Nigeria Times

By Anthony Kolawole

The war against terrorism in Nigeria has been a front-burner issue for a while. Social commentators have made postulations with regards to the success recorded so far. At the same time, some have also faulted the modus operandi of the Nigerian Military in the prosecution of the war.

These are indeed interesting times. Nigerians have not seen the worst of the war against terrorism. A critical contributor to the war has been neglected and with the whole emphasis placed on Boko Haram/ISWAP.

Nigerians have also failed to understand that there are various components of warfare and that the physical manifestation is just as an aspect of the overarching strategy just as it is evident in the raging battle between the Nigerian Military and the Boko Haram insurgent group in North-East Nigeria.

In Nigeria today, two things stand out with regard to the war against terrorism: the war and the war within. And this brings me to the activities of Amnesty International and Sahara Reporters and how they have wittingly sustained the perpetuation of terrorism in Nigeria.

Amnesty International is an embodiment of mendacious propaganda against the unity, peace, and progress of Nigeria. Its attacks on Nigeria have been phenomenal. For Amnesty International, nothing good should be heard about Nigeria. As such it’s scathing annual reports on the country follow the same pattern and trajectory year in year out.

The Nigerian Military has been worse hit by the fangs of the self-acclaimed human rights organization in the sense that they have constituted themselves as a distraction in the prosecution of the war against terrorism in North-East Nigeria, as well as other parts of the country where the activities of militant groups are prevalent.

It is also a statement of the fact that Amnesty International has been providing that intellectual support to the Boko Haram group in Nigeria. Just when substantial gains are recorded, they accuse the Nigerian Military of human rights violations against Boko Haram. But they turn the other way when the same radical jihadists ransack communities killing unarmed citizens, as well as kidnapping women and children.

For Amnesty International, these are no crimes against humanity, as well as human rights violations because of the strategic partnership it entered to provide that intellectual support to the Boko Haram group. If this is not the case, have we wondered why it is that the group is in the habit of acting as the mouthpiece of terrorist and militant groups in Nigeria?

Have we also wondered why is it that Amnesty International issues statements and press releases in tactic support for the activities of militant groups in Nigeria at the slightest especially when our troops are making gains in the war against terrorism?

I stand to be corrected, the activities of Amnesty International are the real war in Nigeria because its mandate revolves around ensuring that Nigeria is destabilized and disintegrated by all means possible including propagating outright falsehoods and arriving at illogical conclusions. That is not all; it has also been stated that Amnesty International has been recruiting fighters for the depleted ranks of the Boko Haram/ISWAP group.

While this information has not been verified, it is not something I would doubt given the tendencies of Amnesty International and their avid hatred for Nigeria. In my opinion, it is not beyond what Amnesty International can do since for them it’s a business every other thing can go to blazes.

Sahara Reporters, on the other hand, has been despicable in promoting the interest of terrorist groups in Nigeria. As a statement of fact, they have been in cahoots with Amnesty International little wonder why they echo the same sentiments in the public space. The Sahara Reporters platform has provided Amnesty International and other unscrupulous organizations masquerading as human rights advocates a medium to unleash derogatory remarks on the efforts of the Nigerian Military in the war against terrorism as well as the commitment of the Muhammadu Buhari administration to the rule of law.

For Sahara Reporters, though, I’m not surprised because its brand of journalism defeats the entire known creed. They concoct stories in return for pecuniary gains not minding the implication of their actions. Sahara Reporters also allied with some despicable groups to heat the polity with false information to set the country up in flames.

It is quite a sad tale that Sahara Reporters has reduced itself to this despicable level where it can conspire with those against the interest of Nigeria. I think it’s time for Nigerians to begin to scrutinize the likes of Amnesty International and Sahara Reporters as it is now evident that their overarching objective is to ensure that Nigeria disintegrates.

This is also of the heels that their support for the Boko Haram group, as well as other militant organizations, is indeed sad. So much so that I wonder the amount of money involved that some organizations and individuals would want to jeopardize the future of over 180 million people. And to think that these individuals are also Nigerians is emotionally drenching.

For how long Amnesty International and Sahara Reporters intend to sustain this tempo is left to be imagined. However, one thing is sure: Nigerians are now aware that Amnesty International and their counterpart in Sahara Reporters have indeed waged war against the soul of Nigeria.

Theirs is more deadly than the Boko Haram because the lives of over 180 million Nigerians are at risk. I think the government should do well to protect Nigeria and Nigerians from the evil plot of Amnesty International and Sahara Reporters.

