Kaduna — In the first of a number of profiles of voters in Nigeria, Ofeibea Quist-Arcton talks to Fidelis Okoro, a resident of the northern city of Kaduna. Himself an Igbo from the mainly Christian south-east of the country, Okoro talks about the religious and ethnic tensions in Kaduna, traditionally a tolerant city although recent years have seen grim, apparently religion-inspired riots in which hundreds have died and property worth millions of naira has been destroyed. There have been widespread fuel shortages in Nigeria resulting in long, almost stationary queues of cars and motorbikes lined up at gas stations hoping to be able to buy fuel. When allAfrica met him, Mr Okoro was sitting in a car, having waited in line all night for petrol.
It's 9am, what time did you start queueing?
From 7pm yesterday evening, but up till now we haven't got. I slept all night here.
Who do you blame?
I blame sabotage.
By whom?
By those who don't love the government or Nigerians.
And who are they?
I don't know, but I believe there are some who don't love this nation. Because see how poor people are suffering. We are the poor, but you can't see 'big man' or big man's children in this line, queuing for petrol. When the big men do their things, they leave the poor to suffer.
All these things are a political 'something' which I can't really understand. We have everything in this country, we have fuel, we give other countries' fuel, but I don't know why we are suffering for it.
Well it looks as if you can move forward a little bit, Mr Okoro, the queue is inching forward, I'll speak to you again in just a moment... Now you've moved forward a little bit and I've had to run to catch up you!
Yes, I don't want anyone to 'cover my front' and to get in ahead of me!
The elections are just round the corner now, may I ask who you might vote for and for what reasons?
Yes, I have to vote because I am entitled to vote. I'm 30-something years of age, so I'm a really typical Nigerian and I love the democracy. And I have my own party I support. Everybody has his one. Moreover, I would love (President Olusegun) Obasanjo to continue.
So after four years under President Obasanjo, do you feel he's done a good job for Nigeria?
He has done a very great job and he's going to do more.
What about those who say the president hasn't done enough for Nigeria?
One person cannot satisfy everybody. I've never seen him face to face, my own president, Obasanjo, but I have seen what he has done.
So, what has he done?
He has done many things, including keeping peace. In fact, he has done many things, which I can't count. Education, you can come to hospital, orphanages and many others. In fact, I don't know where to start to count.
Now you say one of the successes of President Obasanjo is that he's managed to keep peace in Nigeria. Yet here in the north - in Kaduna where we're speaking - there have been religious riots and violent clashes between Muslims and Christians.
Yes, there have been, for long. In fact, during that time I have been in Kaduna. I haven't travelled anywhere. I am from the east of Nigeria, but I stay here in the north. And about Sharia (the Islamic legal code) and those riots, it wasn't Obasanjo's fault. It was those that do not love him and those that don't like his government.
But he is trying. There is peace in this country and we hope that the peace will continue. Let Obasanjo stay there and continue with his vice president Atiku Abubakar.
May I ask whether you're a Christian?
I'm a Christian actually.
So, how did you feel when there was fighting and violence between Christians and Muslims in Kaduna?
I believe that most of the Christians and most of the Muslims - I mean, Muslims are not against Christians and Christians are not against Muslims. Come along and I'll tell you the truth, I need to move forward.
Okay Mr Okoro, I'll catch up with you... .so, what were you saying?
I was saying that in some parts of this country, unlike here in Kaduna, what causes these riots is not the government. In fact, the government tries to calm things down. But there are some people that don't like this government of Obasanjo. They want to 'scatter' [mess up] the government so that people will say he is not a good man.
So, as far as riots are concerned, the people who are really good Muslims don't believe in fighting. They don't like fighting. Christians don't like fighting. But some people say "take this money, take one naira, and go and kill, go and fight," which is wrong. Muslims do not preach that we should kill. Christians say you should not kill. No religion preaches that. But why are we doing that?
That is what I'm telling you. Christians love Muslims and Muslims like Christians. We live in peace, except those people who do not like peace - unlike our [Kaduna state] governor, [Alhaji Ahmed Mohammed] Makarfi. He is a good man. He is a Muslim, but most of the Christians love him, because he does not play partial. He knows the truth and he follows the truth.
Makarfi is my governor. He is a very good man. If I'm to vote, I'll vote him in again, because for the past four years he has done a lot of things, including keep peace in Kaduna.
As a Christian, what are your views on Sharia, the Islamic legal code that many northern Nigerian states have adopted, setting up Sharia courts?
Yes, this Sharia thing, it's meant for the Muslims, not for the Christians. Do you understand? When you have anything Sharia, it's for the Muslims. And the Muslims have to obey it. It's in their own religion. Christians will not go and start doing Sharia.
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When a Muslim and a Christian have a problem, they will go to the normal court. When a Muslim and a Muslim have a problem, they will go to Sharia courts to settle the matter there. So, there's no problem over it. It's good to have Sharia. Do you understand?
But the problem is that there are some people who don't like peace. Most educated Hausa (northern) people and Yoruba (southwestern) and Igbo (eastern) - those educated ones, they love each other well, so much. It's only those people who don't have jobs, they don't have anything, and if anyone gives them one naira and says "go and fight," they'll go and fight.
Do you see the problem?
But we Nigerians, we are good. We are very, very good. Even this election that is coming, I can't see this man [he points to someone-else in the queue], and knowing that he is a Hausa man, take up a knife and pursue him. He is not Obasanjo, he is not all those people at the top. He is suffering like me. He has been waiting and queueing for petrol since yesterday. He was here, I was here. But, no big man's car has been here.
All those people keeping our money and doing this and that, they don't care about us. When somebody rejects you, you can't reject yourself, you understand? But I feel I'm not rejected actually.
Mr Okoro, I see you're getting to the top of the queue, so I'll leave you here and say "thank you and good luck."
God bless you and remain blessed. Good-bye.
