1. It is said that the voluntary surrender of power in 1979 to Alhaji Shehu Shagari gave the military, as then represented by Olusegun Obasanjo, a sanctimonious self-righteous air of being Nigeria’s custodian of democracy and moral conscience. However, the National Christian Elders’ Forum (NCEF) sees things differently to wit: that the handing over of power in 1979 was a stage in the promotion of Islamism in Nigeria.
The reasons for the 1966 coup may be obscure but the fact remains that the first Law passed by the Independent Nigerian Parliament was the Emergency Act of 1961, signed by Dr Nnamdi Azikiwe within months of Independence. This was an unusual way of celebrating freedom from colonial rule.
2. The Western Region Emergency situation was contrived and stage-managed; we remember the cry “fire on the mountain, run, run, run” by both Kensington Momoh and Lekan Salami that led to “operation wetie” followed by rigged Western Elections, then the State of Emergency declared contrary to the provisions of the Constitution. All of the above led to the Civil War of 1967 – 1970. The group of army officers (mostly Muslim), headed by Murtala Mohammed in 1966 that staged the July revenge coup of that year continue to form the pillar of all succeeding military and civilian regimes including the 2015 Elections that brought Muhammadu Buhari to power a second time, as was done for Olusegun Obasanjo in 1999.
3. The Vanguard of Saturday, May 13, 2017 at page 5 in an article captioned “Power Struggle How Buhari’s Letter was Muddled”, part of which read that: “as a military leader, he [Buhari] had Tunde Idiagbon and some other acting in private capacity, even still powerful in the present government” makes it clear that the cabal or some others acting in private capacity are the Islamists. In other words, since 1975 the Islamists gained power in Nigeria and have, since then, employed jihad as instrument for governance. Cabal is defined as a group of people united in some close design together to promote sectional views or ideology often by intrigue unknown to persons outside the group or cabal.
4. The Non-Commissioned Officers (NCO) and Lieutenants (Lt) of 1966 created successive dynasties of military regimes and civilian governments. Since then and now, majority of them were Muslims. Today, one of them, once again, is the President of Nigeria. The military governed with popular appeal and little opposition and thus became the alternative rulers of Nigeria while some officers retired to become traditional rulers.
It is often said that the Army resort to politics was “akin to setting an exam prior to attending lecture”, using the Gowon case who went to study politics that earned him a Phd after being Head of State of Nigeria for nine years (1966 – 1975). In the opinion of the NCEF, this is an incorrect assessment.
5. The Muslim officers who spearheaded the overthrow of General Gowon, on the eve of handing over power, came prepared especially Shehu Yar’adua and Ibrahim Babangida. They were fully prepared by the Muslim Brotherhood that provided the ideology of Islamism and the strategy for its operations. This explains why the coups by Christian soldiers always failed e.g. the 1966 coup mainly by Ibadan University and Sandhurst graduates, 1976 Dimka coup, Orkar coup of 1990, all failed woefully. The Muslim brotherhood Islamists introduced legal political and military doctrines into Islam to become what is eventually known as Political Islam. The final objective is the defeat of Democracy and the enthronement of a world Caliphate, through the doctrine of Sharia. Sharia is an immutable, compulsory system the Muslims are obliged to install and the world required to adopt. Failure to do so is declared to be damnable offence against Allah. Sharia is not a private matter.
6. Islamists see Democracy as an obstacle to overcome, a culture and civilization that cannot be embraced or even tolerated. It is impossible for the Islamists to tolerate alternative legal systems and forms of government for peaceful co-existence with other forms of culture or civilization. The implication is that Sharia promotes jihad. Stealth and regular jihads are the same i.e. to achieve the same result – those in Aso Villa that practice stealth jihad, the Fulani herdsmen and Boko Haram are the same. Muslim Brotherhood (MB) is the most important entity promoting Sharia in the world. It is very clear that the Muslim groups in Nigeria are front groups for Muslim Brotherhood and relies on MB’s resource base, leadership and strategy. The aim is to destroy Western civilization from within and ensure the takeover of the political authority by Sharia. Thus, ensuring triumph of Islam and the installation of the Caliphate is a must especially when Nigeria already has the Sokoto Caliphate.
7. National Intelligence, Law Enforcement and Security leadership in Nigeria have been taken over by the Islamists. The Islamists are at war (jihad) with the rest of Nigerians who are considered unbelievers and those of different Islamic sects such as the Shiites who have a different interpretation of the meaning of jihad.
8. Examples of stealth jihad
- Whittling down of a chapter of the Constitution on Human Rights by excessive provisos to bring it into conformity with Sharia which stipulates that humans have no rights, as all rights belong to Allah
- Creation of States and Local Government skewed in favour of the ‘Muslim’ North
- The numerous provisions in the Constitution for Sharia and Sharia related issues without relative provision for Christianity and Christian issues.
