A body of religious leaders under the auspices of Ulama Forum in Nigeria has kicked against plans by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to deploy military personnel against Niger Coupist while calling on the National Assembly to wake up to its responsibility by preventing the country from going into a needless war.
The Forum which rose from a meeting held in Kano, said a war between the duo countries will harm friendship, cause economic hardship, worsen the humanitarian crisis, and leave hard-to-heal wounds on each party.
In a statement by the meeting Convener, Aminu Inuwa Muhammad and Secretary, Engr Basheer Adamu Aliyu, the forum warned against the war which it described as a proxy war on behalf of resources-hungry world powers whose interests lie in its continuous subjugation.
The statement reads as follows: “The Forum is particularly worried by ECOWAS ultimatum given to the Coupists to restore power to the person they overthrew within one week (which was vehemently rejected by them) or face the wrath of the Union, which presumably include employing violent means against a sovereign member. Having considered the far-reaching implications of such an eventuality, the Forum makes the following observations, and advances some suggestions accordingly, in the interest of the governments and peoples of the Sahel region and by extension that of the world order in general.
“Notwithstanding the preference which many people have for democracy and its principles, the choice for the route to good governance is strictly that of citizens of each country. It is the right of the people of Niger to fight for the restoration of democracy in their country if they so wish and any attempt by anybody, anywhere, other than in Niger, will be tantamount to employing undemocratic means to achieve a democratic end.
“The ultimatum given by ECOWAS to the current leaders of Niger goes counter to democratic protocols and it encroaches on the sovereignty of the country.
“Given the general and widespread insecurity now bedevilling the Sahel, any international war of the nature that some people are mulling will not only compound the security challenges of the region but will also make governance more difficult as more and more people will be militarized while food insecurity will bite harder.
“It is certain that the vast majority of people in Nigeria are not, and will not be, in support of war with an erstwhile good neighbour which always looks towards Nigeria as a senior partner. A war between these countries will harm friendship, cause economic hardship, worsen humanitarian crises, and leave hard-to-heal wounds on each party.
“Worse of all, the putative war will render the region a theatre of war vulnerable to the exploitation of foreign interests. No, we cannot afford to fight a proxy war on behalf of resource-hungry world powers whose interests lie in our continuous subjugation.
“The leading role of ECOWAS to protect and secure the region from all foreign intrusions would be stretched beyond limits and dispose to divide and rule between the traditional lines of Anglophone and Francophone by those bent on stealing the resources of the region, by illegitimate ways and means.
“Once the region is destabilized and divided upon itself, the healing process will be a long run one and fraught with vulnerabilities.
“In view of the foregoing, the Ulama Forum urgently recommends as follows: Nigerian government, and by extension the ECOWAS, should retract from treading the undemocratic path of issuing threats or employing violence and, instead, take to the more enlightened and more informed diplomatic protocols in assisting the Niger Republic to restore its democracy.
“The Nigerian National Assembly should wake up to its constitutional responsibility of critically looking into this issue and exercising the necessary check on the Executive and prevent Nigeria from going into a needless war.
“Faith-based organizations in the country, from across the faiths, should embark on preaching for peace in the region and maintaining the good neighbourliness that has long existed between Nigeria and Niger.
“It is vitally important for the Nigerian government to consider its current formative stage and the security threats that are spread all over the nation which are stretching its resources and capabilities than to rush into an avoidable conflict with a neighbour at the behest of global politicking.
“The Forum commends the latest diplomatic initiative of sending envoys by ECOWAS to engage the military leaders of Niger in a robust and constructive dialogue. This is indeed, the right way to go and it should be explored to the maximum extent,” the statement however reads.
Recall that reports have it that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu had written to the Senate intimidating it on military action against the Niger Coupists.