By Na-Allah Mohammed Zagga

We the Hausa/Fulani have always accused others hating us or being indifferent to our plight when we are victims of violence elsewhere. During the Ille Ife violence against Hausa/Fulani, we accused the media of conspiracy of silence or refusing to talk about it. It is easier to accuse others than to admit our own foibles. We hardly acknowledge our own faults. We have a notorious record of violence against minorities in the name of religion and politics. We have always turned the so-called peaceful protests into violence. We preach tolerance only when we are victims elsewhere, but forget our own intolerance in our own area of dominance. Former President Jonathan's convoy was attacked with stones by Hausa/Fulani thugs during his reelection campaigns in the North. He was a protected public figure, his security details had every power to respond decisively. But Jonathan showed maximum restraint. He is a minority politician campaigning in areas dominated by Hausa/Fulani. Instead of condemning the violence against Jonathan, our people, including the seemingly enlightened ones, were hailing the violence against him.

In defending violence against others, don't think it is your right to harm people in areas where you are in the majority. If every section of Nigeria had chosen to respond to violence with violence, the country would have ceased to exist. If the Niger Delta people had decided to retaliate the humiliation of Jonathan in the North during the electioneering campaign by violently attacking General Buhari's campaign team, do you think Nigeria would have survived the vicious circle of violence, letting alone having any election in the country?

We are taking our unity for granted. As Adejare Ibrahim argued in his post, no region has a monopoly on violence, and I agree with him. Our intolerance is getting out of hand. We shouldn't see majority advantage as licence to harm others with impunity. The inability to think through the consequences of our mob violence may bring us faster and closer to disaster. Our proneness to violence has created so many enemies for us across the country. And this animus towards us is so inveterate that, even where Hausa/Fulani are victims of violence, other people hardly care to sympathize with us. Instead, they tell you "you are getting a dose of your own medicine."

Look at the recent brutal massacre of the Fulanis in Sardauna Local Government of Taraba State by ethnic militias. The media didn't give it publicity, despite the fact that it was a case of genocide. The usual response of other Nigerians is: they deserved what they got, they are getting a dose of their own medicine! When our own violence destroys the humanity in other Nigerians, who will stand for us for justice when we are victims? When we make disregard for the sanctity of life not only a habit, but also a duty executed with sadistic glee, we ultimately rob ourselves of other people's sympathy and support if we become victims of violence. Don't defend violence because it brings nobody any benefits, including you its supporter. I despise violence in all its forms. I have condemned the Taraba violence against the innocent Fulanis brutally murdered by hate-intoxicated ethnic militias, and I won't hesitate to condemn violence perpetrated by our own people against others in the country. Enough of this violent tendencies, it does us no good.

https://etimes.com.ng/hausafulaniwhy-hate-us/