By Celestine Okafor (Editor-in-Chief)
Nigeria's former Senate President, Senator Anyim Pius Anyim, has x-rayed Nigeria's efforts at nation-building, 51 years after the Nigerian - Biafra war, and declared that the initial triggers that precipitated the war are still present in the Nigerian system, adding that the nation's response in this regard has been rather uncoordinated, haphazard and devoid of a coherent strategy backed by data.
Anyim made these observations on Tuesday, July 6, 2021, during his keynote address at the International Research Conference on '50 Years Post Nigerian Civil War: Issues, Challenges, and Prospect Towards National Integration, Justice, Peace and Security, organized by the Center for Health and Allied Legal and Demographical Development Research and Training of the Nnamdi Azikiwe Federal University, Awka, Anambra state.
Former Nigeria's number three citizen, while commending the University authority for their thoughtfulness on the choice and theme of the conference, however, opined that there was a need to constantly measure, monitor, and analyze the trends in public opinion and attitudes, which he said, would help policymakers provide policy responses to the general feelings of alienation, marginalization or anger in the country.
Anyim who was the Keynote Speaker at the Conference, also stated that the initiative for the Confab by Unizik was praiseworthy, in the sense that the institution found it necessary to identify with the ongoing national efforts to find answers to the current challenges facing the nation by organizing a conference of that nature with what he described as a theme that speaks to one of the burning issues in Nigeria today.
Tracing the historical civil war occurrences in the traditional societies, particularly in Africa, Senator Anyim recalled the Nigerian experience with the escapades of the Oyo Empire, the Kanem-Bornu Empire, the Benin Kingdom, the Aro Chukwu Warriors, etc, as recorded examples of such civil wars. But he stated that with the advent of nationalism or the establishment of modern nation-states, the traditional differences were never an impediment.
Anyim said: "What obtained in the traditional communities in Nigeria also occurred across the globe. The civil war in the context of modern nations states is always a cause for concern because it is usually borne out of a misunderstanding between or among communities or ethnic groups that hitherto came together to form a modern nation".
Senator Anyim contended that research has shown that pre-modern nation differences will remain a trigger for conflicts except if the modern state is properly welded together by equity, fairness, justice, and equality and at times by human and economic developments. "I dare say that building a nation out of multi-ethnic nationalities requires deliberate planning and effort at all stages. It requires conscious and constant review and management of the conflict triggers that ultimately undermine national consensus and unity.
"These triggers will always spring up as the different ethnic nationalities interact and compete for space. It is the responsibility of the leadership at all levels to evolve broad-based strategies to pre-empt the triggers and diffuse them before they snowball into a national crisis. In my opinion, our response in this regard has been rather uncoordinated, haphazard and devoid of a coherent strategy backed by data".
The former Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF) however said that "In 2011, Roper Center, one hundred and fifty years after the American civil war, conducted studies and opinion polls to measure public perception about the cause and impact of the American civil war. In our case, may I ask, have we ever measured public opinion and mood of the various ethnic nationalities in Nigeria since after the war or even since after independence?
"After the war, we changed from parliamentary to presidential system of Government. Have we measured public opinion on which works better for Nigeria? Have we tested public opinion about our federation among the multiple nationalities in the country? I must say that constant measuring, monitoring, and analyzing trends in opinion and attitudes will help policymakers provide policy responses to feelings of alienation, marginalization, or anger. I cannot over-emphasize the need for academic research and statistics to measure views, the mood of society, beliefs, trends, and perceptions. It is, therefore, my view that this conference is not only timely but will scale up the rating of UNIZIK as a socially responsible corporate institution".
In probing the issues, however, Senator Anyim Pius Anyim, pointed out the need to tackle the critical challenges impeding the process of national integration, stating that research leads towards arriving at the desired solutions was necessary. He tasked the University to produce out of the conference, a fact-based and data-driven research study on the attitude of the various geo-political zones to Nigerian nationalism and its implications for national integration, justice, and security.
