The Power Of Non-Violence

All parents love to have well-behaved children, not to talk of precocious ones. They want them to be good performers in school, respectful of their elders, morally upright, honest, clean, God-fearing, tolerant of opposing views, urbane, sympathetic towards the poor, the sick or the infirm, etc. They also pray for them to be successful in life, either financially or in their chosen professions. So, how can we make our kids grow up with the right behaviour?

Recently, I got talking with a friend about how kids are being brought up these days and, by extension, how we relate with each other in society. I had been startled by the violence that defines our society today, especially between parents and children, husbands and wives, teachers and students, religious leaders and the laity, and political leaders and their followers. Because it has become so hard to mutually agree on what is right or wrong, people tend to resort to violence. The mechanisms for truce, reconciliation or dialogue – formal or otherwise – are replaced with ad hoc contraptions.

In years gone by, children used to be brought up by stern parents and other community elders who were anxious not to lose them to the vagaries of modern life, including the possibility of growing up recalcitrant, strong-headed and lacking in discipline. The general rule was the truism, “Spare the rod and spoil the child.”

In the chat with my friend, I was more concerned about the way we bring up our children, for obvious reasons. The way we were treated, handled or guided as kids was the single most important reason for who we are today. In those days, upbringing was a mixed grill of carrots and stick, but mostly the stick. My friend, a stickler for the old ways of doing things, believes that the absence of sternness by parents towards their wards is responsible for the waywardness of many kids these days.

The question, however, is: are all the well-behaved adults today products of some koboko- or bulala-wielding parents and elders? And are the old ways of bringing up kids better than the new ones? No doubt, there is a strong sense in the ways of our parents and grandparents, but things are changing fast. Modern-day parents and school teachers are tending to wonder whether it pays to beat children in order to teach them what they should or shouldn’t do or say. They are accepting the fact that it is possible to have children that are of good character without wielding the cane. The secret is in ensuring a dialogue between parent and child; leading by example, and keeping families close-knit. It is important for parents to talk to their children and listen to them, too. Not befriending our kids creates unnecessary barriers that, in turn, lead to many unwholesome consequences. If the kids offend us, we can tell them and make them feel sorry without us going bananas. The worst thing we must do is to practise “passive resistance” or what I regard as “non-violence in relationship.” In short, parents, teachers and even spouses can be firm without being too hard.

I’ll close this piece by quoting a story told by Mr. Arun Gandhi, grandson of the legendary Mahatma Gandhi and founder of the M.K. Gandhi Institute for Non-violence, in his lecture at the University of Puerto Rico on June 9, 2010. It is an example of “non-violence in parenting”. Enjoy:

“I was 16 years old and living with my parents at the institute my grandfather had founded 18 miles outside of Durban, South Africa, in the middle of the sugar plantations. We were deep in the country and had no neighbours, so my two sisters and I would always look forward to going to town to visit friends or go to the movies.

“One day, my father asked me to drive him to town for an all-day conference, and I jumped at the chance. Since I was going to town, my mother gave me a list of groceries she needed and, since I had all day in town, my father asked me to take care of several pending chores, such as getting the car serviced. When I dropped my father off that morning, he said, ‘I will meet you here at 5:00 p.m., and we will go home together’.

“After hurriedly completing my chores, I went straight to the nearest movie theatre. I got so engrossed in a John Wayne double-feature that I forgot the time. It was 5:30 before I remembered. By the time I ran to the garage and got the car and hurried to where my father was waiting for me, it was almost 6:00. He anxiously asked me, ‘Why were you late?’

“I was so ashamed of telling him I was watching a John Wayne western movie that I said, ‘The car wasn’t ready, so I had to wait,’ not realising that he had already called the garage. When he caught me in the lie, he said: ‘There’s something wrong in the way I brought you up that didn’t give you the confidence to tell me the truth. In order to figure out where I went wrong with you, I’m going to walk home 18 miles and think about it.’ So, dressed in his suit and dress shoes, he began to walk home in the dark on mostly unpaved, unlit roads. I couldn’t leave him, so for five-and-a-half hours I drove behind him, watching my father go through this agony for a stupid lie that I uttered. I decided then and there that I was never going to lie again.

“I often think about that episode and wonder, if he had punished me the way we punish our children, whether I would have learned a lesson at all. I don’t think so. I would have suffered the punishment and gone on doing the same thing. But this single non-violent action was so powerful that it is still as if it happened yesterday. That is the power of non-violence.”

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Published in LEADERSHIP WEEKEND, last Saturday. Photo of Arun Gandhi above.

