NIGERIA MASTERWEB DAILY NEWS

*“Is Nigeria The New Den of Terrorists?”

( Commentary on Christmas Day attempted terrorist attack by a Nigerian. )

By Olugu Ukpai

Fellow Nigerians, I am being compelled to write this rejoinder given the various news filtering into the net as a fall-out of the aborted and alleged terror attempt to blow up a Northwest Airlines Airbus A330 carrying 278 passengers and 11 crew on Christmas Day by a Nigerian. Various articles, especially the less responsible elements of the international press are tying Nigeria to terrorism. One of such articles was entitled “Is Nigeria the new den of terrorists?” Honestly, I hate writing rejoinder because I address such from the heart when I do, rather than engage in a mere intellectual, academic, and philosophical exercise. This is because I am a firm believer in challenging the status quo where this is warranted. Also, I love having faith in my own ideas even if everyone is getting on the band wagon, to borrow the words of Abraham Lincoln in a letter to his son’s teacher. To me, accepting something simply because it is a dominant cum hegemonic view is one of the greatest threats to progress. To conform and to follow convention is not only an act of cowardice but unpatriotic. Some may term this piece radical, but that is fine because my father told me that a man who doesn’t have or is not known by any firm attribute is a coward. In this rejoinder, I hold that the US/Western name calling or homogenizing Nigeria on this issue is sick and enough and therefore requires large doses of a very bitter medicine-truth which I am prepared to dose out in this rejoinder.

My thesis is that the terror suspect and case should be treated in its own merit, without essesntialising or homogenising Nigeria. The action of the terror suspect's father Mr. Umaru Mutallab-by reporting his son's new found religious fundamentalism and extremism to the US embassy, speaks well of Nigerian virtue that should be eulogized and not vice-versa. Good enough, it is arguable that the terror suspect did not learn his terrorist act in Nigeria, rather, outside of Nigeria where he was sent to study, to become a better person. It saddened my heart when I read some piece tying his basterdised act to Nigeria, while Britain, Togo, Dubai, and Yemen where he studied and supposedly learn his terrorist acts? becomes innocent. In all honesty, we should absolve from this inbuilt colonialism. ( Continues below….. )

Photo Above: Recent undated photo of Abdul Mudallad, Nigerian accused in the failed blow-up attempt of Northwest Airlines Flight 253

Having said that, for posterity sake, it is pertinent that I make my own position on terrorism clear before proceeding. I am anti-terrorism and abhor terrorism in all ramifications. All terrorist networks in Nigeria and elsewhere should be clamp down, and the Nigerian suspect should be made to face the full wrath of the law to serve as a deterrent to others. While efforts should be made to step up security apparatus in Nigeria, the West and overzealous US more especially that "blindly" issued visa to the suspect should be more wary, and step up hers too. My heart aches when I read that the suspect was already enlisted in the CIA terrorist' database, following the tip off by the terror suspect's father. What on earth could the "poor -old" father of 70 years have done to appease US and the world? Kudos to the UK border services that tactically turned down his visa application.

Without any atom of equivocation or ambivalence, first, I am calling on the Nigerian government in particular to celebrate the 70 year old man, Mr. Umaru Mutallab, by honouring him with a national merit award for "upholding Nigerian virtue", because charity begins at home they say. He is an exemplary Nigerian whose act of integrity and honesty should be rewarded and presented to the world as a Nigerian stand on terrorism. From there, the less responsible press and my own imperialist brothers who are quick in condemning Nigeria will learn to be more critical in their writing and in making hasty and uncritical judgment. This will send a very strong message across the globe on Nigerian virtue and position on terrorism for those who are yet to know. While the World, especially the dominant West is bent on homogenizing Nigeria as “terrorists”, Nigerians both home and in the Diaspora should be busy celebrating Mr. Umaru Mutallab’s virtue and it will counterbalance.

Likewise, I am also calling on the American government to immortalize Mr. Umaru Mutallab for his responsible act in reporting his son's religious fundamentalism to CIA at the earliest possible time he noticed that. This might help fight terrorism by encouraging others who might have useful information on terrorism to turn them in to the CIA. I must stress that the use of force might be helpful, but not the best option. I am not yet sure of how many parents who can take such a bold action?

I want to reiterate that this is my personal view. The desire to speak one’s mind is not only my inalienable human right freedom of speech, but also one condition for being an intellectual. It was professor Okowa who signifies that:

“The desire to say the truth [speak one’s mind] is one condition for being an intellectual. The other is courage, readiness to carry on rational inquiry to whatever it may lead, to undertake ruthless criticism of everything that exists; ruthless in the sense that the criticism will not shrink either from its own conclusions or from conflict with the powers that be.”

