Nyako’s stained hands

NyakoSahid Umar

Admiral Murtala Nyako, embattled governor of Adamawa state, has stirred the hornet’s nest. As the arrowhead of the few powerful people opposed to extension of the state of emergency in his state, he has no hiding place, especially with his damning letter that accused President Goodluck Jonathan of genocide in Northern Nigeria.

At the expanded national security meeting in Abuja, Nyako was condemned by some of his colleagues. Governor The odore Orji of Abia state said: “The memo written by one of our colleagues, that is governor of Adamawa State, was discussed and there was unanimous condemnation of that memo. All people in positions of authority were advised to be cautious of what they say. That what they say should at least enliven every person and make us know this country belongs to all of us, and not something that demoralizes us; not something that will incite people to go the negative way.”
Chief Servant of Niger State, Governor Mu’azu Babangida Aliyu, cautioned: “l am sure many of you will be curious about the letter written by our colleague, governor of Adamawa State. We looked at it, in fact, he was allowed to read the memo to us. We concluded that for many of us, we need to be very careful with the kind of statements we make. And we need to be careful that whatever we say, are either evidence-based or something that can be authenticated”.

Nyako has already been indicted by the court of public opinion for being the man behind the mask. With the widespread carnage inflicted on the country, especially in the North-east, North-west and North-central zones, most Nigerians are dumfounded by Nyako’s actions and wonder what a respected elder statesman stands to gain by this.
It was the intervention of President Jonathan, through the declaration of state of emergency on May 14, 2013, that curtailed the deadly activities of insurgents in the state, leaving only Madagali and Michika Local Government Areas to witness sporadic skirmishes as a result of their proximity to southern Borno which houses some of the major bases of Boko Haram. The bomb blast of Sunday, June 1, 2014, in Mubi, which killed 40 people, is the latest attack of its kind in the state. Stopping these murderous acts was the rationale behind the declaration of the state of emergency that Nyako opposed with passion.

Recently, the media were awash with indicting reports alleging “how Nyako funds Boko Haram and Fulani Jihadists”.Kaduna-based newsmagazine, Power Steering, alleged in its May, 2014 edition, that: “Adamawa state which is one of the states presently under emergency rule declared by the federal government would have presumably been considered the less attacked among these three states by the Boko Haram insurgents. But now the state might be gearing towards a full blown war soon, if not properly monitored by the Nigerian military with the spate of the influx of Fulani mercenaries allegedly imported and hired by Governor MurtalaHammanyeroNyako of Adamawa State into the state for reasons known to only him. Adamawa State with all the advantages of a border state is presently being used as a launch pad for both the Boko Haram insurgency and the Fulani mercenaries to attack and destabilize Nigeria.

“Investigations carried out by reporters revealed that over 500 Fulani mercenaries trained in Sudan were imported into the state and are camped at the border village of Typsen in Toungo Local Government Area of Adamawa State on the instruction of the state governor. The Fulani men are kept at the expense of the state government, fed, well taken care of and paid a stipend of about N5O,000 each monthly by the state government, with tax payers’ money.”
Earlier on April 14, 2014, Peoples Times newspaper alleged: “Nyako and the Fulani Miyetti Allah organisation cannot be exonerated or completely absolved of complicity in the resurgent Jihad in Adamawa State and parts of the Middle Belt. The frequent movements of both a prominent traditional ruler and a former Permanent Secretary in the state to and from Mali and Cameroun and the hosting of both serving and retired Fulani Generals from West Africa in Yola, confirm this thesis.”

Nyako’s words and deeds in recent times have betrayed him. He is alleged to have publicly praised the ability of Fulani herdsmen to dismantle and assemble AK47 rifles. He is also accused to have come up with a Fulani resettlement programme, a ploy to import alien mercenaries to wreak havoc on peace loving people in the state and elsewhere in the Middle Belt. His massive Personal Assistants’programme turned out to favour the Fulani and this couched his clandestine activities. How else do you explain his pet Fulani resettlement programme in Adamawa in the absence of war or massive destruction of their habitats?

Why concentrate and restrict the resettlement programme to alien Fulani alone by bringing them in trailer trucks and hiding them in remote areas in the state? Why did Nyako summon a prominent traditional ruler to his office on March 29, 2014, to lecture him on constitutional provisions that allow the Fulani to live and work anywhere they choose in the country? These are the bigoted acts of an ethnocentric governor that have betrayed and nailed him.

In Adamawa, the Bachama in Lamurde Local Government Area will not forget the brush they had with Nyako. It was reported that this ethnic group was attacked by Fulani herdsmen in 2012 with brand new AK 47 rifles and were repelled with 40 of the invaders killed and their weapons taken by the Bachamas. The story goes that when Nyako sought for the retrieval of the weapons and his request met a brick wall, he took offence and refused to visit or condole with the Bachamas when they lost their paramount ruler, Humun Asaph Zadok. Nyako’s vindictiveness became clear with this incident when it was revealed that he doesn’t forgive even in death!!
With this unsavoury background, it is surprising that Governor Nyako accuses President Jonathan of committing genocide in the North. With his stained hands, the governor cannot, therefore, escape the wrath of the law, now or in the near future.

Umar wrote fromGarki 2, Abuja