I stand by President Tinubu against foreign Intervention, by Dele Sobowale

“Most of the problems a President has to face have their roots in the past” – US President Harry Truman, 1884-1972.

President Harry Truman became President when Franklin Roosevelt, 1882-1945, died. Truman inherited the Second World War, WWII; and ended it in a manner that still shocks the world today. He ordered two atomic bombs to be dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, both in Japan on August 6, 1945, that is approximately 80 years ago. About 150,000 to 246,000 Japanese were killed in one day. Apart from being a record unmatched by any nation since the world began, millions more people died from health complications thereafter. Truman repeated several times until his death that he would do it again, if needed, to save American lives.

Korea remains divided till today because the US would not allow the country to be ruled by Communist leaders. Records available reveal that 3 million Koreans and Americans, mostly Koreans, died in that conflict, in addition to several hundred thousand casualties.

It was the turn of the Vietnamese to experience the destruction which American interference can bring to their lives during the 1960s. Some obviously misguided people in that country, wanting to prevent another Communist rule, sought US support. Americans lost the war; Vietnam, unlike Korea, was eventually united. But, not before one million two hundred Vietnamese and 282,000 Americans had lost their lives. Vietnam offers us the best historical lesson regarding factions within Nigeria, seeking political advantage by asking for America’s intervention.

During the Vietnam War, US forces employed napalm, a chemical weapon which had been declared unacceptable for warfare – even by the Americans. Furthermore, the US would not have deployed it in Europe. The main reason is obvious; white people live in Europe, Asians inhabit Japan and Vietnam. Anything goes if they come to Nigeria – a country described as hellhole by Trump. Every patriot must tremble after reading that the American response will be “fast, vicious and sweet”. Sweet underlies how eager the man is to shed the blood of black Africans; who are uniformly disdained by the US President – irrespective of religion. The killings will most definitely be indiscriminate.

However, if those clamouring for the US intervention are still sticking to their positions, the fates of those who received US backing in Vietnam, Iran and lately Afghanistan should serve as warning. Pro-American South Vietnam leaders ended their lives in exile; the Shah of Iran, Palavi, ran for safety in the US and the “democratically” elected President of Afghanistan is now set to spend the rest of his life in a foreign land. Obviously, the mere presence of the US in any conflict does not guarantee victory for the side they support. Invariably, large numbers of people lose their lives, vast destruction of properties occur; a quagmire develops as the enemies dig in by melting into the population and the demand to “bring our boys home” forces America to withdraw. It would amount to monumental folly to assume that it can’t happen here.

WHY WE MUST STAND BY OUR PRESIDENT AND HOW

“There can only be one President at a time” – US President Nixon, 1913-1994

In 1968, Nixon, the Republican Party candidate, was not totally happy about the way the war in Vietnam was being conducted. He announced that he had a plan to end it. But, when pressed by reporters to present the plan, he declined because, according to him, “there can only be one President at a time”. He went further by saying that “we should give our total support to the President and our men in uniform and leave politics out”.

Nixon was never one of the American Presidents I admired. But, for once, he opened my eyes to how citizens in a country at war should conduct themselves, as well as how to manage our relationship with the leaders faced with complicated matters of life and death. I am well aware of the calls made by Buhari, Tinubu, Lai Mohammed and leaders of the All Progressives Congress, APC, on President Jonathan to resign if he could not protect Nigerian lives. It was a wrong call; which is now being hurled at Tinubu.

Four reasons account for my opposition to that demand; and, none of them has anything to do with my views regarding the management of insecurity by this government. First, like it or not, a presidential system does not result in a change of government if the President resigns; the Vice President steps up; in our particular case. Shettima becomes President. Pause for a minute to reflect on the numerous repercussions of that change. The most important question is: Will that alter the conduct of the war against terrorists for the better or worse? 

Second, President and Vice President can both step down; and in the particular case of Nigeria, the Constitution is quite clear about the next President. The Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, GCON, takes over for three months during which he is supposed to organize an election to fill the vacancies left by Tinubu and Shettima. Pause again and ask: Is that what most Nigerians want? The framers of the Nigerian Constitution, grandly naïve, had assumed that a man suddenly catapulted to the presidency would conduct a free and fair election in three months and meekly return to the Senate. Not in Nigeria.