Ma’anar }arfin ikon jama’a

DA }arfe 6:43 na yamma a birnin Al}ahira a ranar Juma’a ta makon jiya, wani jagoran masu zanga-zangar }in amincewa da mulkin Shugaba Hosni Mubarak mai suna Wael Ghonim ya tura sa}o a dandalin Twitter da ke intanet, ya na fa]in: “Mu na taya ki murna, Masar, babban mai laifin nan ya arce daga fadar sa.” Ya na nufin Mubarak wani babban ~arawo ne ko mai kisan kai da sauran manyan laifuffuka wanda mulkin sa ya zo }arshe har ya gudu daga fadar shugaban }asa. Hakan ya biyo bayan tumbu]in da al’ummar }asar su ka shafe kwana 18 su na yi, inda a }arshe, ran Juma’a da ta wuce, zamanin Muhammad Hosni Mubarak a karagar Jamhuriyar Larabawa ta Masar ya kawo }arshe. {arfin jama’a ya tabbata. Idan kun tuna, a rubutun da na yi a wannan shafin a makon jiya mai taken, “Fir'auna Na {arshe Ya Fa]i!” na bayyana cewa, “Tuni muguwar gwamnatin sa ta shiga garari, ta fara tarwatsewa, domin kuwa iyalan sa da manyan jami’an gwamnatin sa tuni su ka fara arar takalmin kare su na arcewa.”

Tarin jama’ar da ta taru a Dandalin Tahrir ta wuce maridan gwamnati su maida ita abar wasa ko su yi mata ri}on sakainar kashi, domin jama’a ce wadda ta san ciwon kan ta kuma ta ke da zummar lallai sai an biya mata bu}atar ta. Yawancin mutanen da ke cikin taron matasa ne wa]anda ba su gama ko ta-ta-ta ba lokacin da Mubarak ya ]are karagar mulki a 1981. To amma mutane ne masu ilimi, wayayyu a lamurran duniyar mu ta yau, masana intanet, masu fushi da gur~acewar mulki, wa]anda su ka gaji da salon tafiyar hawainiyar mulki, kuma sun gaji da salon mulkin mutum ]aya, sannan su na son canji ko ta halin }a}a. Matasa ne ’yan Facebook wa]anda su ka san yadda za su yi amfani da intanet da kuma tashoshin talabijin na satalayit don cimma bu}atun su. Duk wani mai ba}in mulki da ya yi kunnen uwar shegu da irin wa]annan ’yan taratsin, to jiki magayi.

Mubarak ya yi duk wasu kame-kame don ya li}e a jikin she}ar sa. Saboda lallai ya san tsiyar wa]annan nau’urorin ya]a labarai da Turawa su ka }ir}ira, ya dakatar da Facebook da gidan talabijin na Aljazeera na wani ]an lokaci, amma duk a banza. Babu abin da ya yi masa amfani; misali barazanar da kwamandojin sa na soja su ka yi wa masu zanga-zangar, da soki-burutsun da Mataimakin Shugaban {asa Omar Suleiman (mutumin da shugaban ’yan zanga-zanga Mohammed El-Baradei ya kira da “abokin tagwaicin” Mubarak) ya yi masu, da hare-haren da magoya bayan Mubarak su ka kai wa ’yan zanga-zangar ko kuma jawaban yaudara da shi Mubarak ]in ya yi wa jama’ar }asar a ran 1 da ran 10 ga Fabrairu, inda ya sha alwashin wai zai ci gaba da mulki har na tsawon watanni bakwai masu zuwa. Da alama, bai gane zurfin tsanar da mutane su ka yi wa azzalumar gwamnatin sa ba. Tunda dai duk }asar ta na kuka da shi, sannan dubban mutane sun shiga yajin aiki, inda su ka ja wa }asar birki, don haka bai fi awoyi ka]an - ba ma kwanaki ba - kafin }arshen sa ya zo.

