One must thank God for the kind souls that gather in Abuja everyday or so for the Chibok Girls. But for them, Nigerians and indeed the Nigerian government would have forgotten about the Chibok Girls altogether.
Asked about the point of a sit-out that has more or less failed to bring back the girls, since the government had already heard our grouse, one was quick to tell the journalist that the government heard the uproar about stolen subsidy funds in 2012, the government and the people have since moved on.
The government was privy to the uproar that greeted the minister of aviation’s N255 million cars, but the people and the government have since moved on. Nigerians never cared to ask what became of the cars and the government never cared to tell the people what became of its committee set up for that purpose. This is Nigeria, where, no matter how bad or heinous the crime, we move on and more often than not, we forget.
We cannot afford to move on from the Chibok Girls. If we do, we will be as responsible for whatever happens to them as those who abducted them and as the government that has seemingly abdicated its responsibility to rescue the girls. When the government started sponsoring protesters to call on Boko Haram to ‘Release Our Girls’ was the point a wise onlooker would know that the government was more or less shifting the responsibility of having the girls returned home alive to their abductors.
Our government expects a group of insane men who put all the plans and logistics in place to abduct over 200 girls to have a rethink and return them home just like that. It is like expecting a group of armed robbers who have successfully raided a house and carted away its most prized possessions to return same without being under pressure from the authorities. That is delusional. If our government does not do something about bringing back our girls, the girls will be gone.
Today is the 56th day since their abduction President Goodluck Jonathan has been everywhere for the most mundane reasons but has yet to visit Chibok to at least stand with the parents of the girls. Everything points to a government either desperate to shift responsibility or desperate to have the issue of the girls out of the minds of Nigerians.
Media houses are being clamped down. That way, apart from suppressing the press and intimidating its stakeholders, the government will be able to shift the issue of public discourse away from the Chibok Girls. Banning the Abuja advocates of Bring Back Our Girls from protesting earlier last week was another effort at killing the advocacy calling on the government to do something. People like Doyin Okupe weeping all over social media over a handshake that was rightly not returned is another way to distract from the girls.
Nigerians must understand that whether now or later, Nigeria will happen to most of us. That Nigeria has not reached your doorstep does not mean you should be disconnected from the unwholesome realities of our country faced by other citizens. As long as this country continues on this path, it will get to you. Our job is to remember that as a people, we are one. What touches one, touches all.
We cannot afford to forget the Chibok Girls. We cannot afford to be silent about their plight. Several abductions have since happened since then as Boko Haram continues to unleash terror on Nigeria but we must remain resolute in making the Chibok Girls the focus of our campaign to get our government to take responsibility for its primary essence: the security of lives and property.
I tweet via @Omojuwa
Asked about the point of a sit-out that has more or less failed to bring back the girls, since the government had already heard our grouse, one was quick to tell the journalist that the government heard the uproar about stolen subsidy funds in 2012, the government and the people have since moved on.
The government was privy to the uproar that greeted the minister of aviation’s N255 million cars, but the people and the government have since moved on. Nigerians never cared to ask what became of the cars and the government never cared to tell the people what became of its committee set up for that purpose. This is Nigeria, where, no matter how bad or heinous the crime, we move on and more often than not, we forget.
We cannot afford to move on from the Chibok Girls. If we do, we will be as responsible for whatever happens to them as those who abducted them and as the government that has seemingly abdicated its responsibility to rescue the girls. When the government started sponsoring protesters to call on Boko Haram to ‘Release Our Girls’ was the point a wise onlooker would know that the government was more or less shifting the responsibility of having the girls returned home alive to their abductors.
Our government expects a group of insane men who put all the plans and logistics in place to abduct over 200 girls to have a rethink and return them home just like that. It is like expecting a group of armed robbers who have successfully raided a house and carted away its most prized possessions to return same without being under pressure from the authorities. That is delusional. If our government does not do something about bringing back our girls, the girls will be gone.
Today is the 56th day since their abduction President Goodluck Jonathan has been everywhere for the most mundane reasons but has yet to visit Chibok to at least stand with the parents of the girls. Everything points to a government either desperate to shift responsibility or desperate to have the issue of the girls out of the minds of Nigerians.
Media houses are being clamped down. That way, apart from suppressing the press and intimidating its stakeholders, the government will be able to shift the issue of public discourse away from the Chibok Girls. Banning the Abuja advocates of Bring Back Our Girls from protesting earlier last week was another effort at killing the advocacy calling on the government to do something. People like Doyin Okupe weeping all over social media over a handshake that was rightly not returned is another way to distract from the girls.
Nigerians must understand that whether now or later, Nigeria will happen to most of us. That Nigeria has not reached your doorstep does not mean you should be disconnected from the unwholesome realities of our country faced by other citizens. As long as this country continues on this path, it will get to you. Our job is to remember that as a people, we are one. What touches one, touches all.
We cannot afford to forget the Chibok Girls. We cannot afford to be silent about their plight. Several abductions have since happened since then as Boko Haram continues to unleash terror on Nigeria but we must remain resolute in making the Chibok Girls the focus of our campaign to get our government to take responsibility for its primary essence: the security of lives and property.
I tweet via @Omojuwa
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