Attack on Buhari meant to split Nigeria – Bakare

(NIGERIA) The serving Overseer of the Latter Rain Assembly and Convener of the Save Nigeria Group, Pastor Tunder Bakare, has said that the July 23 attack on Gen. Muhammadu Buhari (retd.) would have led to the disintegration of Nigeria had it succeeded.

Bakare, who was running mate to Buhari in the 2011 presidential election, observed that Northern youths who reverence Buhari would have resulted to mayhem and this would have led to repraisals across the nation.

The clergyman said this while addressing the nation on Sunday in a church service in Lagos.

He debunked insinuations in some quarters that Buhari was in an armoured car provided by the presidency, noting that “he (Buhari) was in a regular car”.

He added that the attack should have made it clear to all that Buhari was not a Boko Haram sympathizer.

Pastor Tunde Bakare

He said, “This past week might have marked the beginning of the end if the attack on Gen. Muhammadu Buhari and his entourage on Wednesday, July 23, 2014 had succeeded. The architects of the Nigerian disintegration agenda would have been smiling home to the bank.

“All those Northern youths who see him (Buhari) as a messaic symbol would have responded in unguided and uncontrolable fury of a vengeful army and there would be corresponding violence from the youthful population across the Niger.

“One need not to be a political analyst to see that such action would have culminated in the demise of our nation.”

Bakare noted that the military at present was unable to adequately combat terrorism, noting that soldiers confront members of the Boko Haram with “inferior weapons.”

He criticised President Goodluck Jonathan for seeking to loan $1bn to fight terrorism, saying “the last time the military was equipped was in the 1980s and there have been budgetary allocations every year.

“The Senate say they want to reconvene to consider the request and nobody is asking what happened to the amount budgeted for security this year.”

He added that other factors contributing to the manace were failure of intelligence, palpable government incompetence, sinful silence of stakeholders, and international conspiracy.

The cleric noted that the reign of terror should not be ascribed to religion but “sheer psychosis.”

He warned that traditional Islam and radical Islam must not be grouped together, saying that radical Islam, alongside zoning deprivation, oppression and injustice was the cause of terrorism.

“To win this war, we must embark forthwith on accurate diagnosis. There is a fundamental difference between traditional Islam and the radical Islam of our day. To lump them together would be a tragic mistake. It would only produce error which would lead to attendant terror.

“I only hope that this is a wake up call to our government and we must now rise up so that together we can deploy all our resources to stop the terrorists dead in their tracks,” he said.

Bakare further stated that he was taken by God in a vision to the dreaded Sambisa Forest in Borno State.

The Sambisa Forest has become notorious in recent past as it is said to be the location where the over 200 abducted Chibok girls are being held by members of the Boko Haram sect.

The clergyman noted that the Sambisa he saw was a tourist destination without any sign of violence or the Boko Haram and prayed that the vision would become reality.

He said, “The Lord took me in the spirit, I lie not in the Holy Ghost, He took me to Sambisa Forest. When I got there, I didn’t see violence, I didn’t see any ambushment, I didn’t see any insurgent group.

“I saw a beautiful landscape and I saw buildings and it became a historical choice centre. I have seen that day and it will come to pass in this nation in the name of Jesus. Village life will return to this nation.” (PUNCN)