Aje aikin da ya yi ran Juma’a wata shaida ce da ke }ara gabbata da }arfin ikon jama’a. Irin haka ta ta~a faruwa a }asar Filifins a 1986, wanda ya sa aka dinga yin juyin juya hali a }asashe da dama a Gabashin Turai a 1989, ana rusa gwamnatocin gurguzu. Amma an jima irin hakan ba ta faru a nahiyar Larabawa ko ta Afrika ba ma, inda masu mulki ke kallon kan su a matsayin wani abin bauta. To amma yanzu ta fara sauya zani. A yau, Larabawa su na yin tambaya kan halin da rayuwar su ta ke ciki, kuma su na yun}urin kifar da azzaluman shugabannin su. A watan jiya, hakan ta faru a }asar Tunisiya inda jama’a su ka yi zanga-zanga su ka ham~arar da shugaban }asar, har sai da ya tsere zuwa gudun hijira. To amma fa ba wanda ya ta~a tunanin cewa irin wannan za ta iya faruwa a Masar, }asar da ke kan gaba wajen yin ala}a da Yammacin Turai a }asashen Labarawa duka, musamman ma da yake Mubarak ne shugaban }asar, mutumin da ake ganin ya na da }arfin mulki tamkar Fir’auna, wanda sai dai a kwatanta shi da shugaban Ira}i na da, wato marigayi Saddam Hussein. To, duk da haka sai da ta faru ta }are, wai an yi wa mai zani ]aya sata! Jama’a sun fa]i abin da su ke so, kuma sun samu.

To amma fa tsugune ba ta }are ba, an saida kare an sayi biri. An dai fidda Mubarak, amma kuma ginshi}in gwamnatin sa - wato sojojin da su ka ]aure masa gindi - har yanzu su na nan daram damdam, sun maida }asar maras dimokira]iyya. Har yanzu za a iya ci gaba da cin mutuncin jama’a. Za a iya mur}ushe duk wani ]an adawa.

Na biyu, tsoron da gwamnatocin Yammaci su ke yi na cewa wai babbar jam’iyyar adawar }asar, wato Muslim Brotherhood, za ta hau kujerar mulkin }asar wata babbar barazana ce ga abin muradin jama’ar Masar. Turawa da Yahudawa su na so Masar ta ci gaba da kasancewa a tafin hannun su saboda kawai ta na dakushe abin da su ke kira da tsattsauran ra’ayin addini. A ranar da Mubarak ya fa]i, Firayim Ministar }asar Jamus, wato Angela Markel, ta yi garga]in cewa tilas ne Masar ta ci gaba da yin abokantaka da Isra’ila. Sannan wani fitaccen ]an jaridar Amurka wai shi Glenn Beck, wanda tsattsauran ra’ayin sa bai da bambanci da na ’yan Al}a’ida wajen tada hankalin jama’a, ya bayyana cewa yun}urin fidda Mubarak wani babban gangamin ha~aka addinin Islama ne na duniya wanda ya taso tun daga nahiyar Asiya har zuwa Ingila. Beck, wanda ke da ]imbin mabiya shirin sa na talabijin a Amurka, ya ce, “Wannan ba zancen Masar ba ne. Wannan magana ce ta dukkan wani mutum da ya ta~a yin shiri, ko ya ke so, ya canza ainihin rayuwar Turawa da Yahudawa baki ]ayan ta.” Manyan masu fa]a a ji a Amurka da dama su na da wannan ra’ayi, ciki kuwa har da babban ]an jam’iyyar Republican ]in nan mai suna Newt Gingrich, wanda ya furta cewa, “’Yan Muslim Brotherhood su ne manyan ma}iyan rayuwar mu da jinsin mu.”

Shin wai ba abin mamaki ba ne kuwa a ce ’yan ra’ayin ri}au na Yammacin Turai ba su son ganin mulkin dimokira]iyya ya wanzu a yankin Gabas ta Tsakiya don kawai irin shugabanin da talakawan Larabawa ke so ba su ba ne Turawa da Yahudawa ke so, sun ]auke su masu tsattsauran ra’ayi? ’Yan ri}au ]in Yammaci sun fi son shugabannin Larabawa masu }aryar son jama’ar su sun ci gaba da mulki, a yayin da su ke kau da kai daga matsalolin rayuwa da su ka addabi jama’ar su saboda kawai shugabannin duk ’yan koren su ne.

Sa’annan sai maganar tattalin arziki, wanda Mubarak ya kasa gyarawa domin ya fi maida hankali ga harkar tsaro. Shi kullum abin da ya fi damun sa shi ne dangantakar }asashe, wadda ta ha]a da shiri da Isra’ila da kuma ya}ar ’yan kishin Islama. Saboda haka, duk wanda ya zama sabon shugaban }asar Masar ya na da babban aikin gyaran koma]ar tattalin arziki a }asar sa. Bayan haka, wani abu mai muhimmanci kuma shi ne batun yadda za a gina ingantaccen tsarin mulkin dimokira]iyya bisa ginshi}in addinin jama’ar }asa. Hujjoji da dama sun nuna cewa tsarin mulkin dimokira]iyya ya na iya ginuwa a }asashen Musulmi. Shugaban Amurka, Barack Obama, ya fara amincewa da bin hanyar da gwamnatocin Amurka da dama su ka }i aminta da ita, wato bu}atar gina tsarin mulkin dimokira]iyya a }asashen Larabawa.

