Bandits numbering 60 last Wednesday attacked a military base in Zazzega Community in Munya Local government area of Niger State in an apparent move to overwhelm the soldiers. In that attack, they killed and confiscated military arms belonging to the soldiers. Two weeks earlier, another group of bandits attacked a military base located at Bassa Community in Shiroro LGA, killed five soldiers, personnel of Nigerian Security Civil Defense Corp and a civilian also lost their lives. There are many other examples.

This is the way our dear Nigeria has turned into in President Mohammadu Buhari’s six years in office. It would be recalled that when Buhari took over as President of Nigeria in May 29, 2015, he pledged to dwell on three agenda and tackle them headlong. The first was insecurity, corruption, and the last was the economy. The administration even boasted that naira will appreciate to a level that will make the dollar almost equivalent with the Nigerian’s currency.

Well, what is happening today is a lesion to all Nigerians, who are witnessing the near drift by Nigeria into a failed state. However, Nigerians have seen the worst side of insecurity in the country’s history. The thinking before Buhari’s ascension to power was that he (Buhari) as a retired General, would attack insurgents and terrorism frontally and restore sanity to the nation. Nigeria, under former President Goodluck Jonathan was no doubt bedeviled with vicious activities of this group called Boko Haram.

But their bloody operations were manifestly obvious in the north-east of Nigeria. Nonetheless, as weak as he was perceived, Jonathan mustered enough clout to fight the insurgents and terrorists and restricted them to the north east alone. He did this in the midst of well orchestrated plot by the Barack Obama administration and some northern irredentists to black him via insecurity and therefore oust him from Aso Rock.

Shockingly, rather than commend him, the same northerners saw Jonathan’s efforts to exterminate insurgents/terrorists out of Nigeria as ethnic cleansing. Today, to the glory of God, the people that supported and encouraged insurgents/terrorism even when Jonathan was there are now being unveiled. One of them is Isa Ali Ibrahim Pantami, the current Minister Communications and Digital Economy.

A news website, the Independent Newspapers had earlier this month run a story with the headline “Disquiet As America Places Nigerian Minister On Watch List”. The report had it that Isa Pantami was being investigated by an security agency, even as a video making the rounds in the social media shows that Pantami has had a close link with Boko Haram founder, late Mohammed Yusuf.

Though, the United States of America said it does not disclose those on its watch list, evidence bounds that Isa Pantami is a Jihadist both in character and in action. The man himself has acknowledged that in his attempt to repudiate the abundance of evidence in the public space that he is a sympathizer of terrorism and terrorists. He said he had since renounced those views he held in the past and also withdrawn the support to Talban and the Al Qaeda; some of which were his beliefs as a teenager. That is arrant nonsense.

Extreme views, especially on religious grounds, are difficult to repudiate especially the views on religious grounds. If one holds a view on the supremacy of a deity and about creation, particularly when that individual has grown to the level of reasoning, it is very difficult to erase such views from his/her psych. Was he (Pantami) not an adult (a Student Imam at the Ahmadu Bello University for that matter) reportedly encouraged the killing of student evangelist of the Christian faith? What happened to the family of his victims now that regrets his action? A man that propagates the Salafist ideology of violent and unrepentant Jihad is heading one of our vital institutions?

This is indeed the man in charge of Nigerians telecommunications, a secular nation and a country looking forward to do business with international community? There are instances that show that Mohammadu Buhari’s government romances with terrorism: the statement from the Presidency issued by Garuba Shehu, the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media giving Pantami clean bill of health is one. The administration’s refusal to label Miyetti Allah a terrorist organization is another, while his opening up of the nation’s borders to people of diverse backgrounds (most of them are terrorists and criminals) is yet another.

Garuba Shehu has claimed that the campaign against Isa Pantami is being motivated by unknown telecommunication giant which wanted him out so that they can perpetuate their manipulation in the nations communications system. The minister, he said, has been leading the charge against illegal data reductions and pricing and that he has revolutionized the government’s virtual public engagement to respond to Covid-19 and save task payers money.

“He has also established ICT start-up centers to boost youth entrepreneurship and create jobs and has also changed policy to ensure locally produced ICT content is used by ministries, starting with his own. Shehu in his mis-directed defense said Pantami has been registered sum 9.2 million SMs, ending ability for criminals and terrorists to fragrantly use mobile networks undetected.

“In two short years, minister Pantami has driven the ICT sector to the GDP to more than 18 percent, tons making it one of the top two playing a critical role in the emergence of the economy from the Covid-19-induced recession. In putting people first, the minister and this administration have made enemies. There are those in opposition who see success and want it halted by any means “the Presidents spoke’s man said”

What a trash! There are glaring and substantial evidence that Minister Pantanmi held and perhaps still holds extreme and fundamental views and by extension encourages terrorism and insurgency, and Shehu is telling us about his performance as a minister. What if the so called performance is swayed towards perpetuating his extreme views on our telecommunication system; manipulating symbols and data in favour of his extreme views?

Come to think of it, Nigerians are yet to witness Pantami’s so called prowess in the ministry. The telephone tariffs are still high, unnecessary reductions are being made by service providers, the nation’s ICT is still in the embryonic stage, manipulations by service providers are prevalent here and there, and distortions/noise/diversions while receiving calls are noticed. Has the so called increase in the nation’s GDP affected the economy which is still crashing and plummeting downwards?

The defense to continue to keep the minister in government is vexing and unacceptable. The position of the federal government that it stands by Isa Pantami, a Jihadist is another way of subtly introducing and accepting terrorism and insurgency. Serious telecommunication firms and indeed international business partners may not likely want to come to Nigeria for anything if the man is not shown the exit door.

It is worrisome how the Buhari’s government is allowing anarchy to take root in a country known for its unity and peace before his ascension to power. Just yesterday, Sunday, April 25, 2021, bandits invaded a Church in Kaduna, during a service and killed one of the worshipers and abducted some. Same day, Fulani Herdsmen killed 19 persons in a Benue State village and yet the government pretends that it doesn’t know where the killers are.

If the government, through its intelligent agencies, could fish out Ikonso, a chieftain of Indigenous Peoples of Biafra (IPOB) and killed him with five other members of the group in a scathing operation, why not fish out the killer herdsmen and treat them likewise. Or they (the bandits, Fulani Herdsmen, boko haram) packaged to execute a particular project? The #tag now should be “Muhammadu Buhari Must Go”.
http://uchenwosu.com/2021/04/26/criticcism-over-fgs-refusal-to-sack-isa-pantami/