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Neither power-lust nor stupidity are good motives (Ayn Rand)

We've had a lot of agencies try and sabotage our tour (Glenn Danzig)

I have learned to hate all traitors, and there is no disease that I spit on more than treachery (Aeschylus)

Massive, widespread, and pervasive corruption affected all levels of government and the security forces in Nigeria (U.S. Government Report)

Continued from Part 2

abotage is one of the worse forms of betrayal, because of the damages involved. Gen. Ihejirika, the Chief of Army Staff, recently said that on January 19 this year, two soldiers were killed, while five others were injured at Okene, Kogi State, when an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) planted on their path exploded while travelling from Akure to Kachia, Kaduna State to train, preparatory to international peace-keeping operations in Mali. According to the Army Chief, a soldier supplied the information on their movement to the insurgents which led to the successful attack.

A saboteur who commits lese majesty is not loyal to any cause and can be seen as a spy. Even a friend can be an internal saboteur, in that having trusted him or her, the victim had no idea that he has been "sold" at his or her back by this friend (revealing his or her secrets to people whom he or she didn't want his or her secrets to be revealed to at all). President Jonathan is not sure of the loyalty of all his appointees and advisers here. A saboteur causes destruction or pain to others, and then makes him or herself safe before his or illicit action takes effect. A saboteur commits sabotage, because, he or she violates the faith others had in him or her; he or she betrays the trust reposed in him or her, and in the case of the military or a nation, such action is tantamount to treason. A saboteur destroys, disrupts, frustrates, and, undermines a cause; he or she causes great mischief, and puts others in harm's way. Such act is always perfidious or treacherous.

Saboteurs in the current Nigerian government and military are sabotaging the efforts to win the war against the Boko Haram. Some political leaders and top military commanders, sympathetic to the Boko Haram's cause, have contributed their own quotas towards the failure of the mission to rout the Boko Haram sect. Prior to the declaration of the state of emergency, some military commanders sent unequipped troops against the terrorists, thereby causing the death of many military personnel. Tell me how somebody can send his men, with bare hands, to go after well-equipped terrorists, who see killing as "a laurel to win"? (Read more using the link provided at the end of this article).

Likewise, some soldiers and officers of the Nigerian Army have been conspiring with insurgents in the ongoing face-off between the military and militants. The Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lt-General Azubuike Ihejirika, also revealed that some soldiers have been caught relating with the Boko Haram and divulging vital operational secrets of the Army to the Islamist sect. Ihejirika said further that there are some soldiers that have been found to be posting negative comments on the Internet. The Punch Editorial wrote that "despite its deep involvement in the ongoing war to wrest the north-eastern part of the country from the clutches of the blood-thirsty Boko Haram terrorists, the Nigerian military has also been willy-nilly drawn into a battle of wits with fifth columnists in its ranks that are threatening to hamper its operational efficiency. It emerged that the Nigerian Army was also waging an insidious and diversionary war from within when the Chief of Army Staff, Lt.-Gen. Azubuike Ihejirika, stated that some soldiers had been arrested for divulging sensitive information on troop movements to insurgents who are currently engaging the Nigerian state in a fratricidal war. As another Customs official, who allegedly assisted the Boko Haram sect to smuggle arms and ammunition into the country, was arrested, the security agencies should take immediate steps against these enemies within". The Nation put it into perspective when it wrote that "Confounding as these disclosures are, but they are not entirely surprising. President Goodluck Jonathan blew the whistle when he alerted the nation that there were Boko Haram members within his cabinet. But the weight of that alert was whittled down by the inability of his government since then, to catch any of those of his aides aiding and abetting terrorist attacks.

However, comments by sundry personages from the areas prone to these sectarian attacks seem to fuel suspicions that some of the reasons touted for the resurgence of terrorism may after all be far from it. Before now, we have been told that poverty, ignorance and disparity in levels of development of sections of the country were the leitmotif for the growing army of terrorists. We have also been told over again that military solution will prove ineffective in the campaign against the malfeasance. The argument is that once we identify and address these developmental challenges, we would have had the right angle to the orgy of violence that has held this country prostrate these past years. The government bought this idea despite initial ambivalence on its capacity to achieve the desired objective.

Events since has shown no change of heart from the insurgents such that state of emergency is now in force in the three states of Borno, Yobe and Adamawa. And this has thrown up a plethora of further posers. But central to all these is that we have not been told all about Boko Haram. We have neither been told the real reasons for these acts of terrorism nor have we been led into the sources of the funding of the insurgents. What of the high level planning and sophistry in the execution of these numerous attacks? Is it possible for the insurgents to have been that successful in their military incursions without the benefit of superior knowledge in guerrilla warfare and suicide bombing apparently supplied by those well groomed in that art? At any rate, have we cared for the source of those bombs and those that prepare and equip the bombers for their lethal operations? What of the enormous funds that are wasted in them? Yet we talk of poverty as the main reason for these acts of terrorism.

