Opinion: Why we should apologise to Boko Haram

by Segun Ayobolu

Boko Haram militants

Is the Boko Haram leader, Imam Abubakar Shekau, reading this? Or can anybody reach him? Please drop your guns. Your point has been effectively made.

Make no mistake about it. I totally disagree with their methods. I abhor their violence. I loathe the taking of innocent lives. I detest their bestial, savage, barbaric killing of innocent school children. But then, could there possibly be something right about Boko Haram’s claim that western education is a sin? The majority of Nigeria’s western educated elite so much vindicate Boko Haram’s position that the sect certainly does not need the current shedding of blood and wasting of lives to make its point. In any case, what is sin?

In my view it is a violation of God’s laws such as lying, stealing, murder, adultery etc. It is a breaching of moral codes. It is a negation of ethical standards. Most of Nigeria’s western educated elite particularly in public office exhibit these vices on an industrial scale. They steal. They lie. They cheat. Their wanton corruption has stunted a remarkably endowed country’s development resulting in the continuing avoidable deaths of millions of valuable lives. Yes, western education nurtures the intellect. It liberates the mind. It has led to the astonishing accomplishments of humanity in diverse spheres of endeavour. But it does not necessarily endow the individual with the moral values imperative for maintaining a decent, sane, humane and healthy society.

Most of Nigeria’s western educated elite simply utilise their acquired knowledge and skills to commit the most heinous sins against their country and fellow country men and women. A good example are those bankers whose venality and moral depravity resulted in the collapse of several banks with severe, damaging implications for millions of depositors and shareholders and with consequences that continue to haunt the fragile Nigerian economy. But let us move to another set of Nigeria’s western educated elite whose actions amply validate Boko Haram’s position thatwestern education is sin.

The country has 36 governors. These eminent citizens represent the cream of the country;s western educated elite. Among them are medical doctors, lawyers, soldiers, engineers, architects, academics and so on. These respected citizens came together and voluntarily formed an association, the Nigerian Governors Forum (NGF). 35 of these highly enlightened citizens gathered in a room to elect their chairman. No one was coerced there. We assume that they knew the meaning of elections and the implications of democracy before participating in the election. They voted. The votes were counted. The process was electronically recorded. A winner emerged. He had 19 votes. His opponent had 16 votes. Yet, the minority claims to be the majority. To these eminent western educated Nigerians, 16 is greater than 19. The loser not only parades himself as Chairman of the NGF, his faction has opened a secretariat in Abuja! This is is lying. This is cheating. This is deceit. This is a form of robbery. This is brazen fraud. This is original sin. Boko Haram members must be
having a good laugh. They are surely vindicated. Western education, at least in this case, is grievous sin.

But let us go to a more tragic scenario. In 2011, we trooped to the polls and elected as President a man called Dr. Goodluck Jonathan. As a child he had no shoes. We identified with him. He went to the redemption camp and publicly knelt down before the revered Pastor Enoch Adeboye. We admired his humility. Many also voted for him because he is the first Nigerian President to have a university degree, a Ph. D for that matter. The Ph. D is the highest attainment in western education. The holder is a Doctor of Philosophy. He is assumed to be sound not only in knowledge but in character. He should be a beacon of integrity. But what are we seeing? This Ph.D holder is proving to be even more coarse, brutish and utterly disdainful of the rule of law, constitutionalism and the values of democracy than his rustic predecessor and benefactor who has now been publicly and irreparably deconstructed by General Alabi Isama as a blundering, cowardly and utterly incompetent General. But that is a matter for another day.

This Ph.D holder, despite denials by his aides, is clearly the one behind the crisis in the NGF. He openly expressed his opposition to Governor Rotimi Amaechi’s re-election as NGF Chairman. The presidency actively sought to coerce and intimidate governors against re-electing Amaechi. The election held. Amaechi won. The Ph.D holder lost face. As an academic and supposed intellectual, would he accept the verdict? Not on your life. He publicly recognised the loser as the winner. He lent the weight of his prestigious office to falsehood. He encouraged deceit. He embraced lies. I hope the respected Pastor Adeboye is reading this in case somebody wants to play the kneeling game at the redemption camp sometime in future!

Somebody has suggested that elementary arithmetic may not necessarily be a precondition for obtaining a most distinguished Ph.D. I disagree. But then the tragedy got even messier. This admirable product of western education has done everything to undermine the legitimate government of Rotimi Amaechi in Rivers State. He has divided the PDP in the state. He has caused mayhem in the state House of Assembly. He sanctioned, according to the mysterious arithmetic of Zoology, the attempted impeachment of the Speaker by 5 members of a 32-member House. He has looked on indifferently as the Rivers State Commissioner of Police, Mbu John Mbu, continues to jeopardise the security of the state and compromise the personal safety of the Governor.

To make matters worse, this Ph.D holder has allowed another Ph.D holder, Dr. Reuben Abati, to brazenly lie that the presidency has no hand in the Abuja instigated descent to anarchy in Rivers State. Luckily, the most amiable and adorable First Lady and co-President of Nigeria, Dame Patience Jonathan, has exposed the highly cerebral Dr. Abati’s lies. She told a group of 16 Bishops from the South-South who visited her on Wednesday of her grouse with Governor Rotimi Amaechi. We now know why there is such a desperate attempt by Abuja to pull down Amaechi at all costs even if it means destabilizing the country and endangering our democracy. I once described the Jonathan Presidency as a distracted one obsessed with his ambition for a second term in 2015. Many of my readers from the Niger Delta were unhappy with me. But the unfolding scenario in Rivers State proves this beyond doubt. For, Amaechi’s only crime is that he is suspected to have higher political aspirations in 2015 that may jeopardise Jonathan’s political interests.

