Nigerian Military: Why We Lost Mubi, Others to Insurgents
Written by Saxone Akhaine (Kaduna), Mohammed Abubakar, Bridget Chiedu Onochie (Abuja) and Emmanuel Ande (Yola)
Nigeria Guardian
SHORTLY after a feat from an unusual source as local hunters and civilians operating as a joint task force routed Boko Haram, the military yesterday blamed the loss of Mubi and other towns to insurgents on a setback at Bassa.
The Chief of Army Staff, Major General Kenneth Minimah, spoke at a meeting with members of the Senate Committee on Defence over the insurgency in the North East.
The committee invited the Service Chiefs including Minimah, the Chief of Defence Staff, Air Chief Marshal Alex Badeh, Chief of Naval Staff, Rear Admiral Usman Jibrin, the Inspector General of Police, Suleiman Abba, Director General, Directorate of State Security (DSS) Mr. Ekpeyong Ita as well as Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshal Adeola Amos, to brief its members on the security situation in the affected states.
But only Minimah appeared. The Chairman of the Committee, Senator George Thompson Sekibo, briefed the Army Chief, describing the agenda of the parley as very loaded.
He noted that while politicians were busy scheming for the 2015 election, insurgents were on the other hand having a field day especially in the North East.
He informed the army chief that Nigerians were getting impatient, not only with the military but also with the government and those who represent them at various levels.
He said: “I believe that we are trying our best but is our best the best we can offer? What is happening is becoming increasingly difficult to explain to Nigerians. We want to be told what is happening. The insurgents are having a field day.
“We are aware that the government is releasing funds to you because you have not complained. We also approved $1billion for the president to purchase arms and ammunition to fight Boko Haram. We are aware that your budget is being released to you. If you have difficulties you should tell us.
“The increase in insurgency, the way and manner the insurgents are taking areas, is getting worrisome. We want to know what is happening. We also want to know the issue of the reported ceasefire. We want to know whether there was actually any ceasefire.
“We want to know whether there was a dialogue, the stage of the dialogue if any because few days after the announcement of the ceasefire, the insurgents struck and have continued to strike.
“At the last meeting we were told that the insurgents have captured seven local government areas. The CDS confirmed that and asked that they should be given some time to liberate the captured areas.
“We want to know where we are. We are approaching election year, are we going to conduct election in the North East under the dire security challenge? These are our concerns and the concerns of Nigerians.”
Responding, Minimah said he came to meet with the Senate Committee on Defence and would want the press to leave.
The army chief said that security matters were never discussed on the pages of newspapers. But a member of the Committee, Senator Babafemi Ojudu, intervened by reminding Minimah that the press was an important stakeholder in the fight against insurgency.
Ojudu also told the army chief that Nigerians were interested in knowing how the security agencies were prosecuting the fight against insurgency. But Minimah stood his ground.
Another member of the committee, Senator Abdul Ningi, attempted to persuade Minimah to reassure Nigerians on what the military was doing to win the war against insurgency. Here too, Minimah refused to comply.
Before reporters were reluctantly asked to leave the venue of the meeting by Sekibo, it was obvious that the lawmakers were not happy that Minimah refused to tell Nigerians through the press how the war against Boko Haram was progressing. Sekibo promised to brief the press after the closed door meeting.
After about two and half hours of the meeting, Sekibo said: “You (reporters) were here with us when we started at about 1:00 p.m. Now it is about two and half hours. We have deliberated on the security issues affecting our country and the chief of army staff has also responded on all the issues that were raised before him.
“As a committee, we have come to find out or have an opinion that the Nigeria Army is doing well. There are areas where we may have setbacks because this insurgency is not a conventional warfare.
“Because it is not conventional, few mistakes might come here and there and the issue is that they will be corrected.
“We are also assured that within a very short period, some of the territories that were taken by the insurgents will be taken back for the country.
