Ena Ofugara

By Ena Ofugara

We have… I have spent so many years making all Nigeria’s problems Fulani fault that today I have decided to drag you, kicking and screaming, (you must come. Curse me but you must come) into my observatory wherein you can see from the Fulani perspective and so you can either understand a little more or dig in and hate them more.

1953-1960

Anthony Enahoro from then Western region stated “independence NOW’ Ahmadu Bello said “Independence as soon as feasible.” Northern leaders came to Lagos. They were stoned and disgraced. When Azikiwe and Awo came to the North, they received same treatment. Sadly, it degenerated and many lost their lives.

1960.

Fulani-led Northern People’s Congress won an election and partnered with NCNC giving NCNC the posts of President and minister of finance (Azikiwe and Okotie Eboh.

1963.

The Western region proved to be unruly and (add invectives) and so many unpalatable things happened to democracy including Awolowo’s jailing.

1966.

Having won election and expected to serve out their mandate, a coup by mostly southerners of a particular divide killed the almighty Sardauna of Sokoto and the prime minister Tafawa Balewa. Also killed were the Premier of Western region Ladoke Akintola and the minister of labour and finance, Okotie Eboh, an Itsekiri from Midwest State. Asked about mortalities, total of 22 top officers from all other regions except one. And the counter coup had Aguiyi Ironsi take power and in Northern view “you kill our two most important men, leave your Azikiwe and Okpara and then become head of state?”

And Gowon took a coup and ruled for ten years.

But remember, the winners of the election was Fulani and they were removed from power by a massacre of their icons and in the coup, Gowon, son of Christian missionaries (Fulanis are Muslims) from Ngas (Angas) from Lur, a small village in the present Kanke Local Government Area of Plateau State became president thus cheating Fulanis.

1975.

Muritala, said to be a Berom from Plateau state but raised by adopted parents (Babangida was raised by adopted parents too) from Kano. But for sake of this article, let us call him as Kano.

Clockwise from the top left: Zik, Balewa, Ironsi, Gowon, Shagari, Buhari, Babangida, Shinekan, Murtala, Obasanjo, Abacha, Abubakar

1976.

Dimka takes a coup and Obasanjo, a Yoruba became head of state.

1979.

And in an election between Shagari a Fulani and Awolow and Azikiwe (All founding fathers of Nigeria with those from Fulani slaughtered) Shagari won.

1983.

Shagari won again DEMOCRATICALLY and a coup was taken yet again to take power that Fulani won democratically.

And Buhari a Fulani is drafted in to make it seem like it is not an attack on Fulanis.

1985.

The real planners of the coup, IBB and Abacha took over government and booted out Fulani. General Ibrahim Babangida Badamosi is Middle Belt Niger state (Gwari/Gbagyi)

1990.

And Gideon Orkar of the middle-belt and Ogboru of Niger Delta and co took a coup and drove away Fulani lands from Nigeria. See? That is how much they HATE FULANIS (to borrow a cliche of HATE from others)

1990-93.

Babangida made all the top Fulanis including Adamu Ciroma, Umaru Shinkafi, Shehu Musa Yar “Adua, Alhaji Alhaji Bamanga Tukur etc waste their time and money and the BANNED them for NO APPARENT REASON and paved the way for the relatively WEAK Abiola of Yoruba extraction to win the SDP primaries and election. Abiola DARED NOT RUN AGAINST YAR ADUA who was privy to his contracts in the 70’s under Muritala Mohammed’s administration and his Ogun brother Obasanjo’s.

1993.

So the SECOND 11/reserves led by Abiola won an election. Babangida cancelled it and ‘stepped aside.’

THAT ”STEP ASIDE”

Buhari did not hand power back to Fulani that he took it from. He did not hand it back to Fulani even though Shehu Musa Yar Adua was supposed to be the standard bearer of SDP that won 57 percent of House of Reps seat and even NRC that had both Fulani Ciroma and Shinkafi as its primary top vote earners.

Ernest Shonekan was made president. Ernest Shonekan is from Ogun state, a Yoruba

1993.

