way”; thus the Islamists (political Islam) in Nigeria want Nigeria to be a Sharia compliant country while non-Islamists (Christians, tolerant Muslims, and other groups) want Democracy. Before 1975, Nigeria was a Democracy that became a dictatorship in 1966 with the First Military Coup. After the Civil War, Nigeria was to return to Democracy but this was truncated by the Murtala Mohammed’s coup of 1975. Although Nigeria became a Democracy between 1979 and 1983 under President Shehu Shagari, the coup of 1983 returned the country to Military rule for 20 years (1979 – 1999).
- During this period, attempts were made to marry Democracy and Sharia in various Military Decrees that culminated in the 1979 Constitution and later the 1999 Constitution. This marriage has led to the Conflict of Ideologies (Democracy versus Sharia) in the Constitution and become the bane of Nigeria’s instability resulting in a system of “us” (Islamists) and “them” (non-Islamists) and the prosecution of Jihads both stealth/civilization and conventional Jihad such as Boko Haram and Fulani herdsmen.
- From 1975 to 1999, only stealth Jihad was employed by the Islamists in government who occupied positions to change things with the use of Military Decrees and force. After the coup of 1975, the follow-up purge in the Public Service constituted a complete destruction of a democratic institution – the Public Service and was filled with half-baked Local Government officials, mostly Muslims from the North, who were recruited as first step to Islamist stealth or civilization Jihad in Nigeria.
- The 1983 Coup was also a Jihad; Shehu Shagari was democratically elected contrary to the principle of Sharia that is opposed to man-made laws including the 1979 Constitution under which Shagari was elected. Shagari, though a Muslim, was not an Islamist. He was also not a Muslim of the Izala sect of Sheikh Gumi, who imported the Islamist ideology into Nigeria.
- Stealth or civilization Jihad according to Sharia is obligatory like the conventional Jihad (Boko Haram and Fulani herdsmen). Stealth Jihad such as the purge in the Public Service of 1975 and 1976, the change from Parliamentary to Presidential system without referendum, creating 36 States by Muslim Heads of State, without recourse to inputs of ethnic nationalities, adding SSS and Land Use Act as part of the 1999 Constitution were all conducted under the radar that subverted Democracy and Rule and Law in Nigeria.
- The 1985 coup was as a result of internal rivalry between two classes of Islamists: those that accommodated more encompassing form of Democracy - (Babangida) and those that wanted full blown political Islam – (Buhari). The Babangida group supported by the Sultanate, then, made the 1985 coup a palace coup without violence.
- The 1993 coup resulted from the fear of handing over power to the product of Ahmadiyya – Abiola while Abacha, as a Sunni Muslim was preferred. He however had an axe to grind with the Caliphate over some funds entrusted to the Sultan’s son which led to dethronement of Sultan Dasuki and the present travails of his son Colonel Dasuki.
- From 1975 – 1999, Islamism (political Islam) developed and was partially entrenched in the 1999 Constitution which became an instrument with elements of Jihad and Democracy. The Islamist controlled military ensured that Islamist’s “sacred space” was elevated to Land Use Act and SSS was made a Constitutional issue to continue with stealth Jihad. Both Land Use Act and SSS Act got into the 1999 Constitution and were made to supersede the Constitution under Section 315(5)(c) and (d) thus elevating the Quran over and above the Constitution.
- It is our appreciation of the situation that the DSS was established as part of the SSS within the Intelligence Service to promote the Islamists ideology. This is the common practice in Communist, Totalitarian and Third World countries. The Islamists in the process were able through recruited operatives, to control all the thirty parties that eventually emerged from the original two. The only peaceful way open to non-Islamists in Nigeria in the above circumstance, is a party/parties of their own.
- The defeat of President Jonathan in 2015 was made possible by both the DSS and INEC in that before the elections, a new party APC, the product of stealth Jihad, had been established thus pulling the rug from under President Jonathan’s feet even before the elections.
- The second phase now is to ensure a second term for Muhammadu Buhari and to do so the Islamists had to ensure that the two major parties are controlled by the Islamists. The duo of Makarfi and Sheriff are two sides of the same coin to ensure that the Jihad especially stealth Jihad continues until the promised-land is reached (for the Islamists) and that’s when Nigeria becomes a truly Islamic Sultanate and the world becomes an Islamic Caliphate.
- When Babangida started his New Breed politics which outlawed Ethnic and Religion based parties etc, it was stealth Jihad to prevent others especially Christians, to have parties of their own. Malaysia, a Muslim country with Christians, Buddhists, etc has parties representing each group’s interest. Freedom of Association under the Constitution cannot be taken away by a section of the Electoral Act.
- A Christian sponsored political party is necessary for political actions against the Islamists and Islamism in Nigeria. Both Makarfi and Sheriff are unsuitable materials because they cannot represent the interests of non-Islamists in general and Christians in particular. They are on a stealth Jihad to ensure that Christians, in particular, remain disorganized for another four years and thus give Buhari time to consolidate the Islamists hold on Nigeria having intimidated or compromised most, if not all, Christian political and religious leaders.
- Sheriff, whose son is married to Buhari’s daughter, cannot in good conscience participate in removing him as President. Sheriff is working for Buhari’s second term.
- We agree that restructuring is more important than the Presidency, but to achieve this, non-Islamist party/parties need to be established with the main agenda of restructuring to deepen Democracy.
RECOMMENDATIONS
Nigerian requires the establishment of a Non-Islamist Political party to:
- Re-structure Nigeria
- Implement aspects of the National Conference Report relevant and necessary for a multi-Religious, multi-Ethnic, Federal and Democratic country
- Establishment of a Truth and Reconciliation Commission
- Christians should join hands to transform CAN into an Institution. In particular, fund CAN.
- Christians are encouraged to register at www.csmnigeria.org for regular updates and contributions.
National Christian Elders’ Forum (NCEF)
March 28, 2017