The research, Anyim maintains, "will present an excellent opportunity to properly situate some of the issues I shall raise in my presentation. Academic researches and studies to evaluate the views and gauge the mood of society, beliefs, trends, and perceptions have become an indispensable tool for planning and development. Nigeria needs to confront its past from the prism of ethnicity and religion as it affects our national progress in terms of productivity, integration, justice, unity, and peace. Research of this sort will rely on facts, informed analysis, and supported by data.
"The urgent need to face our past, unencumbered by emotions, will enable us to confront our present with knowledge and plan our future with a clear understanding of the issues challenging our nationhood", he stated.
Anyim who delved into a historical excursion on the examples of countries that have successfully overcome post-civil war challenges said though there are many of such countries around the world that have fought civil wars in the process of evolving as a modern nation-state. Some of those countries, he said, are America (1861 – 1865) and Rwanda (1990 – 1994).
Using the case of Rwanda's civil war as a typical example of such a country, Senator Anyim said the ethnic tension between the Hutu and the Tutsi ethnic groups took a dangerous dimension after the revolution of 1959 – 1962 which replaced the Tutsi monarchy with a Hutu led republic.
"This development forced an estimated 336,000 Tutsis into exile. A group of the exiled Tutsis founded the Rwanda Patriotic Front (RPF). On October 1st, 1990, the Rwanda Patriotic Front (RPF) invaded the Northern part of Rwanda thereby kickstarting the civil war. However, the war took a new turn when Rwandan President Juvenal Habyarimana, a Hutu, was killed in a rocket attack while returning from a peace negotiation. This ignited a 100-day spree of a brutal massacre of the Tutsis by the Hutus. This is generally known as the Rwanda Genocide. The Tutsi’s Rwanda Patriotic Front (RPF) led by Paul Kagame resumed the war and by July 4th, 1994 they seized the capital Kigali, overran the Hutu-led government, and took charge of the country".
According to the World Vision International “In 1994, when Rwanda erupted into violence, neighbor turned on neighbor, the family turned on family, and love turned to hate. The Rwanda genocide turned friends into enemies. The once beautiful country was as ruined as any spot-on earth – 800,000 people were brutally slaughtered in 100 days. How could the people of Rwanda ever overcome such hatred and horror? It will take a miracle”. Truly today, Rwanda is a miracle".
The eminent statesman further explained the war was not the issue but what the Rwandan government did afterward to restore the country to greatness. Anyim stated that "President Paul Kagame who led the Rwanda Patriotic Front (RPF) eventually took charge and resolved to rebuild Rwanda. Some of his outstanding policies towards rebuilding Rwanda include:
" (1) The formation of a new government based loosely on the Arusha Accord. (2) The army led by Paul Kagame maintained law and order while the Government launched a committed effort to rebuild the country’s infrastructure and institutions. (3). The Government in demonstration of its commitment to inclusiveness and forgiveness directed the removal of ethnicity from citizens’ national identity cards and promoted Rwandan citizenship by eliminating any distinction along ethnic divides.
"(4) In 1999, the City of Kigali built the Kigali Genocide Memoria, a resting place for the 250,000 victims of genocide. The five primary objectives were captured thus: (1) To provide a dignified place of burial for victims of the genocide against the Tutsi (ii) To inform and educate visitors about the causes, implementation, and consequences of the genocide and other genocides in history. (iii) To teach visitors about what we can do to prevent future genocides. (iv) To provide a documentation center to record evidence of the genocide, testimonies of genocide survivors, and details of genocide victims. (v) To provide support for survivors, in particular orphans and widows.
" And (5), As the social and political environment became more stable Paul Kagame took over the presidency from Pasteur Bizimungu in the year 2000 and launched large scale national development drive to develop Rwanda as a “middle-income country by the year 2020” and truly by the year 2020 Rwanda had become the fastest developing nation in Africa."
Senator Anyim while using the Rwandan success case as a mirror to examine Nigeria's progress and challenges after her own civil war, said no nation fights civil war twice. He however said it is the responsibility of the national leadership to utilize the lessons of the war and recalibrate the fabrics of the nation. He disclosed that in today's world, there appears not to be any need or ground for a civil war, as a number of international instruments are available for people seeking self-determination.
