Chief Bode George is a former Director of the National War College and a former Deputy National Chairman of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP). In this interview monitored on Arise TV, he speaks about the military coup in Niger and why the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) shouldn’t go into war. JOY ANIGBOGU brings the excerpts:
What do you think about military intervention in Niger?
You learn from your experience, we were at the Economic Community of West African States Monitoring Group (ECOMOG), who was the main country that was responsible militarily, financially and personnel of the armed forces? Nigeria spent extremely so much. What was the benefit to Nigeria? You know in war politics, before you consider going to war as a nation, you teach your boys the national interest of your country. Anything that falls out of that is not a major concern to you but if anybody infringes on your national interest, then you can go to war. Because you are going there to defend something so vital to your country and learning from the ECOMOG experience, I will say to the federal government, how can we now go again to Niger? What is the benefit and what do we have as a benefit going to Niger? So, my appeal is that ECOWAS heads of state should be more careful. Ukraine today versus Russia, President Putin thought it would be about a one-week issue, but we’re over a year now and they’re still fighting. Innocent people are dying because war is not a tea party and it’s better to jaw-jaw rather than war-war.
Are you speaking from experience?
I’m talking from experience. Niger is not the only country in the whole geopolitical belt of the Francophone countries that has a military administration. From Guinea in West Africa to Burkina Faso. From Burkina Faso to Mali. And from Mali to Niger, Chad and Sudan. That takes you from the West Atlantic Sea all the way to the Red Sea right across the whole belt of Africa and the Sahara. So, why Niger? I’m advising that we have enough room for dialogue and that the underlying crisis that is engaging in these Francophone countries today dates back to the French approach to colonialism. While the British had direct and indirect rules, the French had the principle of assimilation, otherwise, they didn’t let go. There is no Francophone country in the whole of Africa where the French government doesn’t have a minimum of French battalion stationed there. Since we got our independence, have you seen British troops being stationed here? They’re fighting something that is not akin to their own system. They’re so disenchanted because as a Francophone country, you don’t even have your own currency. You are linked up with the French currency. So, where is the economic power and development? All of them used to head up to France but the French people are getting tired of all these and even the French Arabs are tired of all of them because they are no longer playing that game of assimilation. In those days, I’m not sure about now; the French government allowed all Francophone countries’ heads of state to be members of the French Parliament. We in the Anglophone countries, were we ever members of the British Parliament? When you divorce, you move on. Look at all the minerals that are there in Niger, how much are the French government paying to Nigeriens. What is the development of the mass land in Niger because the country is bigger than Nigeria but they are still the poorest nation in the world and their people are in abject poverty? So whatever we can do in terms of talking, it is better than to go and send troops there. We’re still battling with ourselves on the type of constitution we are running. But these are normal developmental crises which we must resolve and Nigeria as a nation, have we settled down? With the economic situation in this country today, people are still hungry and they are angry. The insecurity in the land is unmatchable, so why would we now commit ourselves to war in Niger. When they start they would expect the big brother, Nigeria to pump so much money.
In the event that the coup leaders are unwilling to dialogue with ECOWAS, do you still think they shouldn’t attempt military intervention?
Rome wasn’t built in a day and these young men who took over the government and I’m now talking from experience. There is nowhere in the world that you have a dictatorship that lasts long without inflicting unimaginable pain on the people. Today, the people are dancing and supporting them. It takes time and they will find a way to reach whoever is the head of state. He would soon find out that all that glitters is not gold. He will find out and if they think it is like a revolving door that can change in a minute, they’re joking because it takes time to settle down. In Nigeria, we’re still waiting for the end of the electoral process and you’re now committing yourself to war. Just imagine that the court comes out and says no to Bola Tinubu as president, what then happens? Discussion and diplomacy are not like a switch, yes, the gun can be like a little switch but the discussion will go on. Niger is an entity and ECOWAS itself by its definition is an economic community of states. So, the economy is the number one issue, not the military. Take the European Union which is the economic union for central Europe but you have the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). Not all members of NATO are members of the European Union. But when we want to talk about the tents by which they established ECOWAS, it is a corporation of economic activity, trade links, free movement and sharing various advantages. If you have certain products in your country that are required for industrial use in another country, let’s work together. The essence is to develop a standard of living for the people in West Africa. But this has been so inhibited because the Francophone countries are still controlled by the French. But now if they want their liberty, look like I said to you from Guinea, Burkina Faso, Mali, Chad, Sudan and Niger are military governments all the way to the Red Sea. All of them except Sudan are Francophone countries and they are all under military administration and it shows that something is wrong. Let’s take the discussion from that and find a solution rather than subject all our people to unnecessary war. We were trained to know the consequences of war. But what is Niger to Nigeria, please remember that from Kebbi, Sokoto, Zamfara, Kastina, Jigawa, Yobe and Borno States, these people have families from the other side of Niger and Chad. There’s a porous border from there and they’ve relatives and family members, so what do you want to do? Let’s allow the man in Niger because no matter what, he would discuss with ECOWAS. Yes, it was unfortunate that they didn’t listen to the ECOWAS delegate because it was too early in the day. And ECOWAS made a mention and gave a seven days ultimatum. That was your approach, what do you want to do, to behave like school children and succumb? They’ll not do that and you can see their people, whether they understand the situation or not, supporting them. But one thing I know is that the military administration cannot resolve the problem in Niger or any nation. We have experienced it here and you saw what it did to the military itself and the nation, Look at the constitution we are running today and that is why we’re not moving forward because it is not working. It’s so military in its standing and everything and we need to revisit those areas. You know that the disadvantage of a military administration, people don’t realise it, you cut off people’s participation. There’re three arms of government, the judiciary, the executive and the legislative arm. The legislative arm is the representation of the people and if you cut it out because you have a military government, the legislature is the first one to be disbanded, so how would the people be governed if there is no presentation from them? So, military administration is not a serious form of governance and people will realise it by the time they’re cut off. So, I would plead with ECOWAS’s heads of state to remember that they don’t know how the war will end if they start it. So, it is better to jaw-jaw than to war-war.
Source: Independent
