The deadly riots which followed the April 16th Presidential elections in many parts of Northern Nigeria exposed one of the dangerous structural weaknesses of the nation. Just when one part of the country was settling down to celebrate an electoral victory, another was rising in protest against the same victory. The results, and the reactions to it, polarized the nation into two, one part burning, and the other condemning the burning part for being anti-democratic and urging the nation to move on. Three days into the riots which claimed many lives and caused very serious breaches in peace, trust and relationships between and within communities, the Nigeria Inter-Religious Council (NIREC) released a Press Statement signed by its Co-chairman, His Eminence, the Sultan of Sokoto Alhaji Muhammadu Sa’ad Abubakar, President General of the Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs and His Grace, Pastor Ayodele Joseph Oritsejafor, President, Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) and President, Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria. NIREC is the highest government-funded consultative forum of Muslim and Christian leaders in Nigeria, and it wields considerable influence in government circles on religious matters.
The Statement, which was titled “Stop the Carnage”, expressed the shock and disappointment of the Sultan and Pastor Joseph Oritsejafor over the outbreak of violence as a result of the outcome of the Presidential elections. They advised Muslims and Christians not to allow political differences to divide the nation along ethnic and religious lines. They urged Nigerians to learn from the many lessons around us; and to learn from the mistakes of others. They cautioned that violence only begets violence, and at the end of the day, everyone loses. They called on political leaders to exercise restraint in their actions and utterances, and for all governments to be alive to the discharge of their constitutional responsibilities.
Many Nigerians thought that the advice of the religious leaders who lead NIREC was timely and responsible, particularly since what appeared to have started as a political protest was degenerating into a deadly religious conflict in many parts of the North. When General Muhammadu Buhari made statements distancing himself and his Party from the widespread violence, the nation also took note, and many people felt that it was the right thing to do. It took a few days for the carnage to stop. In those days, many people were killed, most in cold blood. Many more were injured. Thousands fled with nothing, and many are refugees even as we speak. People are still living in fear that we have not seen the last of this conflict, which appears to have shaken the entire foundations of our national existence. There have been many equally frightening reactions from some sections of Southern Nigeria to the riots, most involving disparaging remarks about the riots and entire people living in the far North.
The agony of the victims and the fears of Nigerians were however dangerously compounded two days ago by the call for the arrest of the CPC candidate, General Muhammadu Buhari over the post-election violence by no other than Pastor Oritsejafor, the President of CAN who a few days ago jointly signed the Press Release with the Sultan, calling for peace. The Pastor was reported to have described the post-election violence as part of a religious agenda of the Muslim North, led by northern political leaders, who include General Buhari. The Pastor claimed that the political situation is merely a ploy to achieve a wider Muslim agenda in Nigeria, and demanded that the leaders of this plan be arrested and prosecuted.
Before the nation had digested this ominous outburst by a highly-placed religious leader, his Co-Chairman in NIREC, the Sultan of Sokoto released his own Statement in which he described Pastor Oritsejafor’s comments as unfortunate and regrettable. The Sultan cautioned that religious leaders, especially during times of crisis, should preach tolerance and mutual understanding and not promote dissension and discord. The Sultan warned all leaders and the media not to do anything that is capable of aggravating the situation. He dismissed Pastor Oritsejafor’s claim that the post-election violence was a plot hatched by Muslims as part of a religious agenda as preposterous and unfounded, describing the violence itself as most unfortunate. The Sultan said that it is important to remind the Pastor that a genuine search for peace should never be regarded as a tactical engagement, to be pursued only when it suits our immediate interests. He maintained that the search for peace is a life-long commitment which all leaders must take seriously.
It is now obvious that the riots which broke out after the Presidential elections of the 16th of April have taken many casualties and prisoners, including the valued and responsible standing of our religious leaders. General Buhari and the CPC has, predictably, dismissed the Pastor’s demand for his arrest as unchristian and unfortunate, and as unrepresentative of the views of the generality of Christians. But the response of the Sultan is more significant in terms of its impact on Muslim-Christian relations in the country. When two leaders of the two dominant faiths disagree so publicly on a most serious matter with profound implications for peace, security and the survival of Nigeria, it gives every citizen a major cause for concern. The President-General of the Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs and the President of the Christian Association of Nigeria are people who should lead Nigerian Muslims and Christians, speak for them, and assure them that we can all live in peace in a country ordained by God to be a multi-religious and multi-ethnic nation. If we cannot look up to them for comfort and assurances, where do we go? Is this the end of rapprochement between the leaders of Muslims and Christians in Nigeria? Can this public and damaging disagreement be contained by a third party, or is this the end of harmony at the very top? How are simple, law-abiding but frightened Muslims and Christians supposed to treat these disagreements? Have our religious leaders now joined partisan politics, or has politics now destroyed the last vestiges of respect and relative independence of our religious leaders?
These are very trying and frightening times for many Nigerians. Our religious leaders have joined the fight, so they have no time to pray for peace, or to provide comfort and leadership to ordinary folks. It is now up to every Nigerian Muslim and Christian to dig deep into our reserves of humanity, decency and propriety and find ways in which we can live as good Muslims and Christians, until sanity returns to our leaders. Nigeria does not need to go up in flames which will consume all of us. Certainly, a few among us have lit the fires of hatred and mutual destruction, but in the manner each individual behaves, we can salvage the nation and our lives from a looming disaster.
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