Anyim however declared that Fifty-one years after the Nigerian Civil War, the nation is yet to properly situate the issues and lessons of that experience in her
national history. "As at today, he quips, " it appears there is neither official record nor memorial of the war. We need a detailed and factual account of the war in a sequence of events, social and economic costs, number of lives lost, details of the victims, etc. Such an account will help the upcoming generations to appreciate the scale and extent of the unfortunate event.
"The resource materials and outcome of this conference should bridge that gap and serve to ward off any reckless desire for war as the dangers of it will be glaring. Like in the case of Rwanda, memorials may also not only provide a soothing effect but will highlight the war as a national tragedy that must never be contemplated again. Without prejudice to the annual Nigeria armed forces remembrance day ceremonies, during which writs are laid in honor of the unknown soldiers, I believe that if there is a properly laid out memorial arcade as in the case of Rwanda, nobody would have any reason to be talking about honoring victims of the civil war today."
While recounting the factors that led to the Nigeria civil war, Anyim stated that the Western Region Crises, the boycott of the 1965 election, the coup and counter-coup of January and July 1966, and the pogroms against the Igbos in late 1966, were the major triggers of that war. He pointed out that a deeper analysis of the sequence of events leading to the war would highlight two major causes, which he said were a constitutional crisis and ethnic response to national issues.
"On the issue of constitutional crises, it is imperative to look deeper into some issues that have continued to reoccur in our national discussion. E.g., there is a discordance on whether the abrogation of the 1963 constitution by the military is valid or not and also whether the military can legitimately give Nigeria a new constitution. The Nigerian situation is a unique one. The supreme court has ruled that when there is a successful coup, it overthrows the old order and can enthrone a new order.
"This position is also not conclusive because the principle goes further to maintain that the new order subsists as long as the intervening force is in control. In this case, while the military rule endured there was no challenge but since they exited, the legality or otherwise of their actions has become subject of contention."
Anyim, therefore, challenged the conference to further interrogate the place of the 1963, 1979, and 1999 constitutions of Nigeria in our progress to nationhood. "This is because the current agitation for restructuring lies within the delicate legality or otherwise of these constitutions. It is also important to examine whether the constitutions that succeeded the 1963 constitution effectively addressed the circumstances that gave rise to the western region crises. This is because even in the 4th Republic, Governors were still being forcefully removed from office using federal might.
"It will also be of national interest if the Center can probe deep into the role of ethnicity at the various turning points of our national history. Did ethnicity play a role in the 1966 January coup? The counter-coup of July 1966 was it ethnic-inspired? How was public opinion shaped or influenced in the aftermath of the January 1966 coup that led to the pogroms? This Conference needs to come up with a strategy for downplaying ethnicity in our body politic.
"As noted above, Rwanda deployed a deliberate policy of downplaying ethnicity in her body politic. In our case today ethnic cleavages are becoming more pronounced. I must say that the burgeoning ethnic cleavages in Nigeria today implicates a nation at war with itself. This conference should be using fact-based pieces of evidence, highlight the dangers the rampaging ethnic champions pose to the unity of the country.
"The research should consider the Rwanda approach. Answers to why a Yoruba man should not qualify to contest election in Igbo land and vice versa should be sought. Why should the state of origin not be replaced by a state of residence etc. the role of religion also needs to be interrogated. Has the secular clause in our constitution been really observed? Why is it still an issue if there is to be a Muslim/Muslim or Christian/Christian candidate on our presidential ticket? etc. This Conference should identify all the attitudes, policies, and behaviors that seek to divide us and which have constituted major challenges to our nation-building efforts and recommend new approaches."
The former Senate President explained that there are common measures the governments usually introduce post-civil war. He said the General Gowon Administration introduced multiple measures aimed at rebuilding the country and indeed rebuilding trust. He however pointed out that one major post-war Programme that was absent in Nigeria after the civil war was “a Healing Programme”.
According to him, "this was understandable because the Nigerian case was a negotiated surrender that capped up the surrender model with “no victor, no vanquished”. Without prejudice to the “no victor, no vanquished” mantra."
He charged the conference to ensure that the research that will follow, should seek out why the Oputa panel failed even when healing Programmes succeeded in Rwanda, South Africa, etc. "The post-war Programme of General Gowon Administration was implemented under the three big Rs ‘Reconstruction, Rehabilitation and Reconciliation’ agenda. Helped by the oil boom of the 70s, General Gowon’s Administration embarked on massive infrastructure rehabilitation and construction throughout Nigeria.
