The North and ‘Northerners’ The Fear of the Middle Belt

By: Balami Lazarus

When I recently read some works that are negative and biased on the Middle Belt, it dawned on me to put my contributions on this subject.

Several discourses and comments on the Middle Belt have put fear in the minds of many individuals in the north, fueled by the ‘Northerners.’ The work of one writer recently on the Middle Belt was insulting, where he called it the ‘Bible Belt,’ giving it religious interpretations without any historical considerations, undermining the fact that it has large numbers of other faithfuls, Moslems inclusive. I dismissed that work as fiction of his wild imagination with no specific genre to hinge his work on.

However, the response of Dr. Pogu Bitrus, the president of the Middle Belt Forum (MBF), to a recent article by one Safyan Umar Yahaya on the Middle Belt spoke my mind. That piece gave the true picture of the sociocultural, political, and economic dynamics of the Middle Belt. And hence the birth of this piece.

The north today is where lives, properties, and investments are not safe. The three geopolitical zones that formed the geographical north are a theater of insecurity; homes for bandits, insurgents, and kidnappers; a hallmark of poverty and ignorance where economic activities are cornered and confined. Farming, movements of goods and services, for instance.

There has been a loud ethnic and religious nagging fermented in the cauldrons of sentiments nurtured by the ‘Northerners,’ which has created fear of the Middle Belt and streamed into the minds of the uniformed poor northerners. These have attempted to distort the struggle and agitation for the Middle Belt as a geopolitical zone yearning for a clearly defined cultural identity as a region with political representation. A mark of its geographical identity and expressions.

In this piece, I shall debunk the argument or the notion that the north is a unified bloc, giving my own reasons why it is not. The emergence of the Middle Belt in the body polity of Nigeria long before now has divided the north. For some, it is a recent phenomenon.

First, one has to clearly define the north. Is a geographical expression, and during the days of the late premier Sir Ahmadu Bello, the Sardauna of Sokoto, it stretched from the banks of the Benue and Niger rivers to the Chad/Niger borders. The premier then wielded power and respect across the ethnic provinces that made up the north because of his sense of fairness and equity in the ways and manner he handled and discharged his duties and led the region. The north was a bloc with a common purpose and sense of unity. But today these have manifested themselves into ethno-religious sentiments, attacks, and discriminations from Hausa and/or Fulani vs. Christians. Kabilus that paints the pictures of Moslems or Christians in the north, and the ‘game’ is the Middle Belt.

For me, the present north has four definitions that emerged from the crooked activities of ‘northerners.’ These are political north, ethnic north, religious north, and geographical north, which has long been replaced with geopolitical zones.

The Balkanization of the north noticeably came to the fore long before now, where other ethnic groups who constitute part of the north population were not carried along in the scheme of affairs because they are either Arnes or Kabilus, who are considered parts of the ignorant oppressed Talakawas of the north.

The level of ethno-religious divide has caused discrimination between Christians and Moslems in the north. The Middle Belt agitations have further widened the space where the term “Arewa” means “Moslem north,” while “Middle Belt” means “Christian north” in the minds of bigots.

However, when you speak of the north, you need to ask yourself, which of the north are you referring to in respect of the definitions earlier mentioned? Similarly, if you say “Northerners,” which of the Northerners are you also referring to?

Time and space are making so many tribes/ethnic groups realize their cultural history and where they belong with pride of identity. Therefore, the Middle Belt is a fusion of different ethnic nationalities and the right to be different as a Nigerian.

Balami, a Publisher/Columnist 08036779290

The North and ‘Northerners’ The Fear of the Middle Belt

Medical and Health Developments Amidst Insecurity: The Case of University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital (UMTH)

By: Balami Lazarus

Insecurity challenges have pervaded and taken over every inch of the Nigerian estate, spreading their wings, casting dark shadows stealthily in silence of ambush. The predator has created excuses against growth, progress, and development among ministries, departments, and agencies (MIDA’s), including health institutions where medical and healthcare services are needed.

Development means a different thing to many people. “An improvement in people’s living conditions inevitably contributes to higher productivity and to economic growth, subsequently development.” Therefore the needs of people in a particular area are their development. For example, health.

Moreover, development is essentially concerned with continuous improvements of the human life and condition right from time, in its capacity for qualitative and quantitative reproduction and capabilities to control and manipulate the environment for the betterment of mankind as a whole. Therefore, the purpose of development is to create an enabling environment for people to enjoy long, healthy, and creative lives at all levels of their growth and progress.

But for UMTH under Prof. Ahmed Ahidjo, the CMD, medical and health development in infrastructure, human capital, and healthcare services is a continuous process amidst insecurity in Borno State and Maiduguri, the state capital.

