DR. Umar Ardo’s Moral Violence and Kafkaesque Natural Justice Pretentions Re; The Crumbling of Nigerian “Christians Genocide” Narrative, By Umar Ardo – Part 5

By Olusegun R. Babalola

This DR. Umar Ardo’s disconcerting article, that cannot be thoroughly addressed in a single article, was brought to by notice by a Nigerian nationalist and federalist, Madu Bright O. Alwell. He noted; “We respectfully seeking a detailed response …” This has led 8-part response: The Nigerian Proxy Clash of Civilizations, Dr. Umar Ardo’s Role in the Proxy Clash of Civilization, Dr. Umar Ardo as Civilizational Strategist of Moral Violence, Understanding DR. Umar Ardo in the Age of Civilizationalism, DR. Umar Ardo’s Moral Violence and Kafkaesque Natural Justice Pretentions, Natural  Justice Rightly Understood; Case for Dialogue Between 2-Civilizations, The Fundamental Challenges; Neo-Crusade Between Muslims and Christians; and Nigeria @ Crossroads & the Way Forward. The general purpose is civic self-understanding of our problematic challenges towards a peaceful resolution and if possible, conversion.

Dr Ardo can hardly speak, against “unfair ethnic profiling and demonization of the Fulanis” without evoking “natural justice” sentiments. This is also evident in his January 24 article; The Crumbling of Nigerian “Christians Genocide” Narrative, he evoked natural justice with words like “fairness, respect and justice,” and “our shared humanity” in his critique of “Christian genocide” narrative. He further stated “This selective mourning violates a basic ethical principle – that the value of a human life does not depend on the identity of either victim or perpetrator. To argue, implicitly or explicitly, that the killing of Muslims “counts less” because the killers share their religion is to reduce human beings to single-axis identities and to deny the complexity of social life in Nigeria’s vast conflict zones.” In “Fulanis’ Fears of Restructuring” he spoke of “higher national ideals,” “only truth that can set hearts free,” and that “we must treat one another with truth, understanding, decency and respect.” Nevertheless, as we have seen in Part 2 & 3, his leit motive is Kafkaesque weaponization of “natural right/justice” sentiments is disabling of resistance against the Fulbe based on “natural justice/law” pretentions. This is evident in Part 4, where his civilizational article of March 10, 2024 Understanding the Fulbe factor in West African Affairs, is discussed.

His most interesting evocation of “natural justice” is evident in his July 29, 2025 “A Call to Halt the Vilification of the Fulani in Nigeria.” The expose of Ardo misuse of “natural justice” principle is necessary for the proper application as evident in Part 6. What is interesting is how Ardo, as a representative of the Afro-Islamic Civilization (AIC), pushes his civilizational politics with the pretentions of natural right/justice sentiments.

Dr. Ardo’s “A Call to Halt the Vilification of the Fulani in Nigeria.”

As a victim of Fulani banditry, Ardo admits in this article that “no one can deny the reality that some Fulani herders and armed groups, driven by a mix of environmental pressures, economic exclusion, demographic dislocation, state failure and regional instability, particularly across the Sahel, have been involved in violent clashes, banditry and other security threats in recent years. These acts are tragic, condemnable and must be addressed by the Nigerian state with firmness, fairness and strategic depth.” (In 2019, his daughter, Aishat was unfortunately kidnapped at Abuja but fortunately released after ransom payment about 30 hours. Unfortunately, we lost A’isha in January 2026. May Allah (STW) forgive her sins, bless her soul and reward her with Alhannah on the day of resurrection. Also may Allah (SWT) also giver loved ones the fortitude to bear this terrible loss.) In this article, Ardo evoked, as usual, “natural right/justice” in four clear ways.

Firstly, he identified a litany of crimes which according to him are associated with some ethnic groups. He condemned Fulani banditry and violence; Igbo’s “drug trafficking, fake drugs, cyber fraud, armed robbery, ritual killings, cultism, prostitution, etc., at home and abroad;” Yoruba’s “ritual attacks, cultist killings, trade in human organs or political arson and violence;” and Kanuri’s “Boko Haram terrorist movement.” In truth, these crimes would be categorized as “repugnant” under customary jurisprudence based on the “validity test” of “natural justice, equity, and good conscience.”