The exigencies of time require proactive action else we might have ourselves to blame because, at the rate with which these organizations are going, Nigeria would be indeed lucky if they do not achieve their objectives at the end of the day. This piece should serve as a wakeup call to the relevant authorities, as well as to educate members of the unsuspecting general public on the plot by Amnesty International and Sahara Reporters against Nigeria.

Kolawole Ph.D. wrote this piece from Keffi, Nasarawa State

By Kelly Agwambi

Amnesty International has been in the news in Nigeria for various reasons. It has, in most cases, advocated for the preservation of human rights and values. While this is commendable, however, there is more to the activities of Amnesty International in Nigeria that most political commentators and members of the unsuspecting general public seem to be missing.

Beyond the veiled global outlook, there is an agenda that is propelled by monetary gains, especially with the fact that the highest payers for services are the various terrorist organizations around the world. And I am not surprised that the Boko Haram conflict in Nigeria has provided that platform for Amnesty International to make a kill. And they somewhat succeeded.

Taking a cursory look at the activities of Amnesty International in Nigeria, one would be confronted with anomalies that defeat common sense, and the sincerity of heart and purpose because Amnesty International is a business organization solely for the aim of profit-making.

This fact has been corroborated in several countries that led to its expulsion for acts that undermine National security. Nigeria is also a victim of this international conspiracy that aided the festering of the Boko Haram/ISWAP imbroglio despite the proactive steps taken by the Nigerian government and the Nigerian Military.

The Nigerian Military is the worse hit by activities of Amnesty International in Nigeria. I recall that there were instances where some bold Nigerians took to the street demanding for the expulsion of Amnesty International from Nigeria for acts that undermine our national security.

In the eyes of Amnesty International, the Nigerian Military is committing human rights violations in the persecution of the war against terrorism, while the Boko Haram/ISWAP group is fighting a just cause with the killing of women and children, as well as elderly ones whose crimes are the fact that they are from North-East Nigeria.

Back to the crux of the issue, it is indeed a statement of the fact that Amnesty International does not mean good for Nigeria. Their sympathy has always been with the Boko Haram group and other militant groups such as the Indigenous People of Biafra and the Islamic Movement in Nigeria that have perpetrated crimes against humanity, that have consistently violated all known tenets of human rights. The list is endless.

As typical in other climes experiencing terrorism, there is always an intellectual wing that assists these groups in recruitments and other sundry issues. And this intellectual task is usually contracted to NGOs such as Amnesty International.

The case of Nigeria provides that vivid example. Have we ever wondered why when the Nigerian Military is making gains in the Boko Haram war, Amnesty International will come up with half-truths accusing the Nigerian Military of human rights violations against the Boko Haram group. As funny as this might sound, this is the starkness of the reality on the ground.

In some quarters, it has been stated that Amnesty International is the mouthpiece of Boko Haram. Some scholars have likened their activities to that of intellectual terrorism that provides them with these services in return for a fee. It didn’t end there as they have also been acting in the interest of other militant organizations whose stock in trade is to cause sorrow and anguish to unarmed women and children.

I can’t but agree because there are abounding pieces of evidence that support this position. Amnesty International would cry wolf and accuse the Nigerian government of gross human rights violations. However, when the Boko Haram group kills innocent women and children, it maintains an unholy silence.

Amnesty International also gives tactic support to some International NGOs operating in North-East Nigeria aiding and abetting the activities of the Boko Haram group. This much they have been consistent with over the years in return for pecuniary benefits. I dare to say that not until the generality of Nigerians realize that Amnesty International is out to destabilize Nigeria, we are in for a big mess.

They not only act as the mouthpiece of Boko Haram, but they also carry out recruitment by proxy on behalf of the group. I recall that this much was stated at a forum where multiple pieces of evidence were presented with regards to the fact that Amnesty International is involved in activities that bolsters the operations of the Boko Haram group.

This is nothing but intellectual terrorism, and I dare say that its part of the overall strategy of Amnesty International to ensure that it continues to remain in business, but at the detriment of innocent lives that have been lost over the years.

The worrisome aspect is that Amnesty International is not remorseful about their actions which are hinged on deceit and the propagation of falsehood at the behest of their paymasters that have vowed to destabilize and disintegrate Nigeria. It consequently behooves on Nigerians to wake up to this realization and demand for an end to the nefarious activities of Amnesty International in Nigeria.

