In 2014, former Governor Murtala Nyako of Adamawa State accused the then Jonathan administration of using Boko Haram as a so-called genocide agenda against the North, especially Muslims, in order to decimate their population for a so-called political advantage. Nyako became an instant opportunistic hero and many of his uncritical fans perceived his trashy conspiracy theories as the gospel truth. His fans were so naive that they couldn’t distinguish indiscriminate violence(terrorism)from genocide which is primarily targeted at a specific a racial, religious, ethnic or national group.
The Boko Haram terrorists were killing Muslims and Christians. How could a so-called genocide agenda against Muslims involve the killing of Christians at the same time? Despite the absurdity of Nyako’s logic, his fans were enthusiastically sharing his allegations. One his fans told me that, “Na-Allah, this is an army general fah! Nyako knew what he was talking about.” I reminded him that titles don’t validate an argument, that just because Nyako was a former Naval chief, it doesn’t automatically mean his opinion was flawless or unassailable.
My problem with conspiracy theories is that they make a bad situation worse instead helping us with solutions. Just like Jonathan before him, President Buhari is being accused by political enemies of supporting the armed herdsmen as part of another nebulous agenda. Governor Samuel Ortom of Benue State has also been accused of sponsoring a shadowy group, disguising as herdsmen to kill his own people as part of a so-called political strategy to divert attention from his alleged failures. Why should Ortom kill his own people for any so-called political advantage? Why should President Buhari kill his fellow citizens for any so-called political advantage? Why should El-Rufai kill his own people for any so-called political agenda? That people believe these absurd conspiracy theories is incomprehensible. These funny theories are utterly wicked and those promoting them are no less evil than the armed herdsmen who have been massacring innocent Nigerians with incredible impunity.
Source: Facebook