Accuracy in Media (AIM), an American
based non-profit, grassroots citizens
watchdog of the news media that critiques
botched and bungled news stories and
sets the record straight on important
issues that have received slanted
coverage has shed more light on the
possible rationale behind the Obama’s
administration’s attitude to Nigeria’s war
against Boko Haram.
In a piece published on its website on the
Wednesday, investigative journalist,
James Simpson sheds light on how the
close relationship between Obama and
David Axelrod (the head of AKPD Mesage
and Media, and the director of President
Barack Obama’s 2008 Political Campaign
may have led to the sabotaging of
President Goodluck Jonathan’s
administrations efforts against the Islamic
terror group in order to assist the chances
of the All Progressives Congress
(Axelrod’s latest political clients) ahead of
the 2015 general elections.
AIM reports:
When the notorious Islamic terrorist
group, Boko Haram, kidnapped 278
school girls from the town of Chibok in
northeastern Nigeria last year, Michelle
Obama began a Twitter hashtag
campaign, #BringBackOurGirls. But
behind the scenes, the Obama
administration was undermining Nigeria’s
efforts to take the battle to the terrorists.
Obama refused to sell Nigeria arms and
supplies critical to the fight, and stepped
in to block other Western allies from
doing so. The administration also denied
Nigeria intelligence on Boko Haram from
drones operating in the area. While Boko
Haram was kidnapping school girls, the
U.S. cut petroleum purchases from
Nigeria to zero, plunging the nation’s
economy into turmoil and raising
concerns about its ability to fund its battle
against the terrorists. Nigeria responded
by cancelling a military training
agreement between the two countries.
The Nigerian presidential election is
coming up Saturday, March 28, 2015.
AKPD, the political consulting group
founded by Obama confidante David
Axelrod, isassisting Retired Gen.
Muhammadu Buhari, a Muslim
presidential candidate from Muslim-
dominated northern Nigeria, where Boko
Haram was spawned and wields the most
influence. Buhari is well-known
throughout the country, having led as
“Head-of-State” following a military coup
in 1983. He was dislodged following
another coup in 1985.
Democracy is a recent phenomenon in
Nigeria. With the exception of two short
periods from its independence in 1960 to
1966, and the second republic from 1979
to 1983, the country was ruled by a string
of military dictatorships between 1966
and 1999.
Under the All Progressives Congress
(APC) banner, Buhari is putting up a stiff
challenge to the sitting president, Dr.
Ebele Goodluck Jonathan who hails from
Nigeria’s Christian south. Buhari was also
the North’s presidential candidate in the
last election held in 2011.
Axelrod is credited as the force behind
President Obama’s election victories in
2008 and 2012. He served as Obama’s
Senior Advisor until 2011. A well-placed
Nigerian interviewed for this report who
asked to remain unidentified says that
influential Nigerians within and outside
the government believe Obama
deliberately undermined the war effort
and sabotaged the Nigerian economy to
make President Jonathan appear weak
and ineffectual, and thus bolster the
electoral prospects for AKPD’s client,
Buhari.
The prominent daily Nigerian Tribune
cites an activist group, Move on
Nigeria,complaining that the U.S. is
fueling tension in Nigeria and has
“continued to publicly magnify every
challenge of the Nigerian government.”
An anti-Buhari Nigerian blogger writing in
the Western Postwent further:
In the last year, Nigeria sought aid from
the White House for many initiatives,
including the fight against Boko Haram.
The Obama administration refused to do
anything but play [sic] lip service to
Nigeria’s requests. However, it used
public and private channels to
internationally magnify every failure
Nigeria’s government experienced.
In the last year, since the involvement of
Axelrod’s firm, relations between the two
nations have significantly deteriorated,
with the US refusing to sell arms to
Nigeria, a significant reduction in the
purchase of Nigeria’s oil, and the
cancellation of a military training
agreement between Nigeria and the USA.
In turn, the Buhari-led Nigerian opposition
used the U.S. government’s position as
validation for their claim that the Nigerian
government was a failure.