Idan an bi wannan hanyar bil ha}}i da gaskiya, to za a ga ci-gaba sosai. Domin fa rashin samun za~i, da kuma cusa wa jama’a shugabannin da ba su so ta hangar ci da addini ko batun tsaro ya na taimakawa wajen sa wasu su ]auki tsattsauran mataki, wanda ya ha]a da tada bam a cikin jirgin sama ko kuma fasa motar safa da gurnati. Don a cimma nasara, tilas ne Turawa da Yahudawa su }yale Larabawa su za~a wa kan su shugabannin kan su ta hanyar za~e na fisabilillahi. Juyin juya hali da aka yi a Masar ya nuna cewa zamanin da Turawa su ke cusa wa Larabawa shugabanni don biyan bu}atar su ta son rai ya shu]e. A yau, matasa za su ri}a bin bahasi da babbar murya.

Mu ma a nan Afrika ya kamata mu farka daga barci. Don me? Dalili shi ne mu na da masu mulkin mur]iya amma masu kiran kan su da sunan masoya dimokira]iyya. Wasu ma su na ta }ara ~ullowa a fagen. Ya kamata matasan Afrika, Ba}ar Fata, su yi koyi da takwarorin su da ke arewacin nahiyar mu; kada a manta, su ma ’yan Tunisiya da ’yan Masar duk ’yan Afrika ne. Yackamata su farka daga gyangya]i, su yi bin bahasi ga shugabannin su, su bu}aci sauyi a duk inda hakan ya dace.

Ku kuma ’yan Masar mu na taya ku murna. Fir’auna ya fa]i.

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An buga a LEADERSHIP HAUSA ta ranar Juma'a da ta gabata

The Meaning Of People’s Power

“Congratulations Egypt, the criminal has left the palace.”

– Egyptian protest leader Wael Ghonim, in a Twitter message sent at 6:43 p.m. in Cairo, yesterday.


The meaning of people’s power manifested itself in yesterday’s overthrow of Muhammad Hosni Mubarak as president of the Arab Republic of Egypt. My column last week, titled “As Another Pharaoh Falls...,” was unequivocal that Mubarak was pretending to be a born-again democrat with his promise to quit during the general elections in September, but he was too late. The mammoth crowd at Tahrir (i.e. Freedom) Square was too determined and focused to be brushed aside by the government’s goons. It was composed mostly of young men and women, many of whom were scarcely out of their diapers when Mubarak took power in 1981. They are educated politically, exposed to the heady ways of the modern world, internet-savvy, angry, impatient with the slow wheel of governance, fed up with the three-decade one-man show, and thirsting for change at all cost. This is a Facebook generation that marries the amazing potentials of internet social networking with the borderless powers of satellite television. Any dictator who ignores the power of this kind of agitators does so at his/her peril.

Mubarak tried some dirty tricks to cling to power. As a sign that he realised the influence of those Western tools of information, he briefly unplugged Facebook and sacked Aljazeera television, all to no avail. Nothing worked; not even the threat of his military commanders against the protesters, the incoherent blandishments of Vice President Omar Suleiman (described by opposition figure Mohammed El-Baradei as Mubarak’s “twin”), the desperate attacks by Mubarak’s supporters or his deceptive speeches to the people on February 1 and 10, vowing to remain in office for the next seven months. He clearly under-estimated the depth of resentment against his vile regime. With the nation crying out in unison, and thousands refusing to go to work, effectively shutting down the country, his hours – not days – were numbered.

His resignation yesterday was another proof of the people’s power. A similar scenario had happened in the Philippines in 1986, inspiring the revolutions of 1989 that ended communist dictatorships in Eastern Europe. No, not in the Arab world – or in Africa, for that matter – where rulers play deities. Well, until lately. Today, the Arabs are asking hard questions and plotting to unseat their unpopular rulers. It happened last month in Tunisia where a popular revolt forced the president into exile. But no one thought that such could succeed in Egypt, the West’s formidable ally in the region, more so with Mubarak, whose granite presence and pharaonic powers were comparable only to those of Iraq’s maximum ruler, the late Saddam Hussein. But it has happened! The people have spoken.