- Section 162(2) on Public Revenue is skewed in favour of ‘Muslim’ North as, for example, the consideration of landmass, which, ordinarily, should be an asset but is used to provide more Revenue
- Illogicality of military decrees becoming the Constitution, all of the above and more constitute stealth Jihad. Examples of regular Jihad are (i) Boko Haram (ii) Fulani Herdsmen and other similar organizations in Nigeria.
- It is stealth Jihad to prevent Christians and others from having political parties they can call their own while Islamists own all the over 40 political parties.
9. Recommendations
- There should be a New Constitution to replace the one in use that has Sharia inclined military decrees grafted into it. There is need for proper understanding of the nature of Sharia by non-Islamist Nigerians in order to keep Nigeria Sharia free
- Discard Sharia compliant Finance and Banking Acts
- Set up a Truth and Reconciliation Commission
- Establish a Law Review Commission to isolate Sharia in our statute books
10. Islamist Politicians in action in Nigeria
Walter Onnoghen CJN, was reported in The Nation of Saturday, May 13, 2017 at page 5, while delivering Judgment in the case of Abia State Governorship tussle to have reacted thus: “there is need for member of the political class to re-examine themselves in the present dispensation and to save and protect Democracy in the country --- There is no problem that the politicians are in charge of the Executive and Legislative, but please keep out of the Judiciary”. For a better understanding, the NCEF submits that politicians, in this context, mean Islamists who are also in charge of the Judiciary. This feat, the Islamists were able to achieve, through stealth jihad over the years.
11. To suggest that Nigeria cannot be Islamized is to exhibit ignorance as Nigeria is populated half by Christians and half by Muslims. How many Christians are in the Federal Judiciary, Supreme Court, Court of Appeal, Federal High Court and the Court of the Federal Territory of Abuja? It cannot be 50:50 but 60% Muslims and 40% Christians. This is not to say that all 60% Muslim Justices and Judges are Islamists but the truth is that Muslim provides the sea in which the Islamist swim in”. Above all, no Islamist or Muslim is loyal to the Nigerian Constitution but only to the Quran and they have never hidden this fact. The need for peaceful co-existence has to be further discussed especially issues concerning the Rule of Law not Rule of might or superiority of Religion over the Law.
12. For a correct appreciation of the Nigerian situation, the word ‘cabal’ should be substituted with the word ‘Islamists’. A proper understanding of the Nigerian situation by Christians will help, in no small measure, to prevent violence and deaths that may follow if Islamist Taqiyya (deceit) manifests further. Political problems require political solutions. Islamists/rulers in Nigeria seem to see themselves as successors to the British colonial masters, having partnered the British to rule Northern Nigeria. The Islamists do not see Nigeria as a country but part of a Sultanate established by Usman Dan Fodio in early 18th Century which explains why the Nigeria Constitution and Rule of Law are treated with contempt.
13. This state of affairs could never have happened without the collaboration of Christian proxies. These facts notwithstanding, it is time that Christians call the Islamists bluff in Nigeria. Core Christians do not have a political party and Catholic Priests and Pastors have to fill the gap, a job they have done poorly, because the Clergy failed to appreciate the fact that Islamism is a political movement which requires to be countered by a Christian political party for the promotion of Democracy and Rule of Law. The reason for the poor performance can be attributed to the infiltration of the Churches by the Islamist Intelligence Service and cultists who compromise the Clergy by corrupting them. We, non-Islamists, have a duty save them from themselves.
14. It is very clear that since the Islamists, in various names including Enforcers, Cabal, Politician, Presidency etc. encroached into democracy and subsequently succeeded in overthrowing democracy and replacing it with Islamism the end result has been poverty, inequality and corruption. All non-Islamist Nigerians must join hands together to defeat by constitutional means the Islamists that are the present rulers (owners) of Nigeria.
National Christian Elders’ Forum (NCEF)
Abuja, May 15, 2017
Solomon Asemota, SAN (Chairman), Gen. Joshua Dogonyaro (rtd), Archbishop Magnus Atilade, Dr. (Mrs) Kate Okpareke, Dr. Ayo Abifarin, Gen. Zamani Lekwot (rtd), Bishop Joseph Bagobiri, Elder Moses Ihonde, Elder Nat Okoro, Gen. T. Y. Danjuma, Justice Kalajine Anigbogu (rtd), Elder Shyngle Wigwe, DIG P. L. Dabup, Sir John W. Bagu, Dr. Saleh Hussaini, Elder Mike Orobator, Justice James Ogebe, JSC (rtd), Dr. Chukwuemeka Ezeife, Chief Debo Omotosho, Dame Priscilla Kuye, Dr. S. D. Gani, Amb. S. T. Dogonyaro, Mrs. Osaretin Demuren, Prof. Yussuf Turaki, Dr. Musa Asake, Pastor Bosun Emmanuel (Secretary)