Correspondingly, I agree with Amu Djoleto when he wrote, “I don’t say what I’m expected to say. I’m no Christ and I do not wish to be. There are enough Jews; but do you think if Christ had said what he was expected to say the church would have been in existence?” Of course not. I am no Christ, but I owe to my country, Nigeria an obligation. What then is that obligation?

French philosopher, Albert Camus readily has the answer when he professes that “the scholar should always remember that the highest devotion we can give is not to our country as it is but to a concept of what we would like it to be.” Thus, I write to condemn the American/Western essentialism and exceptionalism of terrorism on Nigeria. By essentialism and exceptionalism, I mean the tendency of homogenizing Nigerians as “either terrorists or den or terrorists”?, and the tendency to assume that the United States is different from and better than other nations, innocent, and also the land of well-motivated freedom terrorism fighters who must take the battle to other lands. Excuse me. Point of correction. Nigeria has always been and is still an ally in the war against terrorism. By the way, is terrorism not one of the by-products of Americanization, globalization and neo-colonialism? Professor Mojubaolu Okome rather contends persuasively that the contemporary African nation in general and Nigeria state in particular did not spring de novo from its environment. Rather, it has roots in the imposition of draconian forms of colonial rule on African peoples. The tragedy of the contemporary African state is that, it still fails to rise above colonial detritus of wanton disregard of people’s rights. America should be bold enough to look into her backyard to see how her shortcoming perpetuates terrorism? Reiterating this fact, the CBN Governor holds the same view when he wrote: “We’re all victims of colonization” which was the caption of the punch newspaper of Friday, November 20th, 2009. The Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mallam Sanusi Lamido Sanusi was quoted to have that said that the ills of the country (including but not limited to terrorism?, if any?) should not be blamed on any ethnic group. According to the CBN boss, “every Nigerian [including, the alleged terrorist, Umar Farouk?] is a victim of colonialism.”

Before I end this piece, it is instructive to quote Vice President of Nigeria, Goodluck Jonathan’s concern on essentialising and exceptionalism on Nigerians in the Diaspora as a likely fall-out of the aborted terror attack by a Nigerian. Quoting today’s Daily sun newspaper (28th Dec, 2009), the VP told the congregation at a thanksgiving service at the Living Faith Church in Abuja yesterday that “government’s worry stemmed from the fact that the incident would subject Nigerians to unnecessary checks and hassles by security operatives abroad anytime they travelled out of the country.” Reprieve came to the way of the VP yesterday when a Nigerian was harassed, dehumanized and arrested yesterday (27th Dec, 2009) by the crew members of the same Northwest Airlines, and was detained as a terror suspect for allegedly using the washroom for “about an hour.” What a nonsense? Again, the Yemen government is reportedly to have placed embargo on visa for Nigerian students. I am not surprised that other nations will follow suit. Why should innocent Nigerian students be made the sacrificial cow for an offense that they did not commit? Why Homogenising and essentialising Nigerian students?

Homogenising Nigeria signifies the US or Western’s knee-jerk attitudes often serve to obscure and legitimate US and Western cultural, hegemonic and domination throughout the world. It was the Late Edward who:

“used the term “Orientalism” to refer to the discourses that structure Westerner’s understanding of the Orient. He emphasised the extent to which the identity of the colonial and post-colonial West is a rhetorical achievement. In a series of imperial gestures, we have reduced “the Orient” to a passive object, to be known by a cognitively privileged subject-ourselves, “the West.”

In conclusion, I can do no better than to end this piece with the words of Malcom X when he wrote “You're not to be so blind with patriotism that you can't face reality. Wrong is wrong no matter who does or says it." Umar Farouk is wrong. His action is deadly and un-Nigerian virtue. He should be treated in his own merit without monolothising and dragging Nigerian name in the mud. Every individual should be made to face and take responsibility for his/her actions and not their country. After all it was the West that imposed individualism as a concept on Africa when collectivism was the norm prior to colonialism. Why renege now?

To crown it all, like Malcom X, I admonish Nigerians in Diaspora “to [remain calm], be peaceful, obey the law, respect everyone, but if someone puts his hand on you, send him to the cemetery.”

I am proud to be a Nigerian. If anything like re-incarnation exists, I will return as a Nigerian as many times as practicable. In God’s hand I commit Nigeria.

Nigerians are not terrorists!

Long Live the Federal Republic of Nigeria! Long Live All Nigerians in the Diaspora!!

*Ukpai is a Ph.D student, School of Law, University of Reading, sent in this rejoinder/commentary from UK, and can be reached at oluukpaiolu@yahoo.com