For as long as Nigerians continue to remain silent in the face of the atrocities of Amnesty International in Nigeria, we should be ready to live with the consequences for as long as possible. In all of these, we must realize one thing, which is the fact that those against the interest of Nigeria would not relent until they achieve their aim.

They would continue to push and push till Nigerian reaches the brink. I am not convinced that our offence is beyond that fact that the country is blessed with a political leadership that is committed to putting Nigeria on the path of sustainable growth and development.

Students of international relations and politics would agree with me that Nigeria has been under sustained attack led by Amnesty International and their affiliates. But there is a limit to which the resilience can last, which makes it crucial that citizens are enlightened to understand what their country is going through and how they should not be brainwashed into becoming facilitators for the destruction of their country with a concept that is locked on destroying the “military and the country is gone” principle.

Today, we seem to be comfortable with the fact that Amnesty International is undermining our national security. But what tomorrow holds for the future of Nigeria is bleak. That is if we still have a country to call our own. We must open our history books and take a critical look at countries that failed to act as at when necessary to curtail the nefarious activities of these NGOs parading themselves as proponents of the people.

It must be stated that it is a collective endeavor that requires commitment from the government and the people to address this anomaly. Nigerians must henceforth question Amnesty International in their elements. Nigerians must see to that fact that their strategy to destroy Nigeria by constantly attacking our Armed Forces is thwarted. If we do not do this, I wonder who would do it for us.

We must not allow Amnesty International to destroy our country as this generation of Nigerians and indeed the future generations have nowhere else to call home. The ball is in our court. We must act wisely and timely as time is of the essence. This is my opinion.

Agwabi is a public affairs analyst based in Abuja.

By Richard Murphy

There is something obsessive about the way and manner Amnesty International carries on with its mandate as an international NGO in Nigeria. The organization carries on with this “our way or the highway” approach to issues, oftentimes dictating terms for the Nigerian government or agencies with the tone of an imprimatur – the kind of attitude that should come from a supra-national body like the United Nations because even regional supra-national organizations like the Economic Community of West African State (ECOWAS) has not dared behave toward Nigeria in such manner.

While Amnesty International operates in other countries of the world, the kind of power it arrogates to itself in Nigeria is only found in Syria, where the White Helmets, possibly the NGO’s proxy there is practically coordinating the war aimed at toppling that country’s President Bashar al-Assad. A war so misguided that only a few people can still recall what the killing is about while terrorists like the al-Nusra Front has been canonized into sainthood irrespective of the atrocities they have committed or the fact that they are not really disparate from the Islamic State.

The White Helmets’ shady dealing in Syria is provocative to the point where it actively shares intelligence with terrorists, conveniently labelled as “rebels” to confer some degree of legitimacy on the crime they are committing. White Helmets’ operatives have helped to frame attacks targeting al-Nusra terrorists as crime against humanity, in instances when they cannot find actual attacks, they stage some with the help of movie producers and directors. Also, it is not unusual to find the group using its identity to provide cover for the terrorists. It is a situation that leaves a sour taste in the mouth but when big money speaks truth is the first casualty.

Perhaps because it has not found a credible local franchise to play that role, Amnesty International is Nigeria’s own White Helmets. It is the group that helps manage terrorists propaganda by crafting pseudo-reports that absolves terrorists of wrongdoing while criminalizing government troops that are fighting to end a decade-old campaign of terror that has left too many families bereaved and the economy of an entire region shattered in addition to an entire generation that has been lost to the wanton killing that is Boko Haram’s legacy perpetuated and defended by Amnesty International.

Although it is marketed as an international brand, the NGO uses a strategy of engaging indigenous mid-level to management staff supervised by an expat overlord, often a westerner, a situation that has deepened a culture of racism, abuse and harassment. The overlords, often working from the comfort of the organization’s headquarters in London, have the singular role of pressuring staffers into delivering damning reports against the country of operation, irrespective of the reality on ground. The incitement to commit crimes against their country is worded to the staffers in NGO-speak, which they have been indoctrinated to understand, fear and obey; an email with terms like ‘benchmarking, KPI, RoI, appraisal etc’ have meanings other than what people understand them to mean on the streets – they are the trigger words that remind Amnesty International’s Nigerian staffers of how easily they could lose the rare privilege of earning in foreign currency in an economy where such income source is considered as divine gift.
Such toxic work environment has been known in the past to trigger suicides among the NGO’s employees, something that triggered international concern in the recent past. While several top bosses at the charity have been thrown under the bus to create an impression that the problem of toxic work culture has been addressed, the practice of pushing staffers to author misleading reports has not stopped to Amnesty International’s workers remain miserable because they recall at all times the damaging lies they have to tell to earn those dollars. This has not been helped by the knowledge that they are helping terrorists like Boko Haram evade justice.