Even then, Egypt has a long way to go. The big man is out, but the canvass on which his rule was etched – the faceless military brass – is firmly in place, making the system an anathema to responsible, representative and accountable governance. Human rights could continue to be abused. Opposition voices could be silenced. Two, the fear by Western governments that the country’s largest opposition party, the Muslim Brotherhood, may assume power is a threat to the people’s will. Westerners want Egypt to remain within their sphere of influence because of its role as a bulwark against Islamic radicalism. German premier Angela Markel warned yesterday that Egypt must remain friends with Israel. American extremist personalities such as Glenn Beck, whose views are as threatening to world peace as those of, say, Al-Qaida, believe that the turmoil against Mubarak was part of an international Islamic resurgence sweeping all the way from Asia to England. “This isn’t about Egypt,” said Beck, a top-rated television personality with a large following in America. “This is the story of everyone who has ever plotted, or wanted, to fundamentally change or destroy the Western way of life.” This view was echoed by other influential establishment figures, such as Republican strategist Newt Gingrich, who said, “The Muslim Brotherhood is a mortal enemy of our civilisation.”

Is it not funny that Western conservatives aren’t interested in seeing democracy in the Middle East simply because the leaders preferred by the majority of Arabs are considered too radical by the West? Western extremists prefer those paternal dictatorships in the region, turning a blind eye to the harsh realities of the people’s lives because the rulers are their stooges.

Then, there is the economy, which Mubarak failed to develop due to his obsession with security. Geopolitics – ranging from rapprochement with Israel to fighting Islamic radicalism – was his best game. Whoever becomes the new leader of Egypt will, therefore, find the economy a hard nut to crack. Of equal importance is the challenge of cultivating a genuine democratic culture based on the nation’s religious heritage. There is evidence that a tenured electoral system can be grown in Muslim nations. U.S. president Barack Obama is toeing a line long spurned by successive American governments, i.e. Arab nations should democratise. This line, if genuine, promises much. For, it is in the absence of choice by the public and imposition of natural rulers in the name of religion or security that some elements resort to extreme measures, such as bombing an airliner or detonating a grenade on a bus. To achieve this, the West must allow the Arabs to choose their leaders in free and fair elections. The revolution in Egypt has shown that the age of propping up dictators to serve extraneous (read: Western) interests is gone. The youths will always ask the hard questions.

This message should sink in in Africa, too. And why not? We have veritable dictators camouflaging as democrats. Others are emerging. The youths of Africa, Black Africa, should emulate their counterparts in the north; after all, Tunisians and Egyptians are Africans, too. They should ask the hard questions and push for a change where necessary.

Congrats, Egypt. The Pharaoh is gone. Sigh!

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Published in my back page column in LEADERSHIP WEEKEND, today.

As Another Pharaoh Falls...

When Mineptah, the successor of Ramses II, pursued Prophet Moses (A.S.) and his followers in order to eliminate them, he found himself and his army facing the danger of being swallowed up by the sea. The Qur’an (10:90) tells us that Mineptah, now believed to be the Pharaoh of Egypt in Moses’ age, had regarded himself as a deity and responded with utter arrogance and threats to the prophet’s calls for him to believe in Allah (S.W.T.). But at the point of drowning, the Pharaoh immediately turned to belief, saying: “I believe that there is no god but Him in Whom the tribe of Israel believes. I am one of the Muslims.” However, this last-minute conversion was not accepted by God, for it was not sincere. According to the Qur’an, Allah said: “What, now! When previously you rebelled and were one of the corrupters? Today, we will preserve your body so you can be a Sign for people who come after you. Surely many people are heedless of Our Signs.”

Muhammad Hosni Sayyid Mubarak, the octogenarian who has been ruling the Arab Republic of Egypt for 30 years, did not heed the signs either. Today, he is drowning in the sea of the multitudes who are demanding that he quit immediately. In response to this demand, the president has belatedly become a democrat, promising he will relinquish power during the general elections in September. But his vile regime is falling apart, with his family members and top officials scurrying into exile in airplanes stuffed with millions of U.S. dollars.

Mubarak would have been kicked out many years ago if not for the support he enjoyed from successive United States governments. Six attempts were made on his life. Under him, Egypt became the de facto 52nd state of the USA, the 21st of course being neighbouring Israel. Six American presidents from Carter to Obama had given the leading Arab despot all the support he needed to remain in power and continue to serve western interests, i.e. peace with Israel, which includes maintaining the economic blockade on the Palestinians, giving the U.S. and Israeli military access to Egyptian air space and the Suez Canal, spurning any rapprochement with Iran and serving as bulwark against Islam’s resurgence, described as Muslim fundamentalism and or terrorism. In return, Egypt has collected U.S.$28 billion in American aid, given at an average of $2 billion annually since 1979, much of it in military aid. The combined total makes Egypt the second largest recipient of U.S. aid after Israel.

