Fri, 06/07/2012 ? 12:04am | CAPT. DANIEL OMALE The Friday Column
I have lived in Kaduna for more than 40 years. It is my hometown. My children hardly know anywhere else in Nigeria, not even their state of origin. To them, Lagos is in another country. They find Lagos too busy and rowdy. Kaduna is a city that consumes you as a resident.
Its relaxed and liberal nature appeals to everyone, no matter your tribe and religious affiliation. It is only two hours away by road from Abuja, the capital of Nigeria. The cost of living in Abuja is twice that of Kaduna, and most people working in Abuja have their home in Kaduna. Every Friday, thousands of people flock to Kaduna to enjoy the relaxed environment with little traffic congestion.
Kaduna, to me, is less stressful than the majority of the cities in Nigeria. Immediately after the Maitatsine scourge of 2001, the then governor of the state, Ahmed Makarfi, established a strong security apparatus that ushered in safety and security of life and property.
Life quickly became normal and victims of similar crises in other states flooded Kaduna because everyone believed and trusted in the leadership of the state to protect the residents. Kaduna flourished as economic activities soared immensely. The scorn of suspicion among the residents waned, but, gradually, social interaction became limited.
The new form of coexistence was purely on religious inclination. Christian preachers established their churches in the south of the city, after the River Kaduna bridge. With northern Kaduna residents enjoying religious refuge in the southern part of the town, it quickly became inevitable that they would find sanctuary in the same location.
With over 100 different Christian denominations established in the south of the city, and with the belief that the churches were protected from any non-Christian invaders, it became natural for the worshippers of those churches to relocate.
Gradually, Christians in the northern part of the city felt alienated from their friends and acquaintances. They would keep their businesses in the north, but reside in the south. With Makarfi?s departure and no strong assurance from subsequent leaders of the state, the great segregation began.
Today, the southern part of Kaduna town is predominantly inhabited by Christians; the posh upper-class residents in the GRA are fairly mixed ? Christians and Muslims coexist ? while the majority of the inhabitants of northern Kaduna are Muslims.
I grew up in Tudun Wada and, at the time, religious alignment was of no significance among the residents. We happily integrated. It is highly disheartening to witness the exodus of Christians from the vibrant neighbourhood I grew up.
Where does the segregation on the basis of religion lead the state? The answer is simple: nowhere.
While Christians are accusing Muslims of creating instability in the state, and vice versa, I find it strange that no one sees how politicians (Christians and Muslims) are manipulating the minds of the people.
The last general elections are clear indicators of how we have employed religion in the politics of Kaduna state. Ironically, without the support to manipulate the result of the governorship election by the Muslims, there was no way Patrick Yakowa would have won.
Namadi Sambo, the vice president, and a Muslim, played his role on returning the state to the PDP. Suleiman Hunkuyi, a Muslim, helped in manipulating the figures of the northern part of the state to favour Yakowa. It would have been practically impossible for only the Christian votes to secure Yakowa?s return.
Although it is difficult to understand the reason why an individual would sacrifice himself as a suicide bomber, the level of poverty in the country, which can create a state of hopelessness in the mind of youths, is more than enough justification to embrace chronic religious indoctrination.
Political opponents, those who lost in the past elections, are at every corner of our society dangling the carrots of religion to confuse the minds of the despondent, unemployed youths. For as little as N5,000, a human life can easily be taken. Northern politicians don?t care, they want to have a source of power to exert feudalism and be revered by their subjects ? the electorate.
These people must remain relevant and be worshipped or life makes no meaning to them, and if they cannot get what they want, the society must be destroyed. This is the absolute root cause of the state of insecurity in the country. Unfortunately, northern Nigeria, of which Kaduna is a part, has embraced the culture of intolerance orchestrated by those who have lost the bid to be elected into public offices.
It is quite strange that no one in power ? not even the governor of this beautiful state ? has lamented the great divide amongst the people of the city. How can our children survive a segregated society? If the fear is about extremism, which has created suicide bombers in our midst, the only remedy is a united front ?Christians and Muslims. There has to be a dialogue, an effective interface to unite everyone.
The scourge of Boko Haram activities is everywhere. No one is safe because the insurgents don?t care whether you are a Christian or not. In Maiduguri and Kano, the majority of those killed were Muslims. We have the same blood.
Northern Nigeria is changing for the worse. If northern Christians and Muslims cannot coexist in peace and harmony, how then do we expect social and economic prosperity in the region? The north is gradually sinking into oblivion, and, unfortunately, northern leaders are more interested in what they can secure for their immediate families, not the populace.
If Christian youths can take arms to kill anyone designated as a Muslim, without a second thought ? because a suicide bomber has killed himself and other innocent people ? then there is no future for us all. Segregation will only reinforce intolerance, and, without restraint and tolerance, there can?t be human societies.