Nigerian officials seeking to purchase
weapons, especially Cobra attack
helicopters, were outraged at Obama’s
refusal to allow these transactions.
Nigeria’s ambassador to the U.S.,
Professor Adebowale Adefuye, stated
publiclythat:
The U.S. government has up till today
refused to grant Nigeria’s request to
purchase lethal equipment that would
have brought down the terrorists within a
short time on the basis of the allegations
that Nigeria’s defence forces have been
violating human rights of Boko Haram
suspects when captured or arrested.
We find it difficult to understand how and
why, in spite of the U.S. presence in
Nigeria, with their sophisticated military
technology, Boko Haram should be
expanding and becoming more deadly.
Another official quoted in the Nigerian
newspaper ThisDay, stated:
The U.S. government has frustrated
Nigeria all the way in our war against
terrorism despite its public statements in
support of Nigeria, as it fights the Boko
Haram insurgents in the North-east…
They want us to fight Boko Haram with
our arms tied to our backs.
They have blocked us from procuring the
helicopters and would not provide us with
intelligence despite the fact that they have
several drones and sophisticated aircraft
overflying the North-east of Nigeria from
bases in Niger and Chad where the Boko
Haram fighters and movements are
clearly in their sights.
Retired Col. Abubakar Umar, a former
military governor, concluded that the
Americans “have decided to turn a blind
eye to what is happening in Nigeria.”
Former Head-of-State, Retired Gen.
Yakubu Gowon publicly stated last
November that America is no friend of
Nigeria.
After exhausting all avenues, the Nigerian
government finally turned to Russia,
China and the black market to obtain
needed arms, and as a result has gone
aggressively on the offensive against
Boko Haram, retaking some 40
townsoccupied by the group and killing at
least 500 terrorists. According to recent
accounts, Boko Haram has gone to
ground in the northeastern border
regions. But whereas the border states of
Niger, Chad, Benin and Cameroon
formerly took a hands-off approach, they
have now joined in the effort to destroy
the group, pledging a total of 8,700
troops. Most recently, Boko Haram has
been cleared of its northeastern
strongholds in Borno, Yobe and
Adamawa.
U.S. Excuses
The Obama administration has said it is
barred from supplying weapons by the
so-called Leahy Amendment which
forbids foreign states that have
committed “gross human rights
violations” from receiving military aid.
However this did not stop the U.S. from
sending Special Forces to Uganda—
another country accused of such
violations—to assist in capturing Lord
Resistance Army leader Joseph Kony. Nor
did it prevent Obama from supporting al
Qaeda-linked rebel groups in Libya, who
later went on to attack the Benghazi
mission, and have now joined ISIS. The
Syrian “moderates” the administration
claimed to back are also allegedly joining
with ISIS.
In fact, Obama supported the Islamic
radicals who destabilized states
throughout the Middle East, including
Tunisia, Libya and Egypt, and did little to
prevent Iranian-backed Shiites from
overthrowing Yemen—a key ally in the
War on Terror. And despite claims that the
U.S. “does not negotiate with terrorists,”
the administration did so in secret with
the Taliban for years, most notoriously
over the release of Bowe Bergdahl.
The U.S. State Department is currently
negotiating a deal that will enable Iran to
obtain the bomb, and it just declared that
Iran and its Lebanese proxy, Hezbollah,
are not terrorists. The administration even
claims Iran has been an ally in the War on
Terror! Finally, Axelrod’s client, Buhari,
has been accused of human rights
abuses during his time as chief-of-state.
To top it off, Secretary of State John
Kerry made a mockery of the
administration’s pretext by hinting in
January meetings with both Jonathan
and Buhari that the Obama
administration might allow weapon sales
after the election. If the U.S. was so
concerned about human rights violations,
how could a mere election change that?
Given the perception that Buhari has
Obama’s implicit support, this sends an
unmistakable message.
Source: http://www.aim.org/aim-
column/obama-accused-of-obstructing-
battle-against-boko-haram-to-promote-
axelrods-nigerian-muslim-client/