Mubarak disdained U.S. request that part of the money be spent on democracy promotion programmes in Egypt. “On principle, the Egyptian government rejects U.S. assistance for democracy promotion activities,” Jeremy Sharp of the U.S. Congressional Research Service said in a background report updated on January 28. Meanwhile, as corruption ate deep into the Egyptian government, life became harsh. Egypt ranks 101st on the U.N. Human Development Index, between Mongolia and Uzbekistan. In the Middle East, it ranks 10th, below not just rich countries like Kuwait and Saudi Arabia, but behind Libya, Jordan, and Algeria as well. Food prices are rising to levels not seen since the global food crisis of 2007-2008. The U.S. had turned a blind eye to these problems, assenting to Mubarak’s winning of all the presidential elections in which he usually scored over 90 percent of the vote in a quasi-democracy in which opposition parties were either banned or sidelined, and their leaders assassinated or forced into exile.

The ongoing tumult once again exposes the double face of U.S. foreign policy and the rotten underbelly of the American government’s ethical standard. Mubarak expects to receive U.S. support at his hour of need, but the reverse is the case. The Obama administration is working on a post-Mubarak Egypt. President Barack Obama told the American public after a 30-minute telephone conversation he had with Mubarak this week: “Now, ultimately, the future of Egypt will be determined by the Egyptian people, and I believe that the Egyptian people want the same things that we all want: a better life for ourselves and our children, and a government that is fair and just and responsive. Put simply, the Egyptian people want a future that befits the heirs to a great and ancient civilization.” The message for other despots in the region is that they can no longer count on America to continue to lord it over their people. But is the U.S. making this volte face for altruistic reasons? We all know that the same U.S. had supported President Saddam Hussein to the hilt in his war against his own people – and against Iran – only to lead a coalition of western countries to topple him and ultimately oversee his hanging by a puppet regime in Baghdad. One would not be surprised at a U.S. support if Mubarak should be tried for corruption and other charges. The 83-year-old former Air Force officer owns wealth estimated at US$40 billion to $70 billion, all stolen from the Egyptian treasury.

The U.S is mulling the idea of propping another puppet in Egypt. Top on the list is Mohammed El-Baradei, the former director-general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). The west is already making the mistake it made in many Muslim lands; it is frantically trying to sidetrack the main opposition party in Egypt, the Muslim Brotherhood. While most western officials and commentators hail the storm against Mubarak, they also shiver at the prospects of the Brotherhood coming to power. An editorial in the Globe and Mail last weekend warned against allowing the Brotherhood, which it described as “the only well organised opposition party” in Egypt, to take power – even through an election. The paper gave its reason thus: “It is hardly an exaggeration to say that the Muslim Brotherhood created what is now called Islamism: a religious revival that proposes to adapt to modernity while building shariah law into the state”. It advises Mubarak to hang on to power at all cost in order to find a way to institute a mechanism that would maintain the pro-Israel, pro-U.S. status quo.

The danger in not allowing Egyptians to select their new leader in a free and fair election is that the west is gambling its remaining goodwill in the country and creating a scenario close to what happened in Iran in 1979. When the Islamic Revolution was on course, the west did all it could to derail the popular will by trying to help the Shah to stay put and, when that was failing, install a puppet. At the end, the people triumphed and the west found itself at the receiving end of an Iranian backlash. A similar case happened in Gaza, where Hamas, which won an election conducted according to western standards, was rejected by the U.S. It is in America’s interest to allow Egypt’s latest pharaoh to fall as heavily as he deserves and, then, let the people choose their leader freely. The western assumption that any government with “Islamist” credentials is an enemy further exposes its infamous fallacy: the nation in charge of Islam’s roots – Saudi Arabia – is the west’s staunchest ally in the Middle East.

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Published in LEADERSHIP WEEKEND, last Saturday

Sai bango ya tsage...

Idan har wannan makon ya }are jam’iyyun adawa na siyasa a Nijeriya ba su ha]u su ka fito da ]an takara guda ]aya da za su shigar a za~en watan Afrilu ba, to kawai mu ]auka cewa duk a cikin su babu wanda zai iya doke Dakta Goodluck Jonathan - ko an yi za~e ba magu]i ko kuma an yi za~e da almundahana. Abin da ya sa na yi wannan kintacen shi ne amannar da na yi cewa a yanzu kam, kawunan wa]annan jam’iyyu da ke kiran kan su jam’iyyun siyasa duk a rarrabe su ke a kan batun yin wani gagarumin shiri don za~en, kuma babu wata }wa}}warar alama da ke nuna cewa za su iya zama su baje komai a faifai a cikin mako ]aya.

