•‘Militarily, Boko HaraM Has Been DefeateD’ •
military do right on election deployment?
Honestly, I will speak from my own perspective, which is that we have a responsibility to ensure peace. I have the responsibility to ensure that there was no violence. We have the responsibility to ensure that the country is stable and others have their interpretations.From our own perspective, what we went out for we achieved it. This is because we deployed in the possible flash points, flash areas where violence always erupts, where violence starts, where people converge to hatch ideas other than positive feelings. We were deployed all over there, drawing from 2011 too. The post-election violence of 2011, where those things emerged we deployed in all those areas, and hooligans, vandals and thugs did not have freedom of action. So everybody is in retrospect believing that it worked. Of course there will be people who for whatever reason will never accept defeat and would never agree they lost. They would keep shouting either wolf or foul or whatever, that they have lost, but majority of law abiding citizens believe that the deployment of soldiers calmed everywhere, and enabled them to come out and they voted and there was no violence.
How was the North East secured for election within the space of six weeks?
I am sure before the deferment or postponement, the atmosphere in the North East was still charged with the activities and violence of the Boko Haram Sect. They still had a hand full of Local Governments across the three states, and inclusive of the fourth state, Gombe State. They had also threatened that they would disrupt elections and the elections will not hold. There were also those who had fears that the army or the Nigerian military did not have visible capacity, to do much between the time frame of reducing the menace and invincibility of the terrorists. Anyone could have as well believed it that it was not going to be possible. Alas, today the reality on ground has vindicated the armed forces of Nigeria, because so much has been done that as at today we are moving into Sambisa forest and hopefully very, very soon the military action will be rested in the North East. At the last council of state meeting, most of the speakers disagreed and wondered what could be done if in the last five years they couldn’t do anything. Is it a miracle or what that they would achieve this? Of course, I convinced them that it was very much achievable, more so that our neighbors, who have been lukewarm had all of a sudden decided to join the battle. They realized in their own right that if Nigeria eventually defeats this terrorism it will empty into their own territories if they do not join the war. Of course Chad had its economic blockade and had to join the war for economic reasons to reopen the routes- the Maiduguri-Malam Fatori-Pulka, from Camerounian side to Chad was blocked by these elements. The Nigerian side was blocked by them, and much of their goods and services were coming from Cameroun and Nigeria, they had no choice but to join the war. Niger also saw the genuine reason to join the war because they knew their country was like a traffic for both Boko Haram, arms and ammunition, and sometimes for recruitment of individuals who they used as war machines and so forth and indoctrinate them. They too decided they were going to join the war because, to me, they saw it lately that we are going to turn this thing around and if we turn it, these elements would run into their countries. Prior to this time, these countries had always been sanctuaries to Boko Haram terrorists, they move in freely and come out freely.
Cameroun did not show much enthusiasm not until they (terrorists) moved in en masse into their country and started causing destruction, killing, kidnapping and so forth. They now realized they also had to fight the Boko Haram terrorists. I tried to explain it to that August body that with our contiguous neighbours showing greater enthusiasm to participating in the war, that the end was near. This is because all we needed now was to push them up, they cannot run into any of those countries, once they all block their borders, we are good to go. And of course, it was reluctantly agreed, and today we are witnesses to what has become of it. So it’s a feat that was never thought of but we have achieved it.
What is your reaction that the six weeks intensified operation that liberated most towns in the Northeast prior to the elections was a political move. What magic were you able to perform within the six weeks that you couldn’t do the last six years? Also, what is your response to allegations that Nigerian troops are reluctant to take over territories captured by foreign troops?