And Abacha, a Kanuri from the country Chad and Borno. (Yes, he is not Fulani) became president.

Of SHEHU YAR’A ADUA vs MKO ABIOLA.

Both Shehu and Abiola were both murde…. okay, both died in jail. But the Fulani Yar’Adua is forgotten like a bad song while Abiola, a man who dared not run against Yar Adua and who only won because Yar”Adua was INEXCUSABLY AND OPPRESSIVELY banned, is a HERO.

1998.

Abacha dies and another Midbelter….in an army everyone says is FULANI ARMY, another person , General Abdusalami Abubakar from Middle Belt Niger specifically Gwari/Gbagyi was handed the country.

1999.

Atiku inherited Shehu Yar Adua structure. Umaru Yar Adua was a “smallie” as he never was really loyal to “senior bros” Musa. PDP was formed and Fulanis decided….DECIDED to forget the fact that CIROMA, SHINKAFI, SHEHU YAR’ADUA, etc etc were all cheated just like the Yoruba MKO Abiola and zone presidency to Yorubas.

2003.

Obasanjo was to rule one term and then hand power to Fulani Atiku. He asked for a term and even begged as Atiku had Ibori and all PDP power brokers with him. Again Fulani decided to be patient and hand Obasanjo second term.

2006.

Obasanjo the ingrate decided to go for a third term. He spent billions trying to change the constitution. After being brought from prison and allowed to rule 2 tenures, he bid for an ILLEGAL third tenure, loses and decided to destroy his VP Atiku for not supporting him in his quest for Mugabe-like eternal rule.

2007.

The world knew Yar Adua was sick. Fulanis begged Obasanjo to choose another. Obasanjo placed his hoped stooge Goodluck Jonathan, an Ijaw just behind a frail sickly chain-smoking pale could-not-even-attend-own-campaign Musa Yar Adua. Musa won and never really could rule as he was sick. Others like Ibori and Dambazzu etc called the shots.

2010.

Obasanjo’s plan worked. The politically structureless Jonathan Goodluck of the Ijaw extraction became president. Again, Fulani was not allowed to complete tenure.

2014

An agreement for power to be handed back to Fulani to complete their tenure was broken by PDP as Jonathan, having run a first time and after five years ran again for a second tenure with Fulanis not given a chance to challenge him in the primaries.

And Tinubu backed a sickly Buhari against healthy Atiku, Tambuwal, Kwankwaso etc. Kwankwaso and Atiku had as much of the Northern votes in the primaries as did Buhari and would have gotten more but for Tinubu that locked 100 percent of Yoruba APC delegates for Buhari who ended up winning. Obasanjo as “navigator” brought back his strategy of picking a sick Fulani and he and Tinubu enthroned him. This time they made sure the vice was Yoruba.

2017.

They are counting these years as Fulani rule when we are unable to really rule as Buhari is very very sick. Osinbajo is president and has been president for long but like the three years Yar Adua was sick and these two, history will say FULANI WAS RULING. The truth is no cabal has the power of a a healthy president carrying out his agenda.

L-R: Abdusalami Abubakar, Ishmaili, Ibrahim Babangida, Mohammed Magoro, Ahmed Buba Ahmed

TALKING OPPRESSION.

The only Majority that has not ruled is Hausa. Igbos ruled with Fulanis in 1960-66. Aguyi is Igbo too. Igbos have been vice president with Ekwueme and Ebitu Ukiwe. NO HAUSA HAS EVEN SMELT VP. So who should be crying the most? Hausa or Igbos who have multiple people who have had official lodgings in Dodan Barracks and Aso Rock?