Perhaps, if those funding these terrorist acts had deployed their funds to addressing poverty among the vulnerable segment, some significant progress would have been recorded. Rather than do that they opted to levy war on the country and further annihilate the poor. They (the sect) also have collaborators both in the military and the civilian population. Here, the startling revelations by Ihejirika come in very handy. It is a remote possibility that the insurgents could have been able to hold this country down without the tacit support and collaboration of some insiders both military and civilians. It is also very unlikely that such saboteurs within the army and the larger society are motivated by the simplistic reasons that have often been offered to account for the extreme violence and killings in that part of the country. Neither can it account for the vaulting and stale ambition that it is still possible to Islamize this country of diverse religions, cultures and ethnicity. What will motivate a soldier trained and paid to protect this country to turn round and supply logistic information to insurgents to get his colleagues ambushed and killed cannot be located in poverty? It can only be found in some higher group interest which making this country ungovernable can possibly precipitate. Not long ago, the nation's high profile military training institution, the Staff and Command College Jaji, Kaduna State, was bombed to the greatest embarrassment of the nation. That could not have happened without some insider cooperation. Besides, the leadership of the college was alleged to have received some security report in that regard without taking steps to avert it. Given the training, regimentation and command structure of the military, is it not baffling that such high level sabotage can be found in the army in this very sensitive national challenge?

Ihejirika has a daunting task to discharge by fishing out all saboteurs that are hell bent in undermining his job. The whole idea is to discredit him and he must not allow that to happen. More over, we now hear that the sect had training camps in many parts of the north, sacked some local governments there and installed their own flags. The report that the insurgents nearly brought down one of the nation's fighter jets with anti-air craft batteries, underscores the point that the matter is damn serious. With such a high level military build up in those areas before now, the government failed in providing quick response to the threat of the insurgents. That may have emboldened them in their weird escapades.

The point here is that there is a serious political dimension to the Boko Haram menace. And the sooner we come to terms with this foreboding reality the better for us. I had in this column argued that Boko Haram is nothing but political grievances masquerading under a religious garb. That contention has been borne out by the frustrations of the Army Chief. What will make soldiers to supply secret information on the activities of the military for insurgents to inflict maximum fatalities on our forces? And some others are equally busy posting negative comments on the military so as to discredit that institution. So where is the patriotism the military prides itself for? Not long ago, Obasanjo and Babangida had in a joint statement lamented that patriotic Nigerians had begun to question the basis for the nation's unity. But do we have real patriots or class interest masquerading as patriotism? If we really have patriots, why are they in short supply each time sectional or class interests are seemingly threatened? The inevitable conclusion here is that our leaders are patriotic to the extent that their self interests are not challenged. Such people do not really qualify as patriots. That is why we must restructure the commanding heights of key national institutions in such a manner that no section has absolute control over them. That is the only panacea for political stability".

Not long ago, this column wrote how the former Inspector General of Police, Ringim, who was sacked on January 25, 2012, relocated to the UK on fears that Islamic militants, Boko Haram, may kill him should he return to Nigeria. Ringim luckily escaped in the June 2011 bombing of the Force Headquarters in Abuja, by Boko Haram, a few days after he threatened in Maiduguri, Borno State, to crush the group. Ringim was a prime target in the bombing of the Forces Headquarters, as his itinerary, for that day, was given away to the terrorists by one of his men. What happened was that when the two terrorists, who drove the Honda car laden with explosives meant to blow up the Force headquarters and Ringim's convey, arrived at the premises, they were accosted by the police man on guarded, who questioned why they parked where no visitor is allowed to park. In order to evade arrest and avoid exposing their mission at that point in time, the two terrorists decided to detonate the explosives prematurely, few minutes before the arrival of Ringim's convey. That was what saved the then IGP. Also, the sabotage from within led to the murder of Ringim's deputy in office, Retired DIG Abubakar Saleh Ningi, who was killed along with his police orderly and driver on June 5, 2012. They were shot dead by two gunmen on a motorcycle along Sauna Kawagi Road in Kano metropolis on their way from the retired police boss's farm. Of course, Boko Haram claimed responsibility for the killings; the sect said in a statement on Thursday, June 7, 2012, in Maiduguri, said that it was happy to have murdered the top retired police officer, bragged that very soon all top government officials would be targeted the same way as they will have no hiding place. Also, sabotage led to the November 2012 murder of a civil war commander, General Mamman Shuwa, by the terrorists in Maiduguri despite the fact that he was ringed, 24/7, by security personnel (for protection).

