Dr. Ibrahim Datti Ahmed is the President of the Supreme Council for Shariah in Nigeria (SCSN). He recently declined to serve on the committee constituted by President Goodluck Jonathan to dialogue with members of the Boko Haram sect over what he described as lack of sincerity on the part of government. In this interview with newsmen in Kaduna, Dr. Datti spoke on what the sect members told him during the botched peace meeting he initiated. Excerpts:
You declined to be member of the amnesty committee set up recently by the federal government to dialogue with the Boko Haram sect, what informed your decision?
We would have since forgotten the issue of Boko Haram but when I offered to mediate the government disappointed us. We have even reached the stage of talking with them and they had agreed to come out to discuss with the authorities but the government refused to play its own part.
What then is the way out of this problem since government does not want to play its own part?
You are in a better position to tell us since you are a journalist. We have played our own part so the way out is left for the government. We sat with the government and we told them that we can talk to this people (Boko Haram) and we did talk with them. They told us their conditions to come out for discussion and we gave feedback to the government but it refused to do anything.
In the past you participated in the mediatory effort, now you have rejected the offer to serve on the amnesty committee, why is that?
This is because it has no meaning. I participated in the first one and in the second attempt but the government failed on what it is supposed to do. You will not expect me to keep doing what I know will not yield any meaningful result.
With the continuing killing of Nigerians, don’t you see this amnesty committee as another opportunity to end the carnage?
There is no any opportunity. In the past, we got the chance to do that, we offered ourselves without the government asking us to do that. We did that because of the love we have for the country and the North. In fact, at that time many people were even afraid to say a word with regard to the issue. We offered to mediate and we met with the president face to face. But they threw away the chance. We still got another chance, not through the president, and for the love of our country we still opened the door for discussion. We have even gone far with the discussions which if the government had done what it was requested to do, we would have ended this problem by now.
For instance, the smallest demand made by the sect was that if the government was sincere with the discussion, their wives and children in detention should be released. We came back and gave the government feedback on the demand. In fact, we even told the sect leaders that no government will release the men until after investigation. But their wives and children that were arrested for no reason would be released.
The Boko Haram leaders said they agreed. We informed the government on this demand which they said they will comply with but at the end they still refused to release them. They did not release a single person.
But for the fact that the sect members have trust and confidence in us, they would have thought it was something else. Still we didn’t feel deterred from our responsibility. Even though it was not the government that asked us to mediate; we are doing it because of the love for the country. It is our own duty to find a lasting solution to the problem and for peace in the country.
We told the government all they needed to know that will lead to peace. All their conditions were minor. If the government had listened to us and released their wives and children we would have ended this problem. For example in Kano State, their wives and children in detention are just 24 and they only asked for seven to be released which will serve as a sign of sincerity from the government and readiness for talks.
They wanted four women and three children released but the government refused to release them.
Many people say that if you join the new amnesty committee, you can still make that recommendation to the government in the interest of peace?
Whoever thinks so is a fool. The first time we started the talk we sat with the president one-on-one. Now, we are to talk with his agents. We are an independent body and not government workers. Nobody is paying us; we are only doing this because of Allah. Now he has reduced the credibility of the committee by turning it to be that of government. The chairman is a minister, the secretary a civil servant. These are people that will write the minutes of the meeting.
Knowing Nigerians very well, we have no guarantee that they will truly report what will transpire in the committee. They may end up reporting only what President Jonathan wants to hear because they are his boys. This can tarnish our names. This is why we think there is no door open for us to enter on this issue.
What will make you change your mind to join the committee?
Nothing will make me join the committee because it is not set up to succeed as far as I am concerned. The committee that has a serving minister as chairman and the secretary a civil servant who are all regarded as the president’s boys I don’t think it will yield any result.
If they want to set up a committee they should look for independent body of credible Nigerians to go and find lasting solution to the problem. I can give my contribution to them but I will not take part in this government committee.
Are you saying if the government changes the leaders of the committee you will have a rethink?
I didn’t tell you that.
Source: Daily Trust