Fulanis have been the ones removed from power after winning fair and square in democracy. Fulanis it is that had all their founding fathers murdered while other region’s own leaders died of old age. (Ahmadu Bello, Tafawa Balewa.) Fulanis it it that had all their candidates banned by IBB for Abiola to win and still allowed Obasanjo to rule without challenging him. Onu of APP (ANPP) an Igbo refused to step down. His people even did not vote him. We did not form ASSOCIATION OF BETTER NIGERIA that ruined 1993. Arthur Nzeribe did. Even this Jonathan, Tinubu is the one that made Fulanis go so strongly against Jonathan. The Yoruba Tinubu gathered the enemies, recruited Amaechi, Timipriye Silver, Oshiomole and co and challenged Jonathan even when Fulanis would have waited yet again. You can see that Tambuwal never agreed to impeach Jonathan even when Obasanjo tried to do it by writing a letter.

THEY TALK OF MUSLIM OPPRESSION

Of 57 years, Christians have ruled 27 (Gowon 10, Obasanjo 11, Ironsi and Shonekan about one year (nine months) Goodluck Jonathan 5 years. Muslims have ruled 30 years. Where then is the religious oppression?

So as you call Fulani BORN TO RULE, note that in 57 years of Nigeria, we have shared power with Igbos from 1960-1966, (Azikiwe/Tafawa Balewa) ruled through Shagari 1979-1983, and been tricked to elect sick Fulanis ever since. Right now, the Fulani who is president cannot even sign a budget. Yoruba Osinbajo did and yet they say FULANI are BORN TO RULE.

IF WE MUST MAKE THE DIFFERENCE KNOWN.

Do you know most of the herdsmen are not really Fulani? Do you know a lot of Fulanis actually go to school? No you did not. But even this will come to an end soon, these killings. Do you know many Boko Haram are not Fulani? That too will come to an end. Ask yourselves this question “If I was going to jail and wanted to have a tribe keep my money till I come back, would I hand the money to an Urhobo man, Yoruba man, Igbo man or to a Fulani man? Who would you really trust more to treat you fairly? Who keeps his words to others and his people more?

THE FALL GUY: LIKE THE RAIN, BLAME IT ON US.

Fulanis is the BAD GUY. Fulani is the BAD GUY. But we allow others rule. If they had our alliance, will they allow us rule? Both Obasanjo and Jonathan, did they not break agreements? Do we not earn less than your states? Was Kano not more developed than anywhere in the south? Did Fulani not welcome traders from Mali and Ife and Benin and everywhere? Are others not millionaires in Fulani areas? What state has Fulanis as commisioners? We have Igbos and Yorubas as commissioners. What state considers non-indegenes as indegenes? SOKOTO state. Yes. There are no foreigners in Sokoto by law. Can an Edo say that in Delta state? FULANI IS THE BAD GUY. Do not go and blame your state governments that collect HUGE HUGE amounts monthly. “FULANI IS THE PROBLEM OF NIGERIA”. They are “BORN TO RULE”.

THE ALLIANCES.

They think Fulanis are 1 billion. No Fulanis are not. But have managed to strike ALLIANCES with neighbours and put COLLECTIVE PRESSURE on successive governments to make them see some things Fulani way.

THE POPULATION/ CENSUS ARGUMENT.

All the census conducted, one in 1962, 1963, 1973, 2006, even ones before Nigeria became independent shows the North having more people. 1973 and 2006 were organized by Christians (Obasanjo and Gowon) and by Mid belter and Yoruba man (Obasanjo and Gowon). So are you saying they lied against their regions and made the North more? Or is it that Kanu and Kanem Bornu and such areas were developed before the south and had more people over time? Even land mass, do you compare small regions that only Gongola was bigger than to the North? And when you say North? Do you know how many tribes the North really has? But you think everyone is Hausa/Fulani. You count representatives of Middle Belt, because they speak Hausa as Fulanis. You have much to learn about the North.

THE FULANI ALLIANCES.

As long as Fulanis are able to strike alliances, as long as they do not go around calling their neighbours “cowards” and “traitors” and as long as their neighbours do not reply in equal measure with same anger as doled out to them, as long as they know how to reach out as they did with Zik in 1960, Ekwueme in 1979, Osinbanjo 2015, Fulani will keep winning elections.

(Ena Ofugara having immersed self and become Fulani for a minute, unplugs self and takes a bath and goes back to being Niger Deltan)

–FB