March 10 2010
NewsRescue- Contrary to what many might think, there is a sure and easy solution to the repeated riots that usually erupt in the North-central part of Nigeria.
These riots, usually supported by religious differences are actually centrally hemmed on resource, land and social deplorable existing conditions. The root cause of the characteristic deadly problem is colonialism and the combination of groups, tribes and religions that should and would under no ordinary conditions, live together, to forcibly and unnaturally attempt to exist together and assimilate into each-other expressly.
Related: NewsRescue- Conflicts in Africa- Introduction
We present our simple few step solution to this rather simple, deadly problem that plagues the worlds most populous Black Nation. This we group into immediate actions and Long-term actions.
Immediate action
1. Put guns into the hands of all minority populations.
When your government does not help you and can not be trusted, there is only one immediate solution. You, the people must be ready and able to defend yourselves and provide for yourselves the security you need. AK-47’s must be distributed by charity groups to all citizens living in threatened areas…and vigilantes should be trained in the use of these. We all know that the US constitution and the second amendment for this very reason permits the arming of the masses.
2. Vigilante groups
Select member of the population in threatened areas must volunteer on day-day basis and especially when threats are eminent to patrol these communities and alert ready members to pick up their arms when threats present themselves. In cities like Lagos Nigeria, we have similar fenced communities and guards and vigilantes who serve to protect and alert the residents in the event of criminal activity.
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3. Escape routes
Communities must define and create escape routes in the event of attack. These secure, easily accessible routes should lead to safe havens which may include Military barracks and the like.
Long-term action
1. Community meetings
There must be continuous community integration and meetings to allow for understanding and organized peaceful proceedings between friction communities. There are indeed differences and issues which as we have said, were caused by the forceful combination during colonialism of conflicting populations. But the most difficult of these differences can be resolved with integration and interaction. problems are actually uniform world wide. The poor are the poor and the rich are the rich, and these groups have more in common than they care to realize if indeed they sit together. No human likes the threat of death, oppression, or maiming of his loved ones. We must sit together and realize that we are all people, humans that bleed, cry and die.
Related: NewsRescue-Nigeria cracks down after attacks in Jos
2. Community activities
Just like the Olympics and world cup integrate countries, so also must games and activities be set up between communities to enable interaction and integration for the reasons stated above.
3. Media education
The media must be actively involved in dissipating information that gradually enlightens and educates the community on tolerance and living together as one. There must be highly intelligent programs created to transform the mind-set of the citizenry toward progressive positive behavior. We must know that the religious books are many a time not clearly understood and as such we must have programs that help educate people on the common errors they may have made or been susceptible to.
4. Government security
The Nigerian Government must firmly deploy military and and mobile police forces to rotations in the most violent areas. We can not wait for crises before damage control. There are enough security forces in barracks to have an officer on every street and patrol cars. If need be, recruitment of security forces must be expanded to provide the needed security presence at all times in these explosive areas.
5. Government social structure improvement
As we all know, a root cause of crises is poverty and the low social standard of living in these regions. It is well known that poverty in the North is higher than that in the South of Nigeria. The Nigerian Government must seriously begin to improve the social standards of the communities that are most frustrated and most prone to bouts of violence. This is not an issue that can be postponed, but must be looked into immediately.
Many of the crises in these areas are a result of frustrations, meager resource competition, the resource or land that can barely provide for the families of those who become menaces. But the cost of damage when lives are lost, religious establishments are torn down, and shops and the market skeleton of the community are destroyed is much more than it would cost to improve and preserve these same communities. Property worth millions and life-priceless are what we stand to loose if we do not pressure the Government to spend the little needed to improve these communities.
We the masses must start to make life unbearable for our community representatives and all the way up to our Nations leaders, till they take decisive action to improve the standard of living in our communities. they must Light-up-Nigeria! The community intelligence of Nigeria is falling due to our living in darkness. The cities close for the day much earlier than their counterpart cities all over the world. An an idle mind is the devils workshop…and deteriorates.
While waiting for the Government, those blessed in communities must take action into their own hands and provide what they can. Solar power to a house beside yours. Solar lamps to farms, a little tar on your street, street guards. Whatever we can provide, we must provide to communities around us.
Either by eventual annihilation or by learned co-existence, this issue, this wrong union will eventually reach resolution. But we hope and pray and must act so the resolution is not by eventual disintegration and/or annihilation, but by harmonious coexistence.