Emeka Ibemere
No time has
the Nigerian Army polarized than these perilous times in history. Not even
during the civil war did they flop in quelling the Biafran-rag-tag army of
untrained civilian soldiers with little or no military know-how. But they have
found it very tasking, fighting another rag-tag sectarian goons for four years.
Prior to
now, one of the major contributions of the armed forces of the modern Nigerian-
nation was its participation in peace keeping operations in various parts of
the world.
From Congo
through Lebanon, Chad, Somalia, Rwanda and Yugoslavia to the more recent peace
enforcement operations in Liberia and Sierra Leone, the contributions of the
Nigerian armed forces to these operations, despite casualties, has always been
prompt. These records made the Nigerian Army a force to reckon in Africa, which
is her centrepiece of foreign Policy drive.
One of the
major contributions of the armed forces of the modern Nigerian nation is its
participation in peace keeping operations in various parts of the world. From
Congo through Lebanon, Chad, Somalia, Rwanda and Yugoslavia to the more recent
peace enforcement operations in Liberia and Sierra Leone, the contributions of
the Nigerian armed forces to these operations, despite casualties, has always
been prompt. This underlines Nigeria's interest in peace and stability around
the world but especially in Africa, which is the centrepiece of Nigeria's
foreign policy drive.
Peace
keeping and sometimes peace enforcement have therefore become paramount to
Nigeria. Material and human resources of the armed forces have been continually
committed to these operations.
One
significant gain, however, is that by participating in such operations, the
armed forces have acquired new information, new technology and new skills that
will be beneficial to attaining higher standards of professionalism.
Historically,
the Nigerian Armed Forces could be said to have come into existence in 1862
when Lt. Glover of the Royal Navy, then governor of Lagos, organised a group of
18 armed Hausas into a militia known as ‘Glover Hausas’. This group later
increased to 40, in conjunction with the West Indian regiment, provided
security for Lagos. Later again, reports said they increased to 100, and were
renamed ‘Lagos Constabulary’ and eventually took over the garrisoning of Lagos
from the West Indian regiment.
By 1886,
when the Royal Niger Company was granted a charter by the British government,
it became necessary to extend protection to British trading interests in the
north. The Royal Niger Constabulary was thus formed as the second indigenous
military force with the assignment of protecting all business interests of the
Royal Niger Company.
This
constabulary constituted the nucleus of the 1 and 2 battalions of the Northern
Nigeria Regiment in 1900. In response to the frequent conflicts between
Liverpool traders and Brass men on one hand, and the Royal Niger Company on the
other, the third constabulary was formed by Major M. McDonald in 1890 and
called the Oil Rivers Irregulars (also nicknamed the Forty Thieves). In 1891,
it was renamed the Niger Coast Constabulary with its headquarters at Calabar.
Apart from
their general police duties, the constabularies were raised primarily to
subjugate local opposition to British penetration and rule in Nigeria and to
serve as an auxiliary force for strengthening British forces in their bid to
stop any reckless expansionism by rival foreign powers like France and Germany.
These constabularies remained in that status till 1897. Ever since Nigerian
armed forces took root, it has not failed to be concerned with African conflicts where they have
played a key role in serving in the UN peacekeeping force in Congo in the 1960s
and pursued Africanist causes and gave strong backing to the liberation
movements in Southern Africa.
Despite all
these high points, in Africa and the globe recorded by the Nigerian army, they
have become like a physician who cannot heal himself under a sever sickness. For
four years, Nigeria army has been in battle with Boko Haram insurgents in the
North Central part of Nigeria with its attendant consequences being felt by the
country.
Almost every
segment of the country has felt their pulse- Muslims, Christians, Army, Police
and Airforce barracks have been attacked in more debased and devastated manner.
Since inception of the dreaded sect, government said over 12,000 lives have
been lost to a group of goons who have drawn a battle line against the
government forces. The once, continental super -force in peace Keeping and
Peace enforcement has failed to restore peace in the northern zone of Nigeria
with their might and intelligence. But why has the Nigeria Army failed in her
own case?
