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The
US Threat in the Gulf of Guinea
By Sylvester
Odion-Akhaine
The US incursion
into the Gulf of Guinea under the pretext of a military exercise
is a very fundamental development that Nigerians of all classes
should worry about. The effeminate nature of the debate since the
news of the US threat broke in the press is a cause for concern.
By now one expects sabre-rattling from the Nigerian military or
high-level denunciation and propaganda engagement; the civil society
organisations ought to be organising rallies and press conferences;
and the media, a sustained and co-ordinated blitz and from the churches,
the virtue of freedom from oppression. This is not currently happening.
It is worrisome.
Clearly, we
are facing a new threat of recolonisation. Unfortunately, Nigeria
is saddled with conservative politicians and equally a conservative
military, some, perhaps, in the payroll of Pentagon. And that also
partly explains why this dangerous development can be condoned in
our backyard. As Samuel Huntington once put it in his Political
Order in Changing Societies, "the truly helpless society is not
one threatened by a revolution but one incapable of it." Strategically,
US military doctrine has shifted from deterrence, containment to
that of occupation with the exit of USSR from the global scene.
Let the point be made outright that the West will do anything to
re-colonise the rest of the world if what the rest of the world
have, is dependent on its survival.
Oil and gas,
certainly appear a basis for that. The invasion of Afghanistan and
the current occupation of Iraq are anchored in the hardware politics
of energy resources. Afghanistan geographical position is described
in strategic terms as " as potential transit route for oil and natural
gas exports from central Asia to the Arabian Sea." With the Taliban
off the scene, the 1040 miles pipeline can now be run across from
central Asia into the Arabian Sea and if Iraq is eventually pacified
its oil reserve will also become the private property of the US.
But thanks to the Iraqi resistance, the game is not yet going according
to plans. A long while ago, some of us, including Professor Omo
Omoruyi, General Victor Malu, Tony Iyare, Rear Admiral Augustus
Aikhomu among others had warned that the Obasanjo administration
was selling the destiny of our country, by implication that of the
black man to the Americans, the nation watched as though nothing
was wrong. In fact Iyare's weekend column in the Punch was rested
over his article titled: Dangling of the Final Eclipse last year.
Now the Americans are here; and that is the challenge. In this piece,
I shall explain briefly how Obasanjo sold Nigeria to the US; why
US is racing to Africa, especially West Africa and the implication
of having US in our backyard with greater insight. Obasanjo's collaboration
with the US security circles dates back to the assassination of
General Murtala Mohammed in 1975 and when he left office in 1979
that relationship was sustained through such innocuous structure
as the African Leadership Forum.
When he was
"elected" into office in 1999, it was Jimmy Carter who rationalised
that though the election was full of irregularities, it was not
enough to warrant annulment. As he came into office his immediate
concern was how to tame the coup-prone military. Then he brought
in the Virginia-based Military Professionals Resource Initiative
(MPRI) to do the job. This was unsuccessfully resisted by some element
of the military command led by the then Chief of Army Staff, General
Victor Malu who warned against giving our homeland doctrine to the
Americans who were then asking for it. General Malu maintained that
the US had no business teaching us peace-keeping as they had never
succeeded in any peace-keeping operations when it came with the
so-called Operation Focus Relief. Those who doubted Malu then should
simply review what is going on in Iraq where the Americans are committing
genocide. Yet General Malu who ought to have been honoured for his
patriotism was dumped into retirement. The Nigerian army is not
just a push over.
I am familiar
with the rating the Sierra Leone operation led by General Kobe of
blessed memory got in the global military circle. Don't be surprised
that US might have taped it via satellite for study in their military
academies. Yet that military was humiliated by bringing in US army
sergeants to help in the detonation of bombs after the Ikeja military
Cantonment incident in 2002. The country has since become increasingly
dependent on US arms. Between 2002-2003, Nigeria may have received
about $18.1 million in various military assistance from the US.
For those familiar with the aid circle, there is what I call plough
back, where money given either as soft loan or grant goes to the
donor country by means of purchase of items from it. The 2003 election
marked a turning point in the collaboration of the current administration
with the US to subvert our national interest. That election as it
were was massively rigged and both the British and the US were reluctant
to foist it as fair. However, it became a basis to draw Obasanjo
further into their orbit of dependency.
Obasanjo sold
out the African group in the Commonwealth over the Zimbabwean crisis
and even volunteered Nigerian land to the white farmers during the
last Commonwealth summit in Nigeria. During the last visit to Nigeria
by the US President, George Bush, Obasanjo entered into a secret
military and oil deal with the US, which he has refused to disclose
to Nigerians over which his ministers have prevaricated. The closest
admission of the deal is the one By T.D. Hart of the Ministry of
Foreign Affairs. He did say that the Bush visit served as basis
to cement socio-cultural and military ties. It is common knowledge
that the British Marines and the US Marine's operatives are in the
Niger-Delta as undercover agents. During the last year's oil rig
hostage crisis, as reported by Andrew Williams, the UK director
of the military company, Northbridge Services, two teams of Special
Boat Services, Special Air Services and Royal Marines were deployed
to "undisclosed" location. Without the décor, that location is no
other than Nigeria. The Nigerian government buoyed by several meetings
with American officials, including the Assistant Secretary of State
for Africa, Walter Kansteiner and President Bush is currently implementing
a genocidal agenda on behalf of the Americans in the Niger-Delta,
in which youths of the area are being wasted under the a new security
operation code-named Operation Restore Hope. In the last few weeks,
the security operation under the command of Brigadier-General Elias
Zamani has murdered over 20 youths in the Niger-Delta.