“We are assured to inform our constituents that it will not go worse than what we have now. We believe from the charge we have given to them from tomorrow and perhaps the nearest couple of weeks, we are going to have better results.
“When a man is in a tunnel, when you are getting close to the end of the tunnel, you will always see light but at the middle of the tunnel, it is always very dark. I think this is our dark hours and I believe that as we are going towards the end of the tunnel, we are going to see light and the military will be able to salvage Nigeria from this problem.”
On his part, Minimah said: “We had a setback in Bassa that resulted in loss of territories up to Mubi. Although it is painful, we are working very hard to retake those territories.
“And very soon we will reclaim those territories and indeed other territories that the insurgents have taken.
“I want to continue to rekindle the confidence of Nigerians and particularly the ordinary Nigerians who have suffered the pain of this insurgency, that the Nigeria Army will continue to do its best and strive to win this war and reclaim the lost territories,” he said.
Besides, Catholic bishops under the aegis of the Catholic Bishops Conference of Nigeria (CBCN) yesterday held a closed door meeting with President Goodluck Jonathan at the Presidential Villa, Abuja on how to find an immediate stop to the insecurity.
They demanded to be included in the provision of relief materials to the internally displaced persons (IDPs) in the various refugee camps. They said that the distribution of relief materials by the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) had fallen short of the expectations of the Catholics.
In an interview with State House correspondents after the meeting, the President of CBCN, Bishop Ignatius Kaigama, expressed deep concern about the aim and philosophy of the Boko Haram, which he said were aimed at wiping out Christians from the country.
Also on the delegation were the Metropolitan Archbishop of Abuja, John Cardinal Onaiyekan, and Bishop of Sokoto Catholic Diocese, Dr. Mathew Hassan Kukah. There were also Ministers of Works, Mike Onolememen, Federal Capital Territory Minister of State, Olajumoke Akinjide and her counterpart in Education, Prof. Viola Onwuliri.
On their discussion with the president, Kaigama, who doubles as the Catholic Bishop of Jos said: “We had some concerns about the situation of security in the nation as well as political developments. So in general terms we shared with him in a conversation and discussion.
“We just wanted to remind him of things he already knew, there was nothing we said that was new, we just wanted to lay emphasis and we wanted him to know we are concerned.”
While he agreed that the president was already doing his bit, based on the briefing he gave the group, he believed that a lot still needed to be done to satisfy the Catholics.
His words: “The president has assured us that he is on top of the situation. They are reviewing strategies and all that and by the grace of God this terrorism that we are witnessing will soon be a thing of the past. This is the assurance we are coming away with.
“But we feel that things are not right. Territorially our land is being taken away, the people we look after are displaced, their homes, their villages, towns are captured and they are internally displaced being refugees in their own land. We thought this is not right. We have families that are just stranded. We thought that the president should know.
“As Catholics, we have laid a good structure for relief and taking care of such a situation. We want the government to collaborate with us. We have what we call the Catholic Peace and Justice, Commission (JCPC) through which we respond whenever there is an emergency. We know how to technically do registration of displaced people.
“The little funds we gather we buy clothings and materials and are able to reach out very effectively, you would almost say scientifically because every victim gets something. So we are telling government that we are aware of the wonderful efforts they are making, the relief they give through NEMA and other agencies. But the effectiveness of the distribution is our concern.
“We are here with long years of experience. As a Catholic church, we don’t discriminate. In fact, 90% of the people we give relief to are not Christians or even Catholics, so we should be brought on board. We should combine the skill of registering adequately displaced people and then knowing the right approach to give them relief so that they can feel the impact. What is being done now is not effective and that is the truth.”
Asked if the bishops believed that Boko Haram activities were targeted against Christians, the cleric said it was a not a new development as the terrorists’ agenda was very clear – that of destroying what according to them is not authentic Islam.
“The Christians fall into that category and so we are the major target just like the government is a target, the Christians are a major target, other Nigerians are also targets, but we suffer more.
