By Mike Kebonkwu Esq
The nation is sinking into a deeper mire of insecurity and we have got to a breaking point. We got to this point because of bad politics and poor governance of the ruling elite that watered the ground and fertilize the eggs of insecurity. The country has been divided along the fault lines of ethnicity and religion through inflammatory rhetoric and incitement to violence and hatred. The ruling elite are the ones that nursed, nurture and armed miscreants that are now levying war on the country on all fronts. Now, the Nigerian State is contesting for space and authority with insurgents and bandits and other non state actors laying relentless siege to the entire country in campaigns of terror.
General Olusegun Obasanjo had the opportunity of dealing with the budding insecurity that now transmogrified to full blown international terrorists organization of the most violent variant but preferred to treat it as a political issue during his second coming in Third Republic. It did not take time before religious fanatics and ethnic irredentists hijacked it and wear it ideological garb of religious supremacy. Now insurgents, bandits, unknown gunmen and ritualists have taken over the entire country terrorizing citizens while our leaders keep telling citizens to pray to God for safety and protection while appropriating all the security apparatuses of the State to secure themselves.
It couldn’t have been worse than this; not even in hades would there be this level of carnage, human suffering and torments. People are kidnapped for ransoms, and sometimes brutally butchered with gore and graphic images displayed with barbaric savagery in social media.
There is fierce campaign of fear and terror visited on citizens everywhere and we now live like savages of Stone Age; no place is safe any longer. The temerity of the freedom of actions of the bandits in their modus operandi only portrays the country as if there is no government in place. They are not even deterred by the presence of the security forces as they spring ambushes, killing soldiers on patrol. Kaduna State has become a killing zone and assuming the notorious Headquarters of insecurity due to activities of bandits and insurgents as there is no difference between insurgents and bandits anyway.
Before the dust settled on the audacious attack on Kaduna International Airport while some aircrafts were on ground, they followed it up by blowing up the rail track and bombing an Abuja/Kaduna bound train three days after killing scores and kidnapping yet to be ascertained number of passengers. We are told the NRC that about 20 passengers are unaccounted for or missing because we have no proper record ostensibly due to corruption and manipulation of the sales records of tickets. Fear has gripped everybody that commutes to Kaduna as there is now a total blockade by road, rail or air.
Some religious cleric and Sheik who has always defended the bandits asking for amnesty for them has not spoken up yet. We have always drawn the simplistic conclusion that insurgency and banditry are products of illiteracy and poverty. But wait a minute, can a poor hungry person afford an AK47 assault rifle and grenade launchers like we see the bandits display? This cleric spokesman who holds their brief and proselyte for them with full media coverage has not been questioned and the security agencies appear impotent, again for political reasons or religion.
The Kaduna State governor, El Rufai appears nonplussed and completely dazed because his state is bearing the brunt of the activities of the bandits. He has suggested that if the security forces are not able to rein in the bandits, the affected northwest states would have to engage mercenaries. Permit me to restate here once again that mercenaries don’t win wars; they are merchants without a cause to die for. There is no country in history that I know that has won a battle through mercenaries. Their commitment does not go beyond their bank accounts. Ukraine today is standing to Russia with its overwhelming arsenal because the people are willing to defend their country with the last drop of their blood. If we build Nigeria, we will get citizens that will stand up to defend her. Our leaders love for the country is only to satisfy their appetite to milk the country as a cash-cow and siphon our commonwealth offshore.
In any case, calling for mercenaries is a vote of no confidence in our military which is undeserving. Our men on uniform have been paying their dues; yes they can do better only when there is a political will. The criminals that now wear the badge of bandits are the same mercenaries the politicians recruited to prosecute elections for them and possibly make the country ungovernable for Goodluck Jonathan’s government for whatever reason. Now the same governor wants to recruit another set of mercenaries to add to their number as the 2023 elections approach. The governor and his cahoots cannot wash their hands off the crises of insecurity that is plaguing their domain and the country at large.
When the military appear to gain upper hands, we hear shouts and cries of extra judicial killings; they want to eliminate our youths in ethnic cleansing. But we all see the kind of weapons these bandits and criminals display but we are here playing the ostrich. They are out there killing ordinary citizens who can no longer go out in safety to eke out a living for fear of being killed. The military has become like lame ducks as bandits now attack military facilities and even abduct serving officers from the barracks and take the battle to them in their deployments. May we restate that our military has the capacity to deliver on security of lives and property and defend our territorial integrity if only there is a political will. What the military just needs is to be politically neutral to be able to act as the guardian sentinel of our democracy, defend our territorial integrity and uphold the rule of law.
The military should be provided with the necessary platforms and equipment so that we can hold them responsible when and where they fail. Where resources are appropriated, there should be followed through to ensure that the right equipment and armament are procured for the military. We do not need refurbishing of dis-used equipment which breaks down before they are launched into battle. The Nigerian Air Force should be able to comb every bush, forest and vegetation to baptize these criminals with sulphur and pump hot lead into their heads. If corporate organizations are able to procure unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) to gather intelligence, one wonders why our military should not make intelligence gathering a priority. In any case, the Kaduna State governor has said categorically that they have information where the camps of the bandits are with their coordinates and I believe him to be true.
The military should stop media shows and campaign giving figures and statistics of the number of bandits and terrorists neutralized. We can’t afford to be doing propaganda war while the criminals are winning the battle. When the roads are forest are free and farmers can go back to their farms and villages, and we can sleep with two eyes closed that is when we will know that our gallant soldiers have done their beat.
The military should not be thinking of rehabilitating bandits and insurgents; it is not their duty. The military teaching is that anyone carrying weapon is an enemy, you kill him before he kills you. Leave political campaign of rehabilitation of insurgents and bandits to politicians who know how they came about in the first place. The only negotiation the military should have with criminals should be through the backside aperture of their assault rifles. The moment soldiers are called out in aid of civil authority it means it is beyond police duty and maximum force is required. We have emergency in our hands as far as insecurity is concern but the government is shying away from telling the people the truth.
Since the insurgents and bandits prefer to negotiate with force of arms it will be weakness and defeatist to be dialoguing with them. The communities from which these criminal elements are launching their operations and campaigns are accomplices; therefore, there should be no fear of collateral damage. The battle should be taken to them to secure the law abiding citizens and the nation at large.
Nigeria only compares with countries like Somalia, Afghanistan and Yemen in terms of insecurity, not better. We are contending with insurgents, bandits, armed robbers, assassins, ritual killers, kidnappers etc; insecurity has enveloped the country. Elections are coming, the same people are jostling to continue business as usual; please let us rise up and make a revolution with our ballots if the atmosphere will indeed allow for an election. Nigeria cannot continue like this; there are crises of unity and crises of leadership and good governance. Things have to change.
The author is accessible via mikekebonkwu@yahoo.com