The General,
probably thought, he is doing a national duty but unknown to him,
he has begun a dirty war on behalf of the Americans. The pretext
is piracy. Anyone familiar with the Nigerian oil complex knows that
the real pirates are senior public officials involved in the illegal
bunkering business, not the youths who are fighting for self-determination
in a badly screwed federation. Let the General be reminded that
"Genocide whether committed in time of peace or in time of war,
is a crime under international law." The US strategic circle has
long viewed Nigeria and indeed West Africa as its Plan B, for energy
supply. The strategic importance of the Nigerian oil informed its
lukewarm attitude over the annulment of June 12 presidential election
and explained why it embraced the military dictatorship of General
Sanni Abacha. The US has long been seeking for a lead into Equatorial
Africa. First, it sold to us the bogey of the formation of Rapid
Response Initiative in 1997 as a basis, but General Abacha in spite
of his regime legitimacy crisis saw through that security wool.
Abacha's non-compromising posture put the programme into abeyance.
And it was soon resuscitated as soon as Abacha was out of the scene.
Its security frenzy in West Africa got a boost with the development
in the Persian Gulf and its all-time low relations with the uncompromising
Hugo Charvez in Venezuela.
The on-going
Al Qeada activities in Saudi Arabia have increased its discomfiture.
All this are anchored in the objective reality of Richard Cheney
report, Vice President, National Energy Policy Development Group
which revealed a growing demand for oil and gas in the US which
see it increase its oil import by about 50% by 2020. This will see
the US importing two of every three-barrel of oil that it will require.
The only way to guarantee this is by looking abroad. Failure to
meet this projection amount to real threat to US national security.
So the diversity plan centres on the Caspian Sea area, Latin America
and Africa, especially West Africa, whose deposit, light sweet crude
is cost effective for being easy to refine or as the US Department
of Energy puts it, "Taylor-made for US East Coast markets." Currently,
Nigeria oil constitutes about 9.7 % of US imports and certainly
covets Nigeria's estimated 22.5 billion barrels of crude reserve.
Its concerns in Nigeria include ExxonMobil and Chevron Texaco; both
are also operating in Angola; in Equatorial Guinea ExxonMobil, Marathon
Oil, Amerada Hess, and Ocean Energy dominate the oil production
and its allied activities; in Sudan, it is currently trouble-shooting
in order to take over oil production there. In the face of this
national security problematic, security has dominated all of US
transactions with virtually all-African countries. Sao Tome has
conceded to it the space to build so-called deep-water port while
it is discussing airfield access agreement with another Nigeria's
next door neighbour, Benin Republic.
It was not
surprising when the NATO Supreme Commander, US General James Jones
admitted that US plan to boost its troops presence in Africa. And
Theresa Whelan, the Director of Pentagon's Office of African Affairs
drove the point home when she said that the US has security concern
over off-shore oil. Diplomats generally believed that the deployment
of its battle group carrier to the Gulf of Guinea is dress rehearsal
for US military involvement in the region. The broad implication
of this is that by the roll call, all Sub-Saharan African countries
will become US satellites and dependants without sovereignty. Once
the US has its boot on the ground in Africa, the region will witness
a replay of the dynamics in the Persian Gulf. The prospect is best
imagined than experienced. Of great importance is the word employed
by General Jones to the effect that they would be enhancing their
operations in the ungoverned regions of Africa is indicative of
US colonial design, which must be vehemently resisted. This design
is not only against Nigeria's national interest but also the destiny
of the blackman as this may well be the beginning of the second
transatlantic slavery. Nigerian state actors need to heed the words
of Eric Margolis, author of War at the Top of the World- The Struggle
for Afghanistan, Kashmir and Tibet, that where geopolitics and oil
are the issues, there are no friends, only competitors and enemies.
What is to be done?
My recommendations
are as follows: Nigerian government needs to repudiate all forms
of subservient and compromising agreements it may have entered with
the US, especially under the Obasanjo Administration; Nigerian oil
should be open to all manners of honest buyers; the Nigerian army
and the government should make it clear that we will not tolerate
pax Americana in our backyard. A constructive and quiet diplomacy
should immediately be adopted to engage with our neighbours, especially,
Sao Tome and Benin Republic that Nigeria will not countenance any
form of agreement with any power that undermines our security. The
issue of the US threat to Nigeria and African security in general
should be top on the agenda of the next AU summit. Above all, the
popular groups in Nigeria including labour need to embark on an
immediate protest. It is imperative as it took such actions to forestall
the Anglo-Nigerian Defence Pact in the 1960s.
Before we all
find ourselves dishonourable graves, my clarion to all Nigerian
patriots: your country needs you. q Akhaine is with the Department
of Social & Political Science, Royal Holloway, University of London.
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