A senior Nigerian cleric has accused the Fulani and Kanuri ethnic
nationalities of being behind the jihadist group, Boko Haram, which has
killed more than 13,000 Nigerians in five years.
Speaking Sunday at a church service as part of activities to mark the
Armed Forces Remembrance Day at the National Ecumenical Centre in
Abuja, the prelate of Methodist Church of Nigeria, Samuel Uche, said
Fulani and Kanuri have engineered the Boko Haram insurgency to seize
power.
The comments came amid rising tension and fears over violence as
Nigeria prepares for general elections about a month away.
In the last one week, there have been political clashes in Rivers, Plateau
and Gombe States where party supporters have been attacked, a party
office bombed and campaign buses torched.
Mr. Uche said soldiers prosecuting the war against Boko Haram
informed him and other bishops that except for some collaborators from
Chad, Libya and Somalia, 95 per cent of those waging the war against
Nigeria were Fulani and Kanuri, Daily Trust newspaper reported.
The cleric made the remark at an event attended by President Goodluck
Jonathan, the Senate President, David Mark, the military top brass and
other important personalities. None of the senior government officials
commented.
He said those behind the Boko Haram insurgency were doing so in other
to put the government of Mr. Jonathan in bad light.
“Let me reveal to you this evening and at this important service at this
juncture that some of our soldiers, because you know we Bishops have
impact in the society, we relate with soldiers and all manner of people.
And some of the people in warfront have confided in us that apart from
some mercenaries from Chad, Libya as well as Somalia, 95 percent of
those fighting our country are of Fulani and Kanuri origin.
“They’re aggrieved because they want power at all costs. They believe
Nigeria belongs to them alone and that they’re born to rule while others
follow. It is deceit,” he said.
President Jonathan and the ruling Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, have
repeatedly accused the opposition All Progressives Congress, APC, of
being behind Boko Haram.
The archbishop also said those sabotaging the war against terrorism “are
within the political elites, some are within the armed forces and other
institutions.”
The cleric said beyond taking power, those sponsoring the insurgency
also seek to Islamise Nigeria and create another caliphate different from
the Sokoto Caliphate.
He said the mission will fail because it is impossible to Islamise Nigeria.
“These disgruntled country men and women and have made themselves
enemies of Nigeria. These people sabotage every effort of government to
bring peace in the north-east of Nigeria.
“Some shameless individuals and groups make such utterances and use
grievous situations as a tool for politicking, blaming the government in
power as doing nothing to solve the problem of insurgency. Who is
deceiving who?
“I believe Nigerians are wiser and our people know that it’s sabotage
that’s making it impo
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