Jonathan on plans to bring down his government

President Goodluck Jonathan, at Service held recently in Abuja to commemorate this year’s Democracy Day, described the unrelenting wave of terror attacks by Boko Haram insurgents as a calculated at- tempt to bring down his government. The president’s submission is not only an acknowledgement of the seriousness of the challenge posed to nation- al security and his government by the sect, it is also a warning to the nation that its democracy is at great risk. This is the first time that the President has publicly admitted that the Boko Haram terror attacks are part of a well-coordinated plan to overthrow his administration. He also affirmed that the attacks constitute a huge distraction to his government. As he put it: “you can imagine if this government had not been facing these distractions within this period. Definitely, we would have moved farther than this… All these distractions are planned to bring this government down.” President Jonathan has raised genuine concerns about the clear danger that the unrelenting insurgency poses to the nation’s security and, indeed, its fledging democracy. He has rightly highlighted the fact that the terrorism, if not promptly arrested, can bring down the present democratic government, or at least, make the country ungovernable. Simply put, the sect has declared unconventional war against the president and Nigeria. Therefore, the threat to the government that has been rightly identified by the President is real, and should be taken seriously by all well meaning Nigerians and the nation’s security agencies. The sect’s abduction of 276 female students of the Government Secondary School in Chibok, Borno State, on April 14, angered and alerted the world to the danger posed by the ideology of this sect to humanity. In the last two weeks, the sect has bombed innocent citizens in Kano and Jos, capital of Plateau State, killing over a hundred people. It also killed an Emir and injured two others in Borno State. Such lawless and unbridled attacks are a threat to the security of the people, which is one of the primary responsibilities of the government. A government that cannot secure its citizens is in danger of abnegation. Hence, the president is right to raise this alarm on what he perceives to be the plan of the terrorists. It is an expression of the deep anxiety, and possibly frustration, over the seeming lack of a solution to the debilitating insurgency in the country. This is more so as this insurgency is stymieing government’s efforts in the affected parts of the country, as well as questioning its ability to stop the terrorists. This insurgency is also a threat to Nigeria’s economy. According to figures released by the Coordinating Minister for the Economy and Minister of Finance, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, a total of N130.7 billion was released to the Ministry of Defence for military operations between January and April this year. Also, security got the lion’s share of the N4.964 trillion 2014 Budget, receiving an allocation of N968 billion, which is 19.5 percent of the total budget. These funds could have been deployed to other sectors that seriously need financial intervention. In spite of this huge expenditure on security, the security agencies have reportedly been complaining about under-funding of their operations. What all these mean is that Nigeria simply cannot afford the financial cost of this terrorism, if it continues to persist. Altogether, it is necessary to look beyond terrorism as targeting the president or his government. It is a threat to the entire country. Therefore, no effort should be spared to stop the terrorists. It is, however, not enough to continue to moan about the danger from this sect. The government should match words with action in combating terrorism before the nation is torn apart by insurgents. It is incumbent on the president to strengthen efforts to rein in the terrorists, especially now that he has publicly acknowledged that the primary aim of Boko Haram is to topple his government. He should address the reports of delays in the re- lease of the funds approved for counter-insurgency operations. These times do not require accusations and finger pointing. They, rather, require a stronger resolve to fight Boko Haram, a common enemy that has declared war against the Nigerian government and people.