At UMTH, the story of growth and development has brought progress in health and medical services that are expected from institutional hospitals. The rate and level of medical and healthcare services through specialized medical centers equipped with modern state-of-the-art equipment second to none in Nigeria is a testament to health/medical development in the aforesaid hospital.

People have always examined the concept of growth and development from economic perspectives, refusing to align them to the objectives of human needs that will increase productivity to provide and satisfy these human needs to ensure good medical and healthcare service delivery that is available at all times in UMTH “Centre of Excellence.”

Prof. Ahidjo has no doubt facilitated the concept of health development through changes in the health and medical services provided by UMTH in spite of the ten security challenges staring us hard in the face.

Growth, progress, and development initiated by Prof. Ahmed Ahidjo is itself a concept of development in the health sector. The CMD has blended the concepts of development together through their aims and objectives, which are charted towards the improvements of the human standard of living in healthcare and medical services.

Prof. Ahmed’s efforts have therefore brought developments in the life of the hospital that have never been witnessed since the inception of UMTH, until the man with the Midas touch came on board with improvements and transformations of infrastructures and facilities.

Prof. Ahidjo had directed his development towards the satisfaction of the hospital’s needs, the primary objectives of UMTH, which translates to human capital development through teaching, practicals, medical research, and provisions of healthcare services to her immediate host community.

Therefore, development cannot be seen purely as economic, social, and political affairs but rather as an outcome of man’s effort to transform societal structures and institutions in the case of UMTH.

Balami, a Publisher/Columnist 08036779290

Medical and Health Developments Amidst Insecurity: The Case of University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital (UMTH)

In Search of Our History Through Reconstruction and Restructuring of the Nigerian State for Peaceful Coexistence and Good Governance

By: Balami Lazarus

This piece is an extraction from a paper I wrote years back intended to be presented to my society—the Borno Museum Society (BSM)—but it never saw the light of day. However, this is not the original title; I did some changes, putting in some terms to reflect the contemporary issues facing us currently as Nigerians.

Looking at the paper today, which had lain fallow since 1991, I laughed. Dr. Musa Hambolu and Mr. Kyari Bukar, as members, encouraged and urged me to make an effort and present the paper for onward publication in our newsletter, but it never happened. I believe this version will make sense to many more who believe in the Nigerian project as a sovereign nation.

And back to the main menu of the discourse.

One of the major historical developments in Africa south of the Sahara was the great Bantu migration that took place thousands of years ago. It was a mass exodus of the Bantu people, culture, and traditions; its droplets along the line of their migration gave birth to settlements, which had affected many ethnic nations’ language, culture, and traditions. What happened later is part of African history. We are now nestled between who are we? And what are we?

It is very clear that the reconstruction of our history through the restructuring of Nigeria and its state and conditions has long been toyed with, knowing fully well that it is the heart of our peaceful coexistence and good governance. It’s also the main bowl of our socio-political and economic growth and developments.

Our history, geography, and ethnology have drawn our attention to the state of sovereignty known, called, and addressed as Nigeria, a colonial creation, forgetting that we were here before.

the white man’s creation.

To trace the origin of the people that made up Nigeria, one cannot dismiss the substance of other disciplines like history, archeology, anthropology, geography, sociology, and linguistics, and other related subjects. These fields of scholarships have tremendously improved in the explanations of our history, artifacts, and cultural source materials of the people that were wrongfully and forcefully brought together to live and form Nigeria. Therefore,

There is the need for the restructuring of the Nigerian state for peace and good governance for the benefit of all citizens.

To achieve this, we must collectively agree with one voice to restructure our systems to find a lasting solution to our torn political garment, unity shredded with suspicion generated by us over the years. Because modernization is the process of change towards social, economic, and political systems.

Historically, Nigeria is a conglomerate of large ethnic diversities, and each represents a distinct nation with different cultures, traditions, and civilizations living independently before the forceful amalgamation of 1st January, 1914, carried out and executed by the British colonial masters. Sources available to political historians on our past underscored the necessity to shift from the present state of nationhood to a common ground that will provide us with equal opportunities to maintain and sustain our togetherness as one indivisible and indissoluble nation through reconstruction and restructuring.

The reconstruction and restructuring of our historical and political past is paramount; it will aid in checking the high rate of insecurity and criminal activities of bandits and kidnappers. And shall also clamp down on terrorists and the rise of insurgents. Restructuring will reduce sentiments and segregation in the activities of our national life.

History does not repeat itself. But people repeat history and then falsely accuse history of repeating itself.

We have consciously decided to polarize our country with Black Strike sentiments. And here we are, with agitations in different forms: Oduduwa, Biafra, Middle Belt, and Niger Delta.

Balami, Publisher/Columnist 08036779290

In Search of Our History Through Reconstruction and Restructuring of the Nigerian State for Peaceful Coexistence and Good Governance