Everybody’s mothers’ soup is sweet, everybody eulogizes his own bearing, his own person or his community. It is the Nigerian media that failed to eulogize the Nigerian armed forces. I will not speak on that, let me rather address the one I know. You see it is plebeian, it is plebeian fury, plebeian anger, plebeian discussion when the people talk. Take for example, you as Green Eagles (Super Eagles) fans; when Green Eagles is losing match, you accuse the mother of the players, you say ‘him mama marry so, so person’ . You will leave the issues and start talking about the coach, and the assistant coaches but you forget that when you are playing a match, you can either win or lose. It is a common knowledge too that the Nigerian Army has been demanding equipment from the government, it is a common knowledge too that part of the seething problems of the war against the insurgency has been requisite modern equipment for the Nigerian Army and the Nigerian Armed forces. It is a common knowledge too that the equipment the Nigerian Army had, were old , aging, obsolete equipment and that we were doing local repairs to maintain them. It is common knowledge too that the Nigerian troops were running from battle, it is also common knowledge too that the government was doing everything it could to buy equipment for the army. At one point this equipment came in, and with my personal effort of ensuring that officers and soldiers were court-martialed, dismissed for running in the face of adversaries, for abandoning the equipment we have and running away and so forth, the psyche of the Nigerian soldier changed. The equipment that arrived changed the battle dynamics, changed the battle platform, everything reversed, the terrorists started running, and we changed the battle. That was what happened. The personality of the chief of army staff, utility of the equipment that arrived, changing the dynamics, changing the individual soldiers itself, that is what we have done. So for the common man who does not understand, let him have his rights to free speech, he can interpret it any way he wishes. But for you who knows you know that certainly nobody was keeping the war to be dying and losing colleagues every day because he hopes he was going to win at the end. What of if victory does not come at the end. Leave them it’s their right to free speech.
From what you have just said now sir, you are telling us that you have no regrets convening the court-martial?
Jesus Christ! One million times, I will redo it. Mind you, the courts are still on. In spite of the public outcry? Is it the public that is fighting the battle. Is it not the same public now that is saying that why did they not do this thing since, why are they doing it now. Public has its say, but war has to be fought and in fighting war, there must be sanctions for people who breach the process of war or for people who ran away from battle.
Where do you draw the balance between what you just said that it is common knowledge that we have aging equipment, that we did not have new equipment, and on the other hand that our soldiers were running away from battle. And now, because the equipment are there they are no longer running but can withstand the enemy?
Ok, what you do not know too is that the battle had been turned before the equipment arrived, because the average officer realized now that if he runs, he would be court martialed. The soldier knows that if he runs away he will be dismissed. So everybody was prepared to stand and fight and die, because if you run back there is nothing. And for the fact that they stood and fought back for hours instead of running caught the Boko Haram by surprise. Terrified, the terrorists turned back and ran, saying these people are not Nigerians, because before when they come and fire….everybody runs away, now people were standing to fight back, and in the sustained fire fight of two hours , three hours they say no, we don’t understand these people (Nigerian troops) anymore and took to their heels. That’s how it started. In Konduga I, Konduga II, Konduga III, we held it, when the other fellow, the other Mr Shekau , I don’t know the number he is now, was killed, it was the old equipment. And it was the soldiers themselves that said; ‘no way, we are not running anywhere, because when you run back that mad man (Minimah) is waiting for you. He will court martial you, he will dismiss you, he will jail you’, and they will remain there to fight instead of run. That was when the ice broke that these people (terrorists) are not invincible, and since then things have picked up. Even the equipment arrived just six weeks ago. You must also note that it is the soldier that fights not the equipment. If I had set up the court martial as soon as I came we wouldn’t have lost all those territories, because at one point they would have realized it that they had to stand and fight. How can it become fashionable that soldiers are running? The worse of it is that they were even running, soldiers were caught telling civilians in Mubi, ‘Boko Haram dey come, Boko Haram dey come’, they were running away, and now you want me to listen to some other persons who say why didn’t we do it since, why did I set up the court martial.
We will like to know what is the level of the effectiveness of the counter insurgency now?
I will tell you that militarily, they (Boko Haram) have been defeated, but as armed groups, thieves, armed robbers, or people who go about to steal, burn markets and loot to go back to the forests that will continue for a while. However, the other programmes of government will take care of those ones. Bomb explosion also happens in civilized worlds where there are no terrorists.
With all these successes is there any lead to the rescue of the captured Chibok girls?
Yes, by the time we capture Sambisa forest completely, we will be able to find out where the Chibok girls are. Because as it is now, anybody you ask, they will say they did not see them, ‘they are not here, they are not there. But when we capture Sambisa forest we will be able to know where they are and government will take it up from there.
Can you give us a projection of where the war against Boko Haram would be headed to in the next six months?
You know the Nigerian is one creature with large accommodation of mind, and whose memory shifts very soon and he forgets everything that happened in the last six months. I am sure that Nigerians would have forgotten that Boko Haram has reigned and terrorized a region of the country. I believe so.