The Nigerian nation is facing its toughest multi faceted challenges in recent times. There is a sick president no one sees, a daily threat of military coup, the legislative arm is helpless in the discharge of its responsibilities and the frustrations of Nigerians are evolving and climaxing into incessant blood sheds and horrendous conflicts.
Conflicts arise as a result of disputes, misunderstandings and misconception of actions and overtures. While it is a normal phenomenon for all to disagree, it becomes totally abnormal for conflicts to remain unresolved, and reoccurring every now and then. This is the Jos story.
Jos was once the best place to stay in Nigeria considering the heavenly weather and blissful peace that once characterized the city. However, bouts of killings, religious unrests and the likes have given Jos a new name, Nigeria’s hottest spot and most volatile region where bloodbaths start at the slightest provocation.
As hard as various governments (federal and state) had tried to fathom and proffer conclusive solutions and resolve agitations, the problems seem to be more deeply rooted than we imagined making bow tie loving Bola Ajibola and other reputable emissaries unable to help us solve this debacle.
The crisis in Jos is no longer restricted to Jos and Plateau state alone, it has become a national insult on our ability to internally resolve crisis and put the house together without warranting external interventions, a feature that characterize a nation bound to succeed.
While the truth is we still don’t know what the problems in Jos are, unlike past Kano religious unrests, the impacts of the killings are palpable, the stench of death is strong, and the devastations are of great magnitude, not just to present residents, but generations yet unborn. This must stop!
We must sincerely get to the root of the problems, not the faulty hasty TV conclusions, start the process of reintegration and embark on land cleansing.
According to cultural myths and Biblical facts, lives cut short in their primes constantly cry for vengeance on the land by demanding woes and more blood. Going by the rate of hate in the state, the volumes of the cries are at ery high decibels, it’s time to act.
This is no longer an individual state affair knowing that lives are lost, and the integrity and unity of the nation are being subjected to litmus tests. The federal governments from step in, and deliverance ministers must help out.
Acting President Jonathan must realize that dispatching army men to the city is not enough action. Federal resources should be fully utilized to ensure that we solve the Jos mystery once and for all. The gladiators should also understand the woes being brought on their children and future generations by the barbaric acts in the 21st century. They must take it upon themselves to heal their lands, and cleanse it from avenging innocent blood.
Religious leaders, especially deliverance ministers must arise from routine activities in ultra modern worship centers, and lead Jos leaders and residents in delivering the city and the state from the strong claws of wars, and the tent of death over it.
The various arms of government might have been complacent, unserious and weak in handling other issues, they all must sit up and resolve the Jos crisis for the common good, just like it’s been done in the past in places like Kano and Modakeke.
The woes of having unrests in Jos is now a national phenomenon and the tasks must also be collective. Journalists must continually speak of the atrocities, writers must constantly write about the killings, photographers must ensure that our leaders are daily (and nightly) haunted by the images of those maimed or killed during the crisis, and radio stations should daily air the cries of the homeless, fatherless and those that were devastated by the crisis. The tempo must be sustained until Jos city and the Nigerian nation is wiped clean of religious and sectarian crisis, ethnic battles and other shameful incidences that constantly put Nigeria on the international scene, usually for the wrong reasons.
We used to be a happy nation before these crises, we were once tolerant of one another, and the Nigerian spirit that once spurred us to fame is still in us, we just don’t know what is wrong. God, please heal our land.
