Promise Adiele PhD
Recently, the world was reminded of the domineering, totalitarian, and imposing status of the United States. The US, led by Donald Trump, invaded Venezuela and abducted President Nicolas Maduro with all the trappings of Gestapo military discourtesy.
The Venezuelan president has since been flown to the US to face criminal charges bordering on dictatorship, repression, human rights abuse and most significantly, trading on illicit drugs, especially fentanyl. It is estimated that fentanyl has killed more than 300,000 Americans since 2021.
Many world leaders and prominent thinkers have reacted in different ways to the Venezuelan invasion. But none of them has explicitly condemned Trump’s actions in strong terms. The reactions have been veiled and deliberately diluted to avoid the US ire. The Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy has argued that if Trump can invade and depose Nicolas Maduro, why can’t he do the same to Vladimir Putin of Russia, given Putin’s reckless, uncontrolled military actions in Ukraine. French President Emmanuel Macron, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz have all reacted in different ways to the invasion, but none of these world leaders has directly criticized Trump. Therefore, Trump is getting away with murder.
Obviously, Trump’s abrasiveness continues to rupture global order in all his ideological sub-ensembles which only favours the US power psychology. He is above the law and the entire world cannot do anything about it. The Constitution of the United States stipulates that if, for any reason, a US president decides to invade any country, he must first seek the approval of Congress.
If Congress disapproves of the invasion, then the invasion would be illegal. In the Venezuelan case, Trump did not present the matter before Congress, thus there was no Congressional approval. Therefore, the invasion was unlawful in conception and execution, violating the US Constitution. The United Nations (UN) provisions are clear on the invasion of a sovereign country. Trump, by invading Venezuela the way he did, violated both US laws and UN provisions.
Trump can wake up one morning, in pursuit of self-parodic and petty economic, bourgeois objectives, invade any country of his choice, remove the president and enthrone a US-validating administration. History shows that the US, under different presidents, have consistently compromised the sovereign integrity of many countries around the world with no diplomatic, economic or military consequences. Instead, the world watches with bemused paralysis as the US continues their bull-in-a-China-shop demeanour.
Over the years, the US has unlawfully invaded many countries of the world, citing one reason or another. The US mission in Afghanistan lasted for over 20 years in its determination to replace the ruling government with a government more attuned to the US policy formulation and economic interests.
After committing enormous human and material resources in Afghanistan, the country still reeks of political imbalance, religious extremism, and human rights abuse. Also, the world watched as the US invaded Libya, deposed Muammar Gaddafi and left the country in utter ruins as the populace suffocated under the crushing weight of dictatorship and economic disaster. Iraq was a victim of the US wrath in 2003. Helped by the United Kingdom, Australia and Poland, the US had invaded Iraq in their search for Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) and also to remove Saddam Hussein from power. At the end of the exercise, no WMDs were found in Iraq and Saddam Hussein was removed from power. Latin American countries like Chile, Cuba, Guatemala and Nicaragua have all experienced the US invasion at one time or another. All of these happened without any consequences for the US.
The chronicles above portend ominous signals for smaller countries and their presidents, especially in Africa. The US, in a subtle but pragmatic rendering of irrationalism, only seeks to protect its interests and nothing more. Therefore, African countries and their power-drunk leaders must be wary of the US imposing its political image in the pursuit of its interests. Yes, it’s all about US interests.
Although the US cites humanitarian reasons to invade countries, it is all about its gain. According to Trump, the primary reason for invading Venezuela was to destroy “narco-terrorists”, yet we all know that drugs and illicit substances are not produced in Venezuela. The country is only a transit route for such substances en route to Europe. After all, there are many countries in the world presided over by leaders with documented involvement in narcotics and illicit drugs. Yet, the US has looked away.
They only act when their interests are involved or threatened. Human rights abuses, election-rigging, religious conflicts, ethnic cleansing and other heinous developments have increased in many countries while the US looked away. I therefore sympathize with many people across the world who think that the US will invade their country strictly on humanitarian grounds. No country invaded by US remains the same, positively. It is always a sad tale of misery and desolation.
In the Nigerian case, Trump and the US have cited the gradual extermination of Christians to embark on a military action in parts of the country. The US military strikes in Sokoto State of Nigeria on 25 December resonated across the world. People of all faiths applauded the military action because terrorists have threatened the existence of Nigeria as a country, killing many people in the process.
Some people have argued that the Christmas strikes in Nigeria were just a preliminary rehearsal of a major military strike which may lead to regime change. Other people insist that Trump is not comfortable with the Muslim-Muslim leadership hierarchy in Nigeria and therefore may be smarting for regime change by force. Yet, some far-thinking intellectuals have argued that the US economic interest is not adequately protected by the Tinubu administration, therefore, Trump is angling for a showdown using Christian killings as a façade. Tinubu’s newfound love with France may also be a factor which does not sit well with the White House. Like the examples of US invasion and regime change in many countries cited above, Nigeria may be in for a new experience with absolutely no consequences for the US.
I am more interested in the remote and immediate implications of Trump’s Venezuelan invasion for Nigeria. Trump and the US interests in Nigeria are focused on the 2027election. One of the reasons cited by Trump for invading and arresting Maduro was his rigging and manipulation of the 2024 presidential election. Election rigging in Nigeria is a normal practice but the 2027 general elections present a different proposition. APC, the government in power in Nigeria, must be careful. 2027 will not be business as usual. No one knows what Trump has in mind. No one knows who Trump is fraternizing with in Nigeria. The Tinubu government and his APC gang must not play into the hands of Donald Trump. The December strikes against terrorists were just a mere rehearsal of what is to come. Although Nigerians are bleeding from all pores under the Tinubu administration, history shows that countries invaded by the US are always worse than they were. Trump and the US plunder countries for their interests, leaving them wasted and bleak. It is disconcerting because countries pretending to be friends with Tinubu will not save him. France cannot stand up to the US. In all the cases cited above, no country challenged the US invasion of sovereign countries.
The popular saying that the devil you know is better than the angel you do not know is apt in the Nigerian/Trump purview. Nigeria’s destiny is in Tinubu’s hands.
The conduct of a free and fair election is ultimately the only thing that would save the country. If Nigerians return the APC to power through a peaceful election, it would be crystal clear to the world. If, on the other hand, Nigerians reject Tinubu and APC at the polls in 2027, they must accept defeat to avoid any impending violation of the country’s sovereignty.
Tinubu must not give Trump any excuse to turn Nigeria into a wasteland as he has done in many countries of the world. Although many Nigerians wouldn’t mind if Trump invaded the country and forced regime change, the consequences, from examples in other countries, are always brutal. Therefore, the current administration must put the country first before personal gains or political ambition. The US has all the power and Tinubu must not be deceived into thinking that any world power would come to his aid. Conduct a free and fair election, let the people decide, accept the people’s verdict and be free from Maduro’s kind of humiliation. The US is keenly watching Nigeria. 2027 is the date.
Mountain Top University
promee01@yahoo.com
X: @drpee4
