Nigeria gets her groove back: Reconstruction has a Rethink

In Uganda we are dealing with 20 plus years of an insurgency in the North whose effects are now being experienced regionally.
We have had some help from the Americans (from of their elite military units) and am sure the military establishment here has gained a lot.

I guess my interest piqued after hearing reports about the renewed search for J.K. (Of Northern Uganda fame) and while i am glad that we are receiving 'help', i fear that the help has been masked by shame and has caused an opening of doors to foreign military elements and intelligence officials who would never have been allowed into a country like Nigeria. All of this while Nigeria is reporting tremendous progress and growth.

The bottom line is that in Uganda and Central Africa, Somalia, and other dense forested areas foreign military teams are still rather disabled and will use this opportunity to benefit themselves.   

So while we lament about government's seeming inaction in Nigeria...and rightly so, we must not forget that our American friends are still yet to deal with their own challenges in a industry that brings in Billions of Dollars and does a little bit more than just abduct young girls.

So we are in a bit of a dilemma. Our regions and countries have become spots of contention for turf wars and we have become attractive positions for proxy wars.


We are a little different from the Nigerians in our approach in that, we have also attempted to drive many reconstruction efforts in the Northern Area of Uganda. My suggestion for the Nigerian government is that they use the Ugandan model in their battles with Boko Haram. I am not suggesting that we can teach the Nigerian military much of anything. Heck we send many of our generals to military schools in Nigeria. What i think we can help demonstrate is the value of our reconstruction efforts and how in some sense they have helped ease the burdens on our northern brothers. 

The Nigerian have an interesting system that allows for a shift in authority between the predominantly Muslim North and the Largely Christian South. It is a rotation of sorts which allows for a delicate balance to be maintain between the two major religious groups.

I think that there must be a greater push to develop the North of Nigeria and to think about fresh terms if the Executive is for some reason cut short (as was the case the previous government). As i have also suggested before, Educational Reform is not too much to ask for given the rate of unemployment and the reported level of corruption. I think certain aspects of this form of negotiation would also help pull the idealogical rag from underneath the feet of the Boko Haram.

Anything short of this threatens to result in a rise in copy cat crimes fueled by the attention this group has received from the media even after a seeming lull in revolt and response from the Ogoni tribe and the much earlier Biafra group.

Advice-Please be careful about who you allow into your country. Focus on your current victories and celebrate them...continue to fight for African Solutions to African Problems. Rethink the manner in which you educate your children. Allow your cultural values to supersede those of your religions.