Let us, therefore, apologise to Boko Haram. They have a point. In many ways western education is a grievous sin if a Ph.D holder can perpetrate, directly and indirectly, the kind of atrocities being witnessed in Rivers state. Is the Boko Haram leader, Imam Abubakar Shekau, reading this? Or can anybody reach him? Please drop your guns. Your point has been effectively made.

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Op-ed pieces and contributions are the opinions of the writers only and do not represent the opinions of Y!/YNaija.

Comments (15)

  1. i dont blame u 4 uttering nonsense.moron is even beta dan u.ar u indirectly tellin boko haram sect to continue correctin d claimed western errors by killin pple or wot?rubbish.who knows weather u ar dat so called bh leader shakau in disguise?use cutlas & spear n fight 4 ur right instead of useing weapon invented by western creative skills n still be against them.well my prayer 4 u is dat they will correct more wrongs wit u,fool.

  2. How dumb. Without western education where will d world be now? If our educated leaders fail to apply dier ‘book knowledge’ rightly…its d fault of western education? Plain stupid trail of tot…and d parody the writer aimed at depicting by pleading with BH couldnt just be more foolish.

  3. ..Na wa for una o..you dudes didn’t read in between the lines. Did you not read the first paragraph? If you did,you wouldn’t be castigating the writer. He never advocated for Boko Haram to intensify their blood-thirsty onslaught against the country,neither did he encourage killings with his article.
    The write-up is just dressed with SARCASM..

    1. No one misunderstood him…infact I do get his point but he shouldn’t have compared the current situation with boko harram.
      See the last paragraph
      “Let us, therefore, apologise to Boko Haram. They have a point. In many ways western education is a grievous sin if a Ph.D holder can perpetrate, directly and indirectly, the kind of atrocities being witnessed in Rivers state. Is the Boko Haram leader, Imam Abubakar Shekau, reading this? Or can anybody reach him? Please drop your guns. Your point has been effectively made.”

      That speaks for itself…Abeg…if he was trying to pass across a message or point, he FAILED!!!

  4. The person writing dis is nt only sick bt he’s also mentally derailed. Hw can someone who has sound mind & he’s in his right snses justifies the actions of the Islamic sect called boko haram? It is clearly evident dt dis stupid person is also a boko haram membe. You better stop this barbaric act of killing before the fierce wrath of God catches you.

  5. I agree with the author of this piece …western education is a sin…for giving a nincompoop like himself the platform to insult the sensibility of all nigerians. I can see u want attention at all cost…but stopping dis low..smh..u ll get a story but mark my words d story won’t end well for you continue being silly ..power and responsibility go hand in hand…you are as irresponsible as the govt offiicials you speak if if not worse because this article is by far the most irresponsible display of journalistic holiganism I have seen from this online media platform…

  6. I agree with the author of this piece …western education is a sin…for giving a nincompoop like himself the platform to insult the sensibility of Nigerias with the title of this article…I wish he lost a loved one in one of this boko harm attacks …then he would appreciate the salt & insult he easily disperse on the open wounds of a bleeding nation…more worrisome is d puerile justifications spewed forward by the fame hungry upstart…his shabby logic in dramatising of the demerits of western education have casted him as a a shallow individual or a hack writer with an axe to grind …we use this medium ti reissue a sound warning to all his cohorts…that the next time they want to be famous they should nt use the blood of their fellow Nigerias as ink to write their name in the book of fame…nonsense!

  7. This Writter is one of the Prolific and educated idiot that ever lived.. Just as unreasonable as a mad man.. Can u imagine this height of stubidity and intelectually written rubish… Very very irational… I don’t av time 2 waste on this.. But… God punish u.. Fool!! U are so ignorant and addressing ur little truth and reality with support 4 bloodshed and some political thugs who use their religious extreemism 2 call demselves Boko Haram

    1. The most pointless article I have read. Who wrote this by the way? U blame education(which I’m sure u re a product of)for the corruption in this country. What about the USA,s,UK,s, switzerlands etc of this world.Oga go and join Boko haram. That is obviously where u truly belong.

    2. Honestly ignorance is a disease so in ur education r u thought to be killing people abeg u didn’t knw wat u r saying nd u btter go nd repent.

  8. Encouragin killings wit ur article 2u is apology, or u advice western educ b dumped yet u mek use of it in condemin odas. Pls, beg 4wisdom cos u nid it.

  9. I don’t get this article. So we now blame western education for our corrupt leaders ..??? When there’s an issue we do not search for a solution rather we start pointing fingers at who and what caused the problems. Education cannot change your character…life’s a choice…you’re either good or bad. Please don’t give boko more reason to kill people. I take God beg you. This ‘so called western education’ has provided great Nigerians ….boko should be using cutlass and knives to fight…they are oposed to western education yet they know how to read and write…they know how to use western weapons to kill their own people..they even know what the internet is…….ABEGI!! You alone can decide what and how you use your education. You can impact/change lives or destroy…it’s your choice…the ‘western world’ can’t force you!!!

  10. Jst Wow!! pls wat means did he post dis article?? Western Education! #NUFFSAID

  11. Hmmm! Am dazed to respond for a moment, your point would have been a worthwhile if you did’nt bring the “party” known as BH into play. If by my understanding of this articulate written article that our leaders has proven the points of the BH group that “western education is a sin”, you are not in your write up pleadind to them to cease fire rather telling them indirectly to keep the struggle of “correcting” the “sins” of these western education you mentioned you mentioned above.
    I urge our writers to verify and taste there words very well before they spit them out.

  12. Dumb!! This is one of the dumbest article have read for sometime now. So now you’ve apologised to boko haram on behalf of Nigerians so Western Education shuld be cancelled and Northern Education established right? Mtcheeew stupid Fellow.

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