Secondly, he claimed that “this handful of” Fulani “criminal actors” as found among all ethnicities in Nigeria and abroad, should not be used as “the basis to generalize and demonize an entire ethnic group of over 30 million people, most of whom are peaceful, law-abiding citizens and have for centuries made immense contributions to the development and cohesion of Nigeria” and that such “profiling” is “in stark contradiction to the very principles of justice, morality and responsible civic conduct.” He would here evoke the commonsense that the entire Kanuris are not called Boko Haramists. “Nobody is doing that because it is grossly unfair, illogical and provocative to single out an entire ethnic group for collective condemnation over the actions of a criminal minority amongst them.” He concluded “Ethnic stereotyping is a sign of moral and intellectual failure.”

Thirdly, he argues for nation building based on the commonsensical notion of “natural justice”; that Ethnic profiling “is a social toxin. It deepens mistrust, sows fear, weakens national unity and creates an environment where injustice becomes normal” and that “profiling others today may lead to their own victimization tomorrow.” He added, “We must be mature and civil in our conduct towards one another. It is time for Nigerians, especially the educated elite and civic leaders, to reject simplistic and hateful narratives. We must rise above emotional and tribal temptations and focus on addressing crime and governance challenges as national problems, not ethnic ones.” This is so because “Unity is not uniformity – it is the strength found in diversity, bound by justice.”

Fourth, he argued for proactive actions against ethnic profiling like demanding “justice and reform – not revenge or scapegoating,” but through; education promoting with “dialogue and understanding” (via “Host town halls, publish balanced perspectives and build bridges”); stopping the “spreading hate” because “It is morally wrong and socially destructive;” and challenging “individuals, not ethnicities.” Conclusively Ardo called “for a higher national standard of unity, responsibility and justice,” treating “one another with fairness, respect and justice – not based on ethnicity.”

John Maton’s “Response to Dr. Ardo’s “Call to Halt Vilification of Fulani in Nigeria.”

Dr. Ardo’s mis-use of “natural justice” principles, is best expressed by Barr. John Apollos Maton’s July 31, 2025 article “Response to Dr. Ardo’s “Call to Halt Vilification of Fulani in Nigeria.” Maton would not only unveil Ardo’s natural justice pretentions, he differentiated “isolated criminality” from “ethnically coordinated violence” and “targeted ethnic cleansing” directed at the expansionist “conquest” of the lands of indigenous peoples.

Maton wrote that Ardo should not “insult our intelligence by claiming they are vilified,” by “defending image than demanding justice.” “Those who have lost everything to Fulani terrorism are not seeking revenge—they are seeking justice, safety, and truth. Their pain must not be dismissed by articles crafted in detached comfort.” “The Fulani are not facing injustice; they are manufacturing one to justify domination. They demand lands that do not belong to them, and when denied, they unleash terror—not as individuals, but as an ethnic front.” Maton wrote; “You do not invade a land, burn its people, and claim rights. That is not a claim to citizenship—it is an act of terrorism and land-grabbing.”

To Ardo’s passion of disabling resistance against the Fulbe, Maton noted “Victims and communities are then told to keep quiet for fear of appearing “tribalistic.” That is both absurd and unjust. Silence in the face of terror is cowardice. Naming evil is not hate speech—it is a civic duty … If Fulani leaders like Dr. Ardo are genuinely interested in peace and justice, then the place to start is … by naming and shaming the Fulani terror groups.”  Maton also added that “Nigeria cannot afford to sacrifice truth at the altar of a fragile unity. True unity must be based on justice, not forced silence.”

Maton, noted “While Dr. Umar Ardo’s article pleads eloquently for national unity and the protection of the Fulani against ethnic profiling, it conveniently avoids the real, consistent and well-documented crisis of Fulani-led terrorism, aggression, and occupation that indigenous communities across Nigeria have endured.” “The goal of these Fulani invaders” according to Maton, “is to uproot indigenous peoples, settle on their lands, and rewrite Nigeria’s demographic history. When Fulani militias kill, they do not seek ransom—they seek territory. This is what distinguishes them from bandits and criminals of other regions. Their war is political, ethnic, and expansionist.”

Maton noted “No other group, when aggrieved, mobilizes armed units across borders to inflict mass casualties while issuing communiqués and conditions for peace.” It is not “ethnic scapegoating” but Fulani “organized violence.” It is not “isolated criminality” but “ethnically coordinated violence.” Nor is it vilification but accountability for “attacks” made “as a collective ethnic pursuit” that are “real, systematic, and consistent with conquest.” It is “not mutual misunderstanding” but “targeted ethnic cleansing.” People don’t fear “Fulani identity” but “Fulani militancy, backed by silence from Fulani elites and politicians.” “The question is not whether all Fulani are bad—it is whether enough good Fulani will rise to end this evil.”  Maton concluded “The ball is in their court.”