The United States said that the Nigerian military is becoming afraid of
engaging the Boko Haram insurgents. According to the recent reports, the US Air Force Chief of staff, Gen.
Mark Welsh III testifying on last week before the Senate Foreign Relations
Committee said, “We’re now looking at a military force that is, quite frankly,
becoming afraid to even engage. The United States doesn’t have the capacity,
the capability to go rescue every kidnapped person around the world.”
The New York
Times also reported that the US might choose to minimise its involvement in the
search for the over 200 schoolgirls abducted by Boko Haram due to doubts over
Nigeria’s military capabilities. It was also reported that the US had
questioned the ability of the Nigerian military to rescue the girls even with
international help.
According to the Pentagon’s Principal Director
for African Affairs, Alice Friend, “The Nigerian military has the same
challenges with corruption that every other institution in Nigeria does. Much
of the funding that goes to the Nigerian military is skimmed off the top, if
you will”.
US officials
have also said that its involvement had also been made difficult because
Nigerian officials ignored past warnings to soften brutal tactics that only
fuelled the Boko Haram’s insurgency.
In spite of
these observations by the US, senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing,
officials condemned the kidnappings and committed American aid to help rescue
the girls. But they also expressed frustration at Nigeria’s political and
military leaders for failing to heed Washington’s warnings about the extremist
group.
Principal
Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs, Robert Jackson said.
“From our own difficult experiences in
Afghanistan and Iraq, we know that turning the tide of an insurgency requires
more than force. The state must demonstrate to its citizens that it can protect
them and offer them opportunity. When soldiers destroy towns, kill civilians
and detain innocent people with impunity, mistrust takes root.”
Speaking on
why the Nigerian Army cannot win the war against Boko Haram, Borno State
Governor Kashim Shettima painted a picture of doubt and gave reasons why the
country’s security operatives are finding it hard to win the war against
insurgency in Nigeria’s northeast.
Some weeks
ago, when he was addressing State House Correspondents after meeting with
President Goodluck Jonathan on the latest attacks by the terrorist sect at Izge
in Gwoza Local government of the state, Shettima noted that members of
terrorist sect, Boko Haram, were better armed than the security operatives
expected to smoke them out. He added that they are also better motivated by their
financiers to continue wreaking havoc on the nation.
“What we are
being confronted with is that we are in a state of war. It is what I came to
update Mr. President; the sooner we stopped playing the ostrich and rise up to
the challenges of the day, and Marshall all resources towards neutralising the
antics of Boko Haram, the better for all of us.
“But the
bottom line is that we need more resources, more boot on ground. In all
fairness to the officers and men of the Nigerian Army and Police, they are doing
their best given the circumstances they have found themselves in. But honestly
Boko Haram are better armed and are better motivated than our own troops. And
believe me, I am an eternal optimist as I have always said but I am also a
realist. Given the present state of affairs, it is absolutely impossible for us
to defeat Boko Haram,” he said.
With the
President declaring a state of emergency in the three states in order to tackle
the Boko Haram insurgency, many Nigerians gave sigh of relief thinking that the
battle would soon be over, but few weeks after however, the war with the
terrorist group rages on with the group focusing more on innocent civilians.
Villages, members of vigilante teams as well as students have suffered deadly
attacks from the Boko Haram sect.
However,
a question on the lips of the frightening
mass of the country is whether Nigeria’s military forces are capable of winning
the war against terror or not.
Security
experts disclosed that some factors are responsible on why the government and
the military cannot win the war. According to them, the politicization of the
war by the military is part of the reasons. Reports said some ‘powerful’
politicians are behind the group. Political statements are being made on a
daily basis, further laying credence to insinuations that some forces are more
powerful than the state.
“The absence
of a substantive Defence Minister is also not helping matters. The Minister for
Defence should be someone who will be able to decipher military language, so
that the Defence Ministry will live up to its billing. Presently, it is an open
secret that the Ministry of Defence is not operating at its full potential”, a
report stated.
