Kukah slams FG over Boko Haram

The Bishop of Sokoto Diocese
Most Rev Hassan Kukah has
slammed the Federal Govern-
ment for not doing enough in
the fight against Boko Haram.
He said the inability of the Federal
Government to decisively out an end to
the insecurity of lives and properties in
the country have caused the loss of nu-
merous lives, destruction of properties
and disruption of the people’s means of
livelihood in several parts of the coun-
try, particularly the North East region of
Nigeria.
In his reaction to the beheading of 10
Christians by Islamist militants in Nige-
ria last December, Bishop Kukah, while
condemning the act, also accused the
government of using different methods
to achieve the same goal of Islamic dom-
inance.
In an interview he granted Catholic
charity Aid to the Church in Need, said
“The only difference between the gov-
ernment and Boko Haram is Boko Har-
am is holding a bomb.”
He added: “They are using the levers of
power to secure the supremacy of Islam,
which then gives more weight to the
idea that it can be achieved by violence.
With the situation in Nigeria, it is hard
to see the moral basis they have to defeat
Boko Haram.
“They have created the conditions to
make it possible for Boko Haram to be-
have the way they are behaving.”
Bishop Kukah said the Nigerian gov-
ernment, by packing key government
positions with hardline Muslims, gives
tacit approval to such groups.
“If the people in power don’t do
enough to integrate Christians then they
give oxygen to Islamism. If they have
countries where everybody is Muslim in
power then you give vent to the idea that
Islam should be supreme.”
Bishop Kukah hit out against Western
nations who he said are happy to mine
the resources of Africa but not defend
its people.
He said: “Western nations are not do-
ing enough. They have shown that the
resources of Africa are more important
than the ordinary people. Clearly, the
Western nations could have reduced
the influence of Boko Haram by 80 or
90 percent – they have deliberately not
done enough.”
Bishop Kukah said that the only thing
preventing Nigeria from being engulfed
in civil war was the peaceful tenets of
Christianity.
He said: “Christians have every reason
to feel insecure and also there is a gener-
al feeling of their marginalisation from
the political process. If the principles of
our religion were different, there would
be a civil war by now.
“It is the glory of our religion that this
hasn’t happened. It is difficult to preach
peace in this context. Any resolution
depends on how Christians decide to
react. They won’t use violence but what
will they do?”