Yanzu hankalin jam’iyyun a tashe ya ke a daidai lokacin da wa’adin da Hukumar Za~e ta {asa (INEC) na su kawo sunayen ’yan takarar su ya kusa cika. Dalili shi ne fargabar da ta cika zukatan jam’iyyun ganin cewa yanzu Jonathan ya samu tikitin tsayawa takarar a }ar}ashin inuwar jam’iyyar PDP, wanda ya }ara masa }arfi fiye da yadda ya ke kafin a yi za~en fidda gwani na jam’iyyar mako uku da su ka gabata, kuma akwai alamun lallai zai iya lashe za~en da za a yi a Afrilu. Yanzu akwai bayyanannun alamu masu nuna cewa idan har jam’iyyun adawa ba su ha]u su ka mara wa ]an takara ]aya baya ba, to ham~arar da Jonathan da kaifin }uri’a zai kasance tamkar ]aukar Kano ba gwammo.

Akwai tarurrukan da ake ta yi don tabbatar da an cimma hakan, to amma har yanzu babu wanda ya haifar da ]a mai ido. A ran Juma’a ta makon jiya, jaridu sun ruwaito labarin wani taro da aka yi “a asice” tsakanin Malam Nuhu Riba]u na jam’iyyar ACN da Janar Muhammadu Buhari na CPC a gidan shi Buharin da ke Kaduna. An ce an yi taron ne da nufin fito da hanyoyin da za a bi a }wace mulki daga hannun Shugaba Jonathan. Wannan tunanin ya yi daidai da }o}arin da ake ta yi na ganin cewa mulki ya dawo arewa a za~e mai zuwa.

To amma ko wannan yun}urin zai yi nasara kuwa? Kai mai karatu, ka ma fi ni sanin amsar. A ha}i}anin gaskiya, jam’iyyun adawa na }asar nan dai duk jam’iyyun son rai ne. Kowane ]an adawa so ya ke a ce shi ne a saman sauran, shi ya sa bai yarda da duk wata yarjejeniyar a ha]u a fidda jaki daga duma in ban da wadda za ta ba shi karsashi. Duk wani taro nasu ya na }arewa ne a fayau domin duk wanda ya je taron ya na zuwa ne da }o}on barar don-Allah-wane-ka-bar-mani.

Ba sai mun wahala ba wajen gano abin da ke janyo hakan. Ita siyasar adawa da ake yi a Nijeriya a yau, ba irin ta da ba ce. Yanzu babu ~ur~ushin a}ida a jam’iyyun, wanda hakan ya sa su ka kasance tamkar ’yan biyu masu kama ]aya in ban da ta wajen sunayen su. Amma su kuwa jam’iyyun zamanin da, lokacin da duniya na kwance lafiya, wato jam’iyyun Jamhuriya ta Farko irin su NCNC, NEPU, UMBC, da AG, da na Jamhuriya ta Biyu irin su UPN, NPP, GNPP, da PRP, an kafa su ne bisa wata a}ida. Duk mutanen da je jagorantar su ko su ke cikin su mutane ne da su ka kafe kan abin da su ka yi amanna da shi, ba wai don su na tunanin cewa amannar su ]in za ta kawo masu dukiya ko suna ba, a’a sai domin sun yarda babu kokwanto da cewa hakan ita ce hanya mafi sahihanci da za a bi a gyara al’umma kuma a gina }asa.

Gidan yanar Wikipedia da ke intanet ya bayyana cewa a}idun siyasa sun kasu ne gida biyu: 1. Buri: Wato yadda ya kamata al’umma ta rayu ko a tsara ta, sai na 2. Gwadabe: Wato hanya mafi dacewa da za a bi a cimma shi wannan burin. Shi ya sa a }asar Amurka za ka taras da cewa mutum ko dai ya na jam’iyyar Democrat ne ko kuma ya na jam’iyyar Republican; a Birtaniya kuma ko dai ka na jam’iyyar Labour ne ko ka na ta Conservative. Ban da wa]annan, babu wasu manyan jam’iyyu, illa wasu }ananan jam’iyyu da ke gefe guda don kula da mutanen da su ke ganin ra’ayin su ya bambanta da na wa]annan ]in.