The only other thing that send Amnesty International staffers into depression worse than its toxic work culture is its finances which is a sure recipe for a moral dilemma in terms of its sourcing and spending; the NGO’s money is mostly sourced from questionable (almost criminal) corporate organizations and spent on terrorists and criminals.

For instance, in 2016 by its own financial report, the Amnesty International earned £68,407,000 from various sources. Pro-imperialist and war dependent groups like Ford Foundation pitched in £468,000 while an “Anonymous Foundation” threw in £667,000 in addition to 236 “anonymous donors” that contributed £725,000. Hiding within the ranks of these “anonymous” donors are the arms dealers, crisis entrepreneurs and mercenaries that have been contracted to overthrow governments in emerging countries or create instability that will have the same result. These kinds of donors are the ones that write the scripts that Amnesty International play out in Nigeria, often it is about emasculating the Nigerian military and build capacity for groups like Boko Haram, Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) and Islamic Movement in Nigeria (IMN).

Other sub-heads of income sources should give the media and some ‘activists’ sleepless nights. Are they aware that Amnesty International is a profit-making body and that whatever actions it is taking in Nigeria are geared towards increasing donations, improve marketability and boost other revenue sources? Yes. It received £62,751,000 from its offices across 30, mostly western, countries; although it marked these funds as “unrestricted” but who says the donors would not show up with a shopping list of the kind of destruction that should be caused in Nigeria? Even more interesting is an entry like “Activities for generating funds” under which it made £102,000 as Gain on Acquisition of AI Nigeria. It also made some money from Sales of Campaign Materials. Discerning minds should be asking how this transactional disposition tallies with the marketed image of human rights campaigner.

Amnesty International’s 2017 is even more worrisome than its revenue source, irrespective of the fact that it found euphemisms for the nefarious ends to which its financial resources were committed. Its report showed that it spent €290,000,000 in that year half of it, 49.50% expended on Human rights research, advocacy, campaigning, raising awareness and education. In layman’s terms these expressions are respectively: money paid to fake witnesses to procure fraudulent interviews, money spent on recruiting for terrorist groups, money spent on harassing legitimate governments, money given to terrorists to fund their indoctrination and radicalization programmes. Almost a quarter, 23.76%, of its 2017 expenditure went into “Building our support base” and that is another euphemism for “money spent on expanding our terror networks”.

Interestingly, Amnesty International has not stopped “building this support base” or “raising awareness” or providing “education”. It recently ramped up its recruitment drive in Nigeria, asking people to “Join for free”, something that is guaranteed to catch attention and mostly likely encourage action in a country where the ravages of COVID-19 has ravaged the economy and left citizens in want. Those who sign up for this free membership must be warry. This round of recruitment is not likely to be rosy – unlike when the NGO recruited voice actors to pose as anonymous interviewees for its reports meant to discredit Nigeria’s war on terrorism.

This time around, anyone with as many as 100 brain cells should ask question as to why Amnesty International is on a volunteer drive at about the same time that Boko Haram has lost hundreds of its fighters to the ongoing military operation to stamp it out of Nigeria. Anyone that enlists into Amnesty International’s offer of free membership may just find themselves at the wrong end of the gun barrel, especially now that more details are known about the group. The warning is to the Nigerian youth: joining Amnesty International is the same as joining Boko Haram and the consequences will always be dire.

Something else that must be said is the need for the federal government to shake off its complacency where Amnesty International is concerned. The military cannot be given marching orders to wipe out Boko Haram and the government will do nothing when that assignment is being hampered by the well-funded interference from Amnesty International, which now looks set to attempt recruiting new members for Boko Haram. Just at the youth were warned above that this round of enlisting into Amnesty International will land them in the laps of Boko Haram, the government is similarly warned a successful recruitment of terrorists for Boko Haram by Amnesty International will alter the equation as those to be onboarded in this exercise would be educated, savvy and problematic to deal with. The best case scenario is to stop our youth from joining Amnesty International/Boko Haram for free.

Murphy is a security expert and wrote this piece from Calabr.