"This was sustained by subsequent Military Administrations. It can be argued that most of the major landmark infrastructure in Nigeria today were executed during the military post-war Programmes e.g. Murtala Mohammed International Airport in Lagos, most dual carriage highways across the country, third-mainland bridge in Lagos, second-generation Nigerian universities, etc. it is interesting to note that most of the projects were strategic national projects and were evenly spread across the country. During this period, there were no cries of marginalization.
"The research that will flow from this conference will need to identify the marked differences between the Military regimes and the civilian/democratic Administrations, particularly with reference to measures taken to ensure national integration. On the other hand, the Centre should also seek to measure the mood and attitude of Nigerians under the different administrations ie military/civil administrations.
"On the political front, states were created with the aim to abolish the regional structure which appeared to have promoted the tendency for secession. However, subsequent Governments continued proliferation of states appears to assuage or patronize certain interests. This conference needs to interrogate the need or otherwise of 36 states in Nigeria, their viability, and whether their creation met the very basic principles of equity or equality of the regions.
"This conference should also evaluate the logic and propriety of the introduction of the local government system as the third tier of Government with direct revenue allocation from the federation account by the military. Perhaps that may be the reason for the multiplication of the number of local government areas in the country. It must be evaluated whether the present crisis-infested local government system contributes positively to our national progress or not. This conference also needs to interrogate how successful the post-war measures have been. Have these measures resolved the fear of ethnic domination and inclusive nation-building? How has the Federal character principle, quota system, zoning, or rotation of political offices at all levels been implemented and or impacted nation-building?
"A model to measure the effect of these policy interventions and outcomes on national integration and promotion of justice and a sense of inclusion may reveal new options to pursue. I believe that we are at a stage in our national development when we need to delve deeper and question the assumptions upon which post-war Nigeria has been construed. Equality amongst the regions or geopolitical zones, as we have them today, is an option that will significantly douse tension. In the opinion of many, the Nigerian state would derive immense benefits, including state legitimacy and citizen psychological relief from a freely negotiated constitution. That legitimacy would, undoubtedly, serve as the basis of a new Nigeria whose challenges would not be legitimacy crisis".
The former lawmaker also pointed out that the current security crisis in Nigeria, combined with the rising poverty rate, presents fresh and difficult but surmountable challenges that the nation needs to confront. "Rebuilding faith in Nigeria, building a new national consensus, and deescalating the rising tension all over the country should be the most urgent task of the national leadership".
Senator Anyim, therefore, tasked the Unizik's Center, organizers of the Conference, to inquire into the leadership recruitment strategy of the current democratic experience to identify improvement options that will enhance patriotism and commitment to rule of law. The growing disposition of our political leaders to be above the law implies that our democracy is growing in the reverse.
According to him, "the ‘ABOVE THE LAW’ executive political leaders attitude need be evaluated with a view to measuring its effect on the desire of aspirants to political offices, particularly, with the attendant rise in corruption and nepotism. The winner takes all outlook of our political system needs to be interrogated with emphasis on the attendant ‘do or die attitude of our politicians as this has escalated electoral violence and manipulations".
Stating however that Nigeria is at a critical spot in her national history, Anyim opines that the internal challenges are existential and require a complex combination of renewed national vision, honest engagement with the country's past, a credible electoral process, a pan-Nigerian leadership, and evidence-based policymaking.
"The Center’s work is cut out and will enjoy the support of those Nigerians who believe in the promise of Nigeria and worry about the performance so far. I want to believe that the progress made in Rwanda in so short a time is due mainly to the quality of leadership provided by president Kagame, who, himself, was part of the war and would not wish for a repeat of the war. I am sure that the Hutus of Rwanda today would have seen that they do not need a Hutu president to be a proud and prosperous Rwandan.
"My prayer for Nigeria is that we grow to a point when it would not matter to any Nigerian where the president is from but that the rule of law and equality of all citizens are promoted to engender patriotism", Senator Anyim exhorted. NNL.
