Thrilled by what they call ‘ceased fire’ by the Boko Haram Islamist sect responsible for the death of over 13,000 innocent souls in the northeast since the beginning of its fierce campaign against the Nigerian state in 2009, Nigerians have hailed the resurgent bravery of the nation’s soldiers, calling on the military authorities to free soldiers sentenced to death over mutiny allegations.
The General Court Martial had tried a group of 18 soldiers for mutinous acts which occurred at Maiduguri, Borno State on May 14, 2014 in which five of the soldiers were discharged and acquitted, one jailed for 28 days while 12 others were convicted and sentenced to death.
There were those who also insinuated that the shooting of Adeboye Obasanjo- the son of a former president, Olusegun Obasanjo- spurred the government to increase the intensity against the insurgents. Adeboye Obasanjo, a lieutenant colonel, was shot in Baza, a suburb of Michika Local Government Area of Adamawa State, where he was leading a platoon against Boko Haram terrorist group, and immediately expressed eagerness to return to the battle front while still being attended to at a military facility.
Solomon Esongban, a Lagos-based political pundit, told BD SUNDAY that many factors were responsible for the current advantage the military now has over the Boko Haram sect; attributing the victory to the acquisition of new weapons and renew zeal and commitment by the soldiers to die for their father land as demonstrated by Lt. Col. Obasanjo.
He said: “These are people that should be given national honour; not some of the names that the President decorated with national award recently. Lt. Col. Adeboye was shot and he was ready to return to battle. That is uncommon patriotism. That is enough to motivate others and a serious government to take action. Rather than give award to deserving Nigerians, the President chose to decorate his loyal friends with the seal of Nigeria”.
According to him, sophisticated weapons provided for the foot soldiers by the Ministry of Defence was a strong motivating factor that was turning out results Nigerians had long expected, adding that a trained soldier would confront and take the battle to the enemy’s camp once given the needed weapons that would not put him at the mercy of the enemy.
He also said that the delay in putting the insurgents to rout before now favours President Jonathan’s re-election ambition in 2015, and that the President was already winning the confidence of Nigerians who were losing patience with him as they watched the Islamist sect massacre Nigerians in the northeast and hoist its flag in some communities.
He said: “The President knows very well that Nigerians want action against Boko Haram and once that is done, many Nigerians particularly those in the northeast would stand by him. He may be slow in taking key national decisions; but he is certainly not foolish. But I think politicians in the country should be careful how they play politics with the lives of innocent Nigerians.” According to him, the Nigerian Government and the military authorities should tell Nigerians what they were doing to alleviate the sufferings of widows and children of the soldiers who died in battle.
Pleading for the 12 condemned soldiers over mutiny, Esongban said the judgment delivered in Abuja by the General Court Martial which tried the group of 18 soldiers for mutinous acts should be reversed and the soldiers set free in the spirit of current victory.
He explained that the reason for their pardon should be based on the fact that before the incident, the soldiers at the Maimalari Cantonment had complained of insufficient ammunition, food and allowances, saying that the visit of the GOC coincided with the arrival of the corpses of soldiers killed in an ambush in Chibok.
Human Rights lawyer, Femi Falana had also appealed to the military to release the sentenced soldiers, noting that while mutiny cannot be condoned by the armed forces because it strikes at the foundation of discipline in the military, it ought to be pointed out that the 18 soldiers were erroneously charged under section 52(1) of the Armed Forces Act Cap A20 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004.
But Donatus Tada, a resident of Attagara, a Christian community in Gwoza Local Government in Borno State, where the insurgents had attempted to wipe out entirely all the male in the community by killing several of them and abducting boys of ages seven to nine, told BD SUNDAY over the telephone that it was too early to jubilate because the widely known headquarters of the Islamist sect was still intact.
He said that though the current efforts of the Nigerian soldiers in taking the fight to the insurgents was gradually reassuring the people in the affected area of the North that they may someday have the opportunity to again live in their ancestral homes, they were however, not unaware that the insurgents can spring surprises and wreak havoc during unguided hours.
He also attributed the current seeming reawakening of the military against the Boko Hram to the revelations made by the Australian hostage negotiator, Davis Stephen; saying that Nigerians should be grateful to him for prompting the current increased efforts of the Federal Government toward doing the needful.
“They have decided to cooperate in order to end the mess, because they are afraid of what might come out of the Australian allegations. You know, some traditional northern leaders also paid the President a solidarity visit. Neighbouring countries are also giving their maximum cooperation. Many hands are currently working together unlike before; and the result is what Nigerians are seeing,” Esongban said.
A reliable source within the ruling People’s Democratic Party (PDP) also told BD SUNDAY that the current success recorded against the Boko Haram may not be unconnected with the recent indictment of former Borno State Governor, Ali Modu Sheriff; former Chief of Army Staff, Azubuike Ihejirika and the unmanned Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN’s) top official who recently left the apex bank.
He also attributed the string of successes recorded in the fight against insurgency to free flow of information to the Nigerian Military, the willingness of some masked Boko Haram sympathisers to join hands with government in its fight against the insurgents, coupled with recent military hardware acquired by the Nigerian military.
In the last few weeks, there have been several attempts by the terrorists to gain entry into Konduga again, which the Nigerian troops have continued to foil; with many members of the sect fleeing into Cameroon and others surrendering to the superior fire power of the Nigerian soldiers. Among seized and surrendered items were weapons and equipment including rifles, rocket propelled grenade tubes, machine guns as well as Ford Ranger vehicles.
According to a military source, it is getting more certain that the terrorist’s commander, who had been mimicking Shekau in previous videos, was the one killed at Konduga, on September 17th, as massive relocation of terrorists to seek safe haven in independent locations in Cameroon has been noticed.
BD SUNDAY further gathered that Nigeria has entered into contract with Russian arms manufacturers for the supply of high calibre weapons to its military to combat the insurgents and has also begun discussion with the Israeli government on possible supply of military hardware.
As part of the agreement between Nigeria and Russia, a group of Nigerian security personnel were also said to be already in Eastern Europe for training as Special Forces, with another batch, made up of the Army, Police and DSS to join the other three batches already in training.
President Jonathan had at the passing out parade of cadets at the Nigerian Defence Academy, said the armed forces would set up a Special Forces Brigade to combat terrorism in the country.
Efforts at reaching Chris Olukolade, a major general and the Defence Director of Information, to ascertain the official position on the current victory was not successful as his cell phone indicated it was busy. As at the time of filing in this report, he had also yet to reply text message sent to his mobile line.
NATHANIEL AKHIGBE
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