Middle Belt Forum’s Rebuttals of Dr. Ardo’s Kafkaesque Propaganda

Along this line, the Middle Belt Forum (MBF), in a formal statement in May 2019 by the then National Publicity Secretary, Mr. Kuka Binniyat labeled summarized Ardo’s “A Call to Halt the Vilification of the Fulani in Nigeria“, a natural justice pretention as part of a proxy scheme, as an “apologia for Fulani terrorism.”  MBF accused Dr. Ardo of ignoring the displacement of thousands of Middle Belt indigenous people while focusing on the “vilification” of the perpetrators. MBF labeled his arguments as a “distorted historical narrative” aimed at justifying land grabbing and the “Fulanization” agenda. MBF made the case for the arrest and prosecution of the Fulani terrorists responsible for rural massacres rather than halting “vilification.” Most of all, MBF argued that Ardo attempted to whitewash the violent activities of armed herdsmen and shifted the blame onto the victims of these attacks, that is, Ardo is a master strategist and propagandist, very good at Kafkaesque the transposition of guilt and crime.

From Merriam-Webster dictionary we also learn that Kafkaesque is “of, relating to, or suggestive of Franz Kafka or his writings especially: having a nightmarishly complex, bizarre, or illogical quality.” This dictionary further states that Kafka’s “surreal fiction vividly expressed the anxiety, alienation, and powerlessness of the individual in the 20th century. Kafka’s work is characterized by nightmarish settings in which characters are crushed by nonsensical, blind authority. Thus, the word Kafkaesque is often applied to bizarre and impersonal administrative situations where the individual feels powerless to understand or control what is happening.” One important element here is the transposition of guilt and crime. The understanding of the term “Kafkaesque” is not unconnected to the Nazi Lebensraum (Living space), an overarching ideological goal with genocidal blueprint over land in Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union. It classified indigenous populations (Slavs and Jews), as Untermenschen (sub-humans) who are to be removed, enslaved, or exterminated t make room for the “superior” Aryan race. Hitler cited the displacement of Native Americans as a successful historical model.

Kafka had literarily explored the possibility of the disconcerting inversion or transposition of guilt and crime ten years before Hitler rose to power. As such Kafka prepares us to understand the real character of Nazi politics, by means of which the guilt and crime of the extermination of Jews in placed on the powerless and alienated Jews themselves by that “nonsensical, blind authority.” In short, the exterminated Jews brought their own destruction on themselves, for being Jews. For Kafka, this transposition starts with the sudden exclusion of a person from society in space and time (for example through displacement), just as the Nazis excluded the Jews and other people with the infamous Nuremberg Laws. Guenther Anders explains Kafka’s works that the excluded individual becomes oblivious of his obligations, as he is condemned in ignorance – ignorance of the law – through which he could claim his innocence. The individual in the Kafka’s world is forced to embrace ignorance which spurn a bad conscience, and then again spurn the feeling that he has no rights and that he is wrong. With this moral anguish with “the anxiety, alienation, and powerlessness of the individual,” and that individual is excluded from the world. Anders concluded that “Kafka’s entire work, where it is not concerned with describing this vicious circle of misery, is an attempt to escape the vertiginous sensation which it produces.”

In final analysis, just as the “Fulanis’ Fears of Restructuring” article is simply a blackmail and a proxy for land acquisition; give us your land and we would agree to restructuring, Dr. Ardo’s “A Call to Halt the Vilification of the Fulani in Nigeria,” is a carefully prepared Kafkaesque propaganda, both articles are devoted to weaponizing “natural right/justice” sentiments is disabling of resistance against the Fulbe. This is a strategic component of Ardo’s civilizationalism “to sustain Fulbe political, economic, educational and scientific ascendancy in” Nigeria through civilizational expansionism. Islamization and Fulanization narrative , then becomes a healthy civilizational observation of an on-going clash of civilizations and of a threatening civilizational expansionism and erasure which Dr. Ardo is pushing as the condition for Fulbe’s acceptance of restructuring. The objection to “Islamization and Fulanization” is no “propaganda stunt” as Ardo waved it, but a deft civilizational observation of Kafkaesque Propaganda. Here also, we see with cleared-eye the dark side of civilizationalism, exclusive but soft-fascism.