A Country Held Hostage

[Shola Sholaz]

For the third time in as many years the national Independence Day celebrations usually marked with pomp and ceremony were held in the relatively safe confines of Aso Rock Villa. Eagles Square, venue of the event in Abuja since the movement to the Federal Capital, is now a no-go area for such matters even though the states still manage to hold relatively public celebrations at parade grounds and parks.
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The usual excuse these days for Abuja's bashfulness with the National Day celebrations is that the state of the nation demands a low-key event or the government is simply not interested in any elaborate celebrations.
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But Nigerians know the real reason is the fear of attack by mainly Islamic insurgents whose respect for life is non-existent and have thus made it brutally short and nasty.
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This last October 1 celebration was Nigeria's 53rd and in the days leading up to it, the country's security agencies were put on high alert after nearly 80 students of a school of agriculture were murdered in cold-blood by the cowardly zealots of Islam in Yobe State.