THE NEED TO SUPPORT NORTHERNERS’ AGITATIONS

Prior to the emergent #NorthisBleeding protests, the popular notion among the Southern Nigerians was the infallibility of Buhari administrative policy in the eyes of the Northerners. An average Southerner had the conception that the Northern region would rather endure unfavourable and harsh political, economic and social programmes of the Buhari-led administration than castigating or portraying it bad in the public domain.

The straw that broke the camel’s back on the already North/South strained relationship and mutual distrust was the condemnation of the #EndSARS protests which was popularly accepted in the North as a conspiracy by the South to overthrow the Buhari-led administration. The pro-SARS movements’ rallies organized in some Northern states particularly seemed to have given more credence to the unalloyed loyalty of the Northerners towards the incumbent national government.

As the #NorthisBleeding protests were being staged across some Northern states, many Southern Nigerians perceived the insecurity outcry as an avenue to pay back the North in their coins. They therefore trivialized the protest by throwing their weight behind the Buhari-led administration in a bid to spit the Northern protesters. A couple of Southern youths even went on social media to express their joyful mood towards the recent murder of 23 travellers by bandits on a road in the Isa Local Government Area of Sokoto State and the gruesome murder of 18 worshippers in a mosque in Niger State.

Whatever argument pushed in justification of the Northerners’ stance on #EndSARS movement and other previous actions in solidarity with the incumbent government should not be a bone of contention at this period. Likewise, the Southern people should not be castigated for mockery of Northern states’ insecurity menace. The continuous apportion of blame would only serve the interest of the political elite, and not the common man in both regions. Rather, keen attention should be paid at the degree both the Northern and Southern masses enjoyed the dividends of good governance under the incumbent administration.

Be it South or North, the agenda of the upper echelons of Nigeria’s political power structure is mutual; the motive to capture and retain political power. Nigeria being a multi-ethnic and culturally diverse society is a fertile ground to breed the seed of ethno-religious hostilities. This same entity is full of potentialities if its ethno-religious pluralism is managed and harnessed to national integration. Unfortunately, the country’s political elite have chosen the constant playing of ethnic cards to retain political power ahead of nation-bulding.

Nigeria is bedevilled with numerous obstacles which mostly affect the masses. The Nigerian masses would continue to be on the receiving end until the recognition of social identity by ethnicity and religion is uprooted. The ethnic tension between North and South is a well crafted script by the elite to divert the common man’s attention from pertinent issues related to their wellbeing and survival.

Both average Northerners and Southerners have continued to benefit little or nothing from successive governments. The unity, solidarity, consciousness and proactiveness of this oppressed class is the panacea for their collective survival against socio-political, economic and security challenges.

– Binzak Azeez, Faculty of Law, Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile Ife