Chibok Girls: According to Obama and Jonathan

 Biko Agozino

'I was horrified when, about six months after Malala’s visit, 276 Nigerian schoolgirls were kidnapped by the extremist group Boko Haram, seemingly intent on causing other Nigerian families to fear sending their daughters to school. It had prompted me, for the first and only time during the presidency, to sub for Barack during his weekly address to the nation, speaking emotionally about how we needed to work harder at protecting and encouraging girls worldwide.' Michelle Obama, Becoming.

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'Monday, April 15, 2014
01:00 Hours -
The notification came that heavily armed Boko Haram Islamists had arrived in open trucks and quietly abducted about two hundred girls from a boarding school in Chibok, Borno State in North-Eastern Nigeria, which is about two hours drive from Nigeria's border with Cameroon.' Jonathan, My Transition Hours. 

Oga Jona knew the exact hour but unlike Ms Obama, did not know exactly how many girls were kidnapped and was not sure exactly how far Chibok was from the border with Cameroon. Clueless?

A Professor cautioned me as follows: ‘Jonathan’s note is a diary entry on the day of the event. Nobody knew on the day of the event, and for quite a while after, exactly how many children were abducted, how many fled, how many died. Mrs. Obama’s is a recollection after the fact rather than a diary entry on the day of the incident. I’d say that explains the discrepancy. We all know now, if, indeed, we do, how many children were taken. Not to excuse Jonathan’s incompetence.’

I responded: ‘Bros, Jona still does not believe that any Chibok girl was kidnapped. He went on to suggest that the state governor arranged the whole thing as a scam, that even Chibok parents were not protesting until the US and Europe started pouring vitriol, that the principal of Chibok was promoted to Commissioner for Education, that the #bringbackourgirls were rewarded, that the first Chibok girls rescued were housed in govt house by the governor for weeks before being sent home with heavy pockets. Haba. What is he banging on about? He no dey shame?’

Professor again: ‘Biko you’re right. Problem, of course, is that when you consider his successor’s apparent lack of interest in the matter, it’s easy to see why the conspiracy theories have only grown stronger.’

I responded: True talk. Na the family of the mad man dey feel the shame. It is not an individual flaw.

A brother sympathizes with Jonathan: ‘the whole chibok girls issue was staged’

I responded:  The whole world is a stage.

Another brother intervenes: Prof, let's let the sleeping dog lie. It has become the responsibility of President Buhari to take care of this issue. If these girls were kidnapped where is the memo from the individual parents. I can't sit back and do nothing if my girls don't return. President GOODLUCK is a brave man when he relinquished power to Buhari regime who need to come up to speed.

I responded: Different issues you raise. My concern is that the ex President does not sound like someone in control when he used an estimated time to measure the distance to Cameroon when the actual distance can be specified by Google Maps. Ms Obama sounded like a commander in chief when she stood in for her husband. The problem of Jona is that of mediocrity. It would have cost him little to hire a professional editor to go over his wishy washy prose.

The brother changed the topic:  Obama and the wife were in power , did they do anything , just like they swiftly silenced Moumar Gadaffi of Libya, just thinking aloud.

I responded again to the brother: Still different issues from the intertextual reading of the two books published simultanously. Jona get Ph.D. but if he no sabi book, he could hire smart research assistants like you to ghost author for him. Abi na lie?

The brother attacked the straw man: What did Jona do to you, that his case is coming up now? Is it political? Can I get the books so I could get the gist and understand the big issue.

I responded: Bro …, Oga Jona no do me anything personally. You can buy his book and read it for yourself. He is entitled to his opinions but if he is not sure of his facts, then he should cite his sources for the readers to follow up. When he wrote that thousands of lives or hundreds of thousands of lives were lost in the civil war, I suspect that he is not good with research or he would have known that it was not soso thousands, it was millions upon millions, 3.1 million to be more exact, according to Herbert Ekwe-Ekwe. He could have cited sources to back up his understatement of the facts.

The brother concedes: I will agree with you, but don't be too harsh on him because he is writing on a subject alien to his area of specialization , the biological sciences. He actually has written a bad book! He may have to recall the publication, as a damage control effort, bet me.

I correct the brother, … na you be the harsh judge. How can you say that he has written a bad book if you are yet to read it? Even bad books deserve to be read and critiqued to make room for better books. Do not tell him to withdraw his book before you have read it for yourself o. For all you know, my critique of the book may be mistaken.

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