Ka lura, ita a}idar siyasa kamar addini ce: mutum ba ya ficewa don kurum kwa]ayin wata ganima da ya hango. Mutane su kan ha]e ne saboda sun yi amanna da wasu muradai da aka tsara, wanda shi ne ke sa su su yi wani abu a siyasance tare da yin aiki da kundin a}idar su. Ba su ha]uwa don kawai a taru a ci abin }walamar da ke kan tebur ko don a yi ginsamin abin jefawa cikin aljihu.

A yau, labari ya bambanta. Sai ka ga gungun mutane su na ta nin}aya a tekun siyasa, su na sanye da bajen wai su ’yan siyasa ne. Duk }ibar su, mayunwata ne kawai, kuma yunwar da su ke ji (ta giyar mulki ko ta naira) ita ce ke tunzura su, ba wai a}ida ba. Shi ya sa ba mamaki ka ga yadda ’yan siyasar da su ka yi suna a matsayin ’ya’yan wata jam’iyya, an wayi gari sun yi tsalle sun auka wata jam’iyyar, ko da kuwa sun yi shekaru su na ~ata ta. Ana kiran wannan halayyar wai sauyin she}a, kuma ’yan siyasa da dama a wannan }asa tamu su kan yi hakan cike da alfahari, kuma iya }arfin su, a yayin da kuma su ke borin kunyar cewa wai an }i jinin su ne a ]aya jam’iyyar. Misalin irin wa]annan ’yan siyasa bai da adadi. An za~i Alhaji Atiku Abubakar a matsayin gwamna a }ar}ashin PDP a shekarar 1999, to amma lokacin da wasa ya yi tsami tsakanin sa da Obasanjo sai ya kafa jam’iyyar AC, wadda ta lashe za~e a Jihar Ikko. A yau, ya dawo PDP, jam’iyyar da ya so ganin bayan ta, har ga shi ya nemi zama ]an takarar ta na shugabancin }asa. Alhaji Aminu Bello Masari babban ]an PDP ne, wanda shi ne kakakin Majalisar Wakilai na tsawon shekaru. A yau, ya na takarar gwamna a jam’iyyar CPCa Jihar Katsina. Dora Akunyili ma ’yar PDP ce wadda ta ri}e mu}amin ministar ya]a labarai da sadarwa a }ar}ashin shugabannin }asa har biyu; a yau, ’yar takarar zama sanata ce a }ar}ashin jam’iyyar APGA a Jihar Anambara. Dakta Abba Sayyadi Ruma, wanda a da babban ]an PDP ne, inda har ya ta~a zama sakataren gwamnati a Jihar Katsina kuma daga bisani ya zama ministan aikin gona, yanzu ya na takarar gwamna a }ar}ashin CPC. Shi ma Sanata Adamu Aliero jagora ne a PDP a da, amma yanzu ya na takarar zama sanata a }ar}ashin CPC a Jihar Kebbi. Malam Nuhu Riba]u wani jigo ne a gwamnatin PDP a zamanin Cif Olusegun Obasanjo, amma yanzu ]an takarar zama shugaban }asa ne a }ar}ashin ACN. Alhaji Attahiru [alhatu Bafarawa ya zama gwamnan Sakkwato ne a }ar}ashin ANPP, amma ya tafi ya kafa jam’iyyar DPP har ya yi mata takarar zama shugaban }asa a za~en 2007, amma a yau }usa ne a ACN, inda kwanan nan ya nemi tsayawa takarar shugaban }asa. Kai, lissafin bai kammaluwa.

A yanzu wa]annan mutanen da ire-iren su su na nuna mana cewa su wasu mahajirai ne da aka cuta a baya. To amma kowa ya san cewa sun canza she}a ne don kawai an tokare su a jam’iyyun su na baya, kuma za su iya komawa inda su ka fito da zarar sun samu mulki ko kuma sun ga babu sa’ida a inda su ka zo. Dalili kuwa, su a wurin su ai siyasa ba addini ba ce. Sai ka ce ba su ma san ma’anar kalmar ‘a}ida’ ba. Shi ya sa su ke watangaririya daga wannan jam’iyya zuwa waccan ba tare da jin kunya ko tsoro ba, sai ka ce }udan zuma mai neman furen kallo don ya yi }oto. Ha}i}a, wannan shi ne babban dalilin da ya sa ha]ewar jam’iyyun adawa don su kada shugaban }asa da ke kan gado ya ke da matu}ar wuya a }asar nan, wai gurguwa da auren nesa. Bari mu gani a cikin ’yan kwanakin nan idan a siyasar wannan zamanin za su sauya hali duk da yake Hausawa sun ce hali zanen dutse, ba ya kankaruwa.

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An buga a LEADERSHIP HAUSA