BY NA ALLAH MOHAMMED ZAGGA
Are the protests in Tsafe local government against insecurity spontaneous or politically staged managed? I am beginning to smell a rat about these protests. Why target and destroy public property in order to make a point? Why mobilise only the displaced persons in particular local government for the violent protests? Doesn’t the use of violence suggest politics in the protests?
Any genuine protests against insecurity in Zamfara State should involve all the citizens and supporters of all political parties, and shouldn’t involve the use of violence to achieve their objective of eliciting federal government’s response.
However, the use of violence by destroying public property makes me suspicious of hidden political hands behind these protests. I’m not a fan of governor Yari, but I am against holding his government solely responsible for the security failure in Zamfara State. Doing so amounts to putting the saddle on the wrong horse.
Given the violent dimension of these protests, I suspect that some people are desperately bent on forcing the hands of the federal government to declare a state of emergency in Zamfara State, which could result in the removal of Gov. Yari, and thereby hiding behind the chaos to advance their own political ambitions.
Whether you like Yari or not, there is no denying the fact that some people see him as an obstacle to their own political ambitions and, therefore, they will use any Machiavellian tool to force a declaration of emergency rule. Gov. Yari and Senator Yarima have a more formidable political structure than their rivals. So, it is not impossible to use the protests for private political advantages disguised as public interest.
None of Yari’s rivals in the struggle for political control has admitted the limitations of his powers to deploy troops to fight the bandits. Is the Minister of Defense not from Zamfara State? So, why are his political enemies laying the blame at his doorsteps? The federal government should tackle these security threats decisively, but no group of politicians should be allowed to fish in troubled waters to attain their ambitions through the declaration of emergency rule.
The people of Borno, Yobe and Adamawa States had resisted the removal of their own governors by former President Jonathan when he declared emergency rule in those Boko Haram infested states. Gov. Yari shouldn’t be treated differently just because some politicians want to use him as a fall guy for the chain of security failure in Zamfara State.