Also working
against the Nigeria military in the Boko Haram war, is an alleged operational
deficiencies especially within the chain of command, which has also given the
terrorists more confidence in the war. A certain report also quoted that the
anti-terror fighting force had grossly under-stocked armouries. General
Mohammed Yusuf of the Nigerian Army confirmed that during a gunfight with Boko
Haram in Gubio, Borno State in September, soldiers ran out of ammunition and as
a result, the country lost an officer and dozens of valiant men.
According to
him, it’s an indication that the terrorists in some cases could be better
equipped even than the army as the General disclosed that the terrorists were
armed with anti-aircraft guns.
A report
from a Street Journal said one other thing that worked against the soldiers
according to was that the aerial operation that should have preceded the
advancement of the troops was cancelled at the last minute without proper
communication with the soldiers who had already advanced.
But despite
the alleged superiority of the Boko Haram goons over the Nigeria Army, military
spokesman, Brigadier General Ibrahim Attahiru denied the claims but stated that
the terrorists are not better armed than Nigerian troops.
It was reported that some months ago, the
terrorists allegedly swooped on the military camp and caught the soldiers
unaware. While 15 of the terrorists were killed in the shootout that ensued,
not less than 12 military men were lost or unaccounted for.
Even Abubakar
Shekau had the effrontery to claim that his men overran a military camp and
soldiers fled. In the video that has been tagged “fake” by military
authorities, Shekau claimed that Boko Haram captured an Armoured Personnel
Carrier and a Hilux van belonging to the Joint Task Force. Investigation said Nigerian
soldiers are often under-equipped.
Speaking on why
the military seems to have failed in their national task of protecting the
national security, a security expert of 36 years of experience in policing and
investigation, the Lagos State former Commissioner of Police, Alhaji Abubakar
Tsav, recalled that the war against insurgency was a very difficult one to
fight because, according to him, the enemy is not known and their territory are
not defined. He said. “The insurgents don’t wear any marks of identity. This
apart, the Boko Haram insurgents are mixed with members of the general public
and are using guerrilla war tactics”. He continued, “They are also alleged to be better equipped
than our soldiers. Our troops are said to be not properly looked after”.
Tsav also
claimed the media reports that some military commanders are sympathetic to Boko
Haram. “It is said that our soldiers and other politicians are making a lot of
money from the insurgency and would not like the crises to end. These and other
reasons pose a stumbling block against military success in their campaign
against Boko Haram”, he concluded.
President
General Easter Union, a social-cultural organization of the old East Central
States in Lagos State, Honourable Charles Anike, disclosed that Nigeria forces
cannot win the Boko Haram war because of what he simply –sabotage.
According to him, there were very grave
dangers in the execution of the Boko Haram war by the Nigeria troop because of
saboteurs in their rank. “There are serious and too many saboteurs in our
security system as far as this insurgency are concerned. The sect has
successfully infiltrated our security forces, so much so that before you make
any plan, they are already alerted”, he quipped.
He explained
that so many factors are responsible for the failure of the Nigeria army in
combating Boko Haram.
To him, religious
sympathy, financial gains, political considerations and balancing of power
equation are the major factors that have made the Nigeria army cheap and weak
in enforcing their military role in maintaining peace and order in the growing
restiveness and war of attrition in Nigeria. He said Nigeria military forces
are now military with ‘tribal marks’ and expressed fear if such an army could
win a war.
Anike
disclosed that tribal sentiments of the military arose because there is an
ongoing gang up against President Goodluck Jonathan’s led government because of
his tribe. “There is also unbridled corruption in the military”, he said.
Former army
officer and now a Public Relation consultant, who wouldn’t want his name mentioned,
said Nigeria Army is
weak due to some factors of motivation in terms of welfare of soldiers. “Some
of them are not happy because those that lost their lives have their families
treated shabbily. In USA, if a soldier dies in an operation, the family becomes
millionaires because the government will take all their bills but here, it is
not the case. This affects morale”, he stated
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