By Ayo Oyoze Baje
The piece of heart-rending news of the resurgence of attacks by Boko Haram insurgents in Borno state, that got the governor, Kashim Shettima breaking down in tears, recently in Aso rock calls for sober reflection. In attendance at the meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari were all three senators from the state, members of the House of Representatives, the Chief of Defence Staff, National Security Adviser, Director General of the Department of State Service (DSS) and the Director General of the National Intelligence Agency (NIA).
That underscores the seriousness of the issue of the protection of lives and property by the government, as enshrined in Section 14, Sub-Section 2(b) of the 1999 constitution, as amended. In retrospect, there have been similar high-wire meetings on security before now. Billions in Naira of the tax payers’ money have been budgeted every blessed year for over a decade, to battle the insurgency. But it does not only rear its ugly head, it is worsening by the day.
So, the million-dollar questions persist: What do the insurgents really want? Who are those arming them? Who are those benefitting from turning Bornu and similar states into Nigeria’s killing fields? Why has it been difficult to fish them out and prosecute them? That is not all.
Are the killings politically motivated and if so for how long do we need to wait, to mete out justice to the perpetrators? Besides, why grant amnesty to the perpetrators of these heinous crimes against humanity; who do not want to die yet have scarce regards for the sanctity of human life? Above all, what are the lasting solutions to this scourge that has rendered thousands of innocent Nigerians homeless, hungry, hounded and left naked to the elements of sun and wind, with others sent to their early graves?
Until those in power answer these critical questions we may long continue to wallow in grand self deceit. There have been several media reports over the past one year that presaged the renewed attacks on innocent citizens of the state. But why has it been difficult to take proactive measures to stem the tide of preventable bloodletting?
A look at a few of the news reports would suffice. For instance, on February 1, 2018 the news was that some ‘Suicide Bombers Target North East Nigeria In Boko Haram ‘Fight-Back’. On August 2018 at least 17 soldiers were reportedly killed in a fresh Boko Haram attack on a military base in the Borno. That was what the military sources told AFP. On September 3 of the same year it was that ‘Death Toll Rises To 48 In Boko Haram Troop Attack, Say Military Sources’. And on December 17, 2018 the news item was that ‘Borno residents flee as soldiers, Boko Haram fighters exchange fire’.
It got to a point that Baga, a fishing village as well surrounding ones such as Dalori, Konduga, Dala Shuwa, Dala Karamsu, Mammanti, Zabarmari, were reportedly taken over by the insurgents. Nigerian soldiers have been engaged in a fierce battle with Boko Haram fighters in Gudumbali town the headquarters of Guzamala local government area where Metele, the village where soldiers were recently massacred, is located.
It was also reported that heavily armed jihadists, riding in trucks stormed and looted weapons and vehicles from a military base in Garunda village in Borno State, the epicentre of the Islamist insu. Residents of Molai, a village four kilometres off Maiduguri, Borno State capital, were recently on the run following a heavy gunfire between soldiers and Boko Haram fighters. This is a battle the government’s spokesperson, Lai Muhammed had some years ago claimed has been ‘technically defeated’. Now we know better!
To fashion the way forward, we must stay away from self deceit. All Nigerians should see themselves as part and parcel of the democratically elected government. Equally significant is to do away with base sentiments of ethnic, religious and political differences. Unguarded, uncouth and potentially volatile vituperations should have no place in the 21st Century Nigeria.
Every evil act emanates from a broken family where the parents are not there as caring mothers or protective fathers. Government must therefore, involve the traditional rulers and opinion leaders from the places of frequent insurgency, in robust and far-reaching dialogue to get to the root causes of sundry crimes. Parents should stop breeding more children that they could adequately cater for. We should also re-engineer the concept of the robust and rich African culture that makes us as our brothers’ keeper.
As the United Nations has recently confirmed, many of those killing innocent Nigerians are blood-thirsty foreigners from the neighbouring Niger Republic, Chad and Cameroun with internal collaborators. We need the security expertise of more advanced countries. Our borders must be effectively policised. After 100 years of Amalgamation we should not allow strangers to undermine our much-cherished unity, which has become our strength.
Sustained awareness creation, in combination with credible information gathering mechanism by the Security forces is the next big step. The numbers to call in emergency situations should be known to all. This is where the noble role of the mass media as the Fourth Estate of the Realm comes into play. The military should collaborate with it, instead of being seen as an adversary, with regards to the Daily Trust saga. There should be frequent dissemination of relevant information even in our local languages down to the grassroots as to the responsibilities of the citizens themselves in forestalling crimes.
In that wise, devolving political power from the attractive, bloated centre to the federating units, as one has suggested severally, has become the sine qua non to our peaceful future. With states controlling their resources and not waiting for dole outs from a federal centre or international donors, they would be prudent in their expenditures. They would rather invest in community policing, build internal confidence and create jobs for their agile youth rather than waiting for the ill-motivated and ill-equipped military to solve their communal crises.
The federal government should ensure that there is adequate funding, more manpower recruitment and capacity building of all the security operatives. They should be well remunerated, live and work within the ambience of comfortable infrastructure and enjoy the best of insurance packages. They have to be so well equipped with the most sophisticated arms and ammunition so that they would not feel incapacitated when they have to confront the insurgents.
There should be confidence building from the police to the citizens. Whistle-blowers should be given maximum protection, to get more evidence-based information to promptly act on and prevent loss of more precious lives. To rein in the rampaging monster of the Boko Haram insurgency, we must do away with the crass culture of impunity.