Third, and this is perhaps the greatest delusion of those inviting Trump’s intervention. Without a mandate from the United Nations, UN, which Russia and China would not allow, any military intervention would amount to illegal invasion of a nation which has done America no harm; neither has Nigeria done anything to threaten her vital interests. Our country might not be as well governed as we desire; but, it does not constitute danger to the US? Why are some of us inviting global banditry?

“It is unthinkable that wisdom should ever be popular” – Johann Goethe, 1749-1832.

 Furthermore, military operations in Nigeria, without the permission of the Nigerian government, would amount to usurpation of FG’s authority – a coup in fact – which can only result in forced regime change. Inexplicably, last month, most Nigerians were appalled and loudly rejected rumoured attempted military coup by Nigerian soldiers. Obviously, some misguided elements prefer foreign military takeover. Otherwise, it is difficult to understand why ordinarily intelligent people cannot understand that with American armed forces in Nigeria, Trump, never one to do things by half, will take over Aso Rock – naturally by imposing a stooge as President. Another pause is needed. Is that what most Nigerians want?

Fourth, the threatened intervention will not solve the problem. Nigeria is unlike Iran; where the battle lines are well drawn and the enemy is known. The Nigerian situation is similar in many respects to Vietnam; where “they (allies and enemies) all look alike” as thousands of American soldiers killed and maimed discovered to their sorrow. Despite the media portrayal of terrorists as armed men with cartridges wrapped around their bodies, the fact is, they are indistinguishable from the rest of us once they change to street clothes. That is why suicide bombers succeed. In the end, the Americans will have no choice other than shooting indiscriminately. Thousands of innocent people will lose their lives to “friendly fire”; as in Vietnam. Again, is that what we want?

OPPOSITION WITHOUT ALTERNATIVE PLAN

“My enemies are those who want to destroy without creating themselves” – Friedrich Nietzche, 1844-1900

The Nigerian political opposition, when it existed, had always concentrated on destroying the government of the day without offering concrete alternatives themselves. Tinubu, to some extent, rode to power by doing the same thing. Thus, when he said that “the security crisis inherited by this administration is deep, layered and sophisticated, decades of dysfunction have weakened communal bonds…rebuilding trust across communities is fundamental, without social harmony, insecurity will persist…”, he has, in part, agreed with US President Truman that every President inherits problems with their roots in the past. But, he stopped short of admitting that the former leader of his own party, APC, the late President Buhari created at least one terrorist group which did not exist before 2015 –  herdsmen. Ask any farmer in Nigeria; and he would confirm that it was during Buhari’s government that farmers were issued the devil’s alternative – “your land or your life” by one of his spokespersons. It was the first official endorsement of mass murder and rivers of blood have been shed across Nigeria by herdsmen.

Of all the terrorist groups, at least one is easily identifiable – armed herdsmen, about 500,000 strong with a national spread. Let us start from there…

To be continued.

THANKS, YOUR EXCELLENCY PRESIDENT JONATHAN, GCFR

“I hate ingratitude more in a man than lying, vainness, babbling drunkenness, or any taint of vice whose strong corruption inhabits our frail blood” – William Shakespeare, 1564-1616.

Former President Goodluck Jonathan was the Chairman when my book, ATTAH: ARCHITECT OF A NEW DEMOCRATIC DAWN, was launched in Abuja on November 20, 2025. I least expected it – given my total support for Buhari in 2011 and 2015. The language was so harsh that on one occasion Uncle Sam asked me to tone it down. I thought my name as the author would turn him off.

Blessed are the pure in heart indeed. I now owe him a great debt of gratitude.

He was there despite the fact that his birthday fell on the same day and had his own programme planned for the day.

“Against excellence in others, there is no way of defending ourselves except love” – Johann Goethe, 1749-1832. At 81+, I have been taught a Christian lesson on forgiveness by somebody not yet 70. Wonders never cease.

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