Fulani Herdsmen or Jihadists

July 30, 2016 4:10 pm | by glom | Posted in Uncategorised

For many years now many communities, mainly Christian dominated communities in Nigeria have  suffered blood bath from the callous onslaught of Fulani herdsmen. From the Middle Belt part of Southern Kaduna , Plateau, Nassarawa, Benue to the Eastern parts of Nigeria  Enugu State and the south  west, Fulani herdsmen have been causing mayhem using lethal weapons such AK48 and machete to mercilessly kill innocent souls in these God fearing communities. What is going on?

In this write up, it is pertinent to ask  the following relevant questions. What is going on? Who  really are the Fulanis?  Why are they so emboldened to carry  out such dastardly acts with impunity? What is their main motivation?

What is going on ?

What is going is there a a clandestine Jihad in Nigeria with a view to subject Nigeria under an Islamic Sharia.  The strategies are the same: under the guise of being herdsmen perpetuate dastardly acts of these marauding and masquerading Jihadis.   Although they look unassuming, illiterate and  poor they have one mission to invade Christian  communities in Nigeria , wreck havoc with a view to crippling them and subjugating  them under  Sharia law.

Sharia law does not recognise any law. Consequently, herdsmen see themselves as laws  to themselves.  They are operating under a different law which supersedes the Nigerian constitution. They perceive every Christian as an infidel who does not have any rights. as such they can go to every length to destroy them or forcefully keep them under  perpetual bondage.

Who  really are the Fulanis?

If you have an understanding  about the past you will accurately interpret current events  and adequately prepare for the future. In the 19 century, precisely in 1804 the Fulani waged a holy war and conquered many vast territories. “Throughout Islamic history, wars against non-Muslims, even though with political overtones, were termed jihads to reflect their religious flavour. This was especially true in the 18th and 19th centuries in Muslim Africa south of Sahara, where religio-political conquests were seen as jihads, most notably the jihad of Usman dan Fodio, which established the Sokoto caliphate (1804) in what is now northern Nigeria.”https://www.onwar.com/aced/chrono/c1800s/yr00/fusman1804.htm

The old Sokoto Caliphate is still alive in the 21st century. The sons and and daughters of the Usman Danfodio may be operating as civilian or military leaders  in Nigeria with a view to fulling implementing the philosophy.

Why are they so emboldened to carry  out such dastardly acts with impunity?What is their main motivation?

There is not doubt that the Fulani Jihadist are emboldened for the two main reasons. First, perhaps one of their well respected leaders in now the current president of the Federal Republic of Nigeria  in the person of President Muhammad Buhari. This possibly  explains why he has not come out strongly to condemn their heinous  acts. Rather, he is busy trying to push through a grazing reserve bill in the national assembly. This posture of his has attracted heavy criticism from well meaning Nigerians and international communities. Secondly, the Jihadist are perhaps emboldened by the global jihad.

A couple of weeks ago, a 73 year old Christian grandmother was beheaded in Kano because she tried to stop some Muslims from washing their feet in front of her door before their prayers. A few days later a female pastor of the Redeemed Church of God  butchered to pieces by a mob of Muslims in the Kubwa district of Abuja simply for doing her morning cry of evangelism and urging the people to give their lives to Christ. Shortly   after that, two hundred Muslims youths burnt down a Catholic Church and attacked worshippers in Niger state claiming that they had no right to go to church on a Friday because it was the Muslim day of worship. A few days later, a Christian traditional ruler in Plateau state was matched to death by a group of Muslim militants and Fulani herdsmen.

These attacks are not only common, but they are carried out with impunity. While the government is busy planning to fight and suppress militancy in the south, they  seem to be doing little or nothing to stem the mayhem caused by Fulani Jihadists whose atrocities are worse than the ones perpetrated by ISIS. In spite of these, the Sultan of Sokoto was quoted recently to have admonished Muslims in Nigeria to fight  those who stop them from fighting their religion, without any fear of extremist taking the law into their hands.

What can be done?

Prayer is the main thing Christians in Nigeria and world wide must embark upon to save Nigeria from a clandestine scheme to forcefully Islamize Nigeria. Secondly, Christians and all lovers of  freedom must engage in advocacy to stem this dark cloud over Nigeria. Thirdly, the persons or the communities under siege must not rely on government agencies alone for defence. They must follow all legal means to mobilise and galvanise support to defend their rights, property and lives. Lastly, the international community must act decisively  now to save Nigeria from forceful Islamization and from total disintegration.