On another but similar case, we learnt that the Nasarawa massacre happened, because, a director leaked information to the cultists. According to the Vanguard (May 23, 2013), a senior director working with the Nasarawa State government has been arrested in connection with the killings of about 100 policemen and security agents in Alakyo, Nasarawa State, about five weeks ago. The officer was alleged to have passed strategic security information to the cultists, thereby enabling them to strike with precision on that fateful day. Vanguard wrote that the director, whose name was given as Mohammed and works at the office of the Secretary to the State Government, was privy to most security decisions taken by the state on account of his position in the administration. The Inspector General of Police, Abubakar Mohammed, also confirmed the arrest of no fewer than 15 officers and men, who allegedly connived with the cult group to massacre the policemen in the state. According to Vanguard: "It would be recalled that no fewer than 96 police officers and men as well as Department of State Service, DSS, officials, who had gone to Eggon, about 10 kilometres away from the Nasarawa State capital, to arrest the leader of the Ombatse shrine, were ambushed and murdered by the cultists on May 9, 2013. The cult group, which had earlier been outlawed by the Al-Makura administration (Governor of the State), was reportedly encouraged by some powerful politicians to continue with its malevolent activities, hoping to use them to outsmart their opponents in the 2015 elections"!

Saboteurs have divided the effort to rout the enemies, as the Nigerian military while fighting the terrorists, is also fighting the enemies within the rank and file, so instead of uniting in a purpose, there's lack of trust, because, those military personnel, sent after the terrorists, are always watching over their shoulders, because, they don't know if the next colleague to them is a mole for the terrorist sect. Saboteurs in the security forces have decimated the esprit de corp the military is known for. My people say that it's dangerous when "a hunter says that the legs of his co-hunter look like those of an antelope". When those who signed to live or to die together, turn around and then start betraying their colleagues, thereby causing their death for whatever reasons, be it pecuniary, ethnic or religious, then know that with such colleagues, one needs no worst enemy again. It's better to know who's your enemy so that you can know how to face or avoid the person, but, when a person you trust, be it in your home, in your work place, in the military, or an acclaimed friend, assures you of his her loyalty to the cause, but, goes behind to "sell" you, and put you in a harm's way in any form, then, that's one of the worst types of deception. It's unfortunate that some military personnel are now willing tools the terrorists are using in hampering the military operations against their sect, and, have provided information leading to the death of some of their colleagues.

Summing this part up, the Punch Editorial was right that "It is indeed quite alarming that, at a period when Nigeria's territorial integrity is on the line, those who have sworn to preserve the inviolability of her borders are now the ones selling out to the enemies. The action of those involved in such activities is not only contemptible and despicable, but is also unpatriotic; it should be condemned in strongest terms and the perpetrators brought to book. It explains why the insurgents that have been spilling innocent blood on a daily basis have proved such a difficult nut to crack. Other security and para-military agencies, especially the Police and the Customs Service, are also said to have been infiltrated by the group and the latest arrest of the Customs officer attests to this.

Since 2009, when the Boko Haram terrorists first bared their fangs in a confrontation with the security forces that resulted in the death of over 700 Nigerians, more than 5,000 people have lost their lives in activities involving the Islamist terror group. Members of the group have bombed churches, police headquarters, attacked prisons on many occasions and freed the inmates. They have attacked mosques, killed prominent citizens, bombed a motor park, invaded schools, killed pupils and teachers. They have attacked military formations and bombed the United Nations building in Abuja and newspaper houses. The list is endless. Not a few Nigerians were therefore shocked by Ihejirika's revelations that the attack on Nigerian soldiers while on their way to Mali for a multi-national military operation was made possible by information provided to the local terrorists by a Nigerian soldier.

From the latest report, it emerged that the insurgents had taken over some local government areas in Borno, Yobe and Adamawa states. President Goodluck Jonathan, in declaring a state of emergency in those states, said the country was not just facing "militancy or criminality, but a rebellion and insurgency by terrorist groups which pose a very serious threat to national unity and territorial integrity. Already, some northern parts of Borno State have been taken over by groups whose allegiance is to different flags and ideologies." It is no doubt a daunting task that the military is confronted with, and only a military with uncommon courage and single-mindedness can emerge victorious against such a formidable opposition as Boko Haram; not a military riddled with moles and fifth columnists.

What is happening in the military is not new but is quite within the capacity of the authorities to deal with it. There was a similar case during the heyday of militancy in the Niger Delta region when soldiers were accused of pillaging the military armoury in Jaji, Kaduna State, and selling weapons worth over N100 million to the umbrella militant group, the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND). All the soldiers involved were promptly arrested and, at the end of a General Court-Martial, those found guilty were sentenced to life jail. For the military to be able to surmount the many obstacles before it, there must be a united front. Working at cross-purposes will only keep Nigeria in a perpetual state of insecurity and instability".

Read more:

https://247ureports.com/nigeria-top-level-sabotage-behind-military-and-civilian-casualties-in-boko-haram-war-military-sources-part-1/

To be continued!

TIT BITS

Remembering Michael Jackson (August 29, 1958 - June 25, 2009)! MJJ, Funny how time flies; it seems as if it was only yesterday you left us. The insatiable world ruined you, and deprived us of your rare talent, but, you're still alive in the hearts of millions of fans world-wide. You remained the greatest till today, and we see nobody, who can dethrone you, on the horizon. Continue to rest in peace, our legendary King of Pop.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I3D2jYiwJOE

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jDhFkkVVxx8

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ppnY0yy-us

THE THANX IS ALL YOURS!!!

Continued from Part 2