“For instance the Bishop of Maiduguri will tell you how many of his parishes have all been destroyed. His minor seminary, his convent and clinics where sisters work, have all been destroyed. Then the priests are on the run, reverend sisters have all abandoned their homes, they are all on the run.
“In Yola you find that many people are distressed and displaced. While we admit that some Muslims are also targeted we want to believe that the principal aim and concern of Boko Haram is to eliminate Christianity and pave the way for the total Islamisation of the country.”
Meanwhile, northern leaders said yesterday that the military had failed in its responsibility to protect Nigerians against Boko Haram insurgency.
They urged the Federal Government to immediately direct all its reserve forces, comprising retired military personnel to support the fight against the terrorists in the country.
The northern elders, under the aegis of the Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) met in Kaduna to discuss the increasing wave of the Boko Haram insurgency and other national issues.
They said that it was time for government to act fast in order to save the nation from terrorist activities which had adversely affected the economy of the North East.
In a statement after the joint meeting of ACF Board of Trustee (BoT) and National Executive Council (NEC), chaired by the BoT Chairman, Alhaji Adamu Fika, the elders said that “the joint meeting deliberated with great pains on the continually deteriorating security situation in the country, especially in the north.”
They said that “the Federal Government should seriously address the increasing violence.”
The statement, signed by the Secretary General of ACF, Col. John Paul Ubah (rtd) noted that the recent Boko Haram insurgency had continued to increase the loss of lives and property, “with the aged, men, women and children, being dislocated and made refugees in their own country and neighbouring countries, and who largely remained uncared for.”
The statement added: “The Federal Government should bring an end to this unnecessary wanton destruction of lives and property. The government should be advised to seriously consider the possibilities of using available trained and battle-tested reservoir of manpower of the retired armed forces and other security agencies to participate in bringing to an end this current menace of wanton destruction.”
The ACF reminded the government “of its responsibilities of ensuring the security of lives and property and the wellbeing of the citizenry.”
Other issues deliberated upon by the Arewa elders included northern unity, just as they agreed on meeting with other northern interests on a continual basis to forge a common cause.
The local hunters recovered five Armoured Personnel Carriers (APC) from the insurgents, who have defied the military. Mubi was captured by the terrorists two weeks ago after allegedly chasing federal troops into Cameroun.
A local hunter, James Tutu, said yesterday that over 75 insurgents were killed in Maiha by his colleagues. Hundreds of others were wounded and arrested.
Sources disclosed that the hunters recaptured the 234 Army Battalion abandoned by the soldiers, as well as other strategic security formations in the area which the insurgents captured when they seized Mubi.
The local hunters uprooted the flags hoisted by the insurgents and replaced them with those of Nigeria.
A resident, Alhaji Abu Aminu, said the palace of the Emir of Mubi which had been converted to the headquarters of the insurgents had been taken over by the hunters.
The Governor of Adamawa Sate Bala Ngillari who confirmed the development in Yola said that “the insurgents have been flushed out of Mubi and are on the run.”
Ngillari said that the success recorded in the fight against the Boko Haram insurgents was the work of God, noting: “God is in this business of security in Adamawa State. You know in the last one week or so, the government has decided to be working with the vigilance group ‘Yan Baka’, local hunters and civilian JTF. They have been working hand in hand with our security forces.”
The governor said that following the success recorded, the insurgents had been completely routed from Mubi and were fleeing towards Askira.
 |
| Federal Republic of Nigeria Army Chief of Staff Maj. Gen. Kenneth Minimah discusses why they lost Mubi. |
Nigeria Guardian
SHORTLY after a feat from an unusual source as local hunters and civilians operating as a joint task force routed Boko Haram, the military yesterday blamed the loss of Mubi and other towns to insurgents on a setback at Bassa.
The Chief of Army Staff, Major General Kenneth Minimah, spoke at a meeting with members of the Senate Committee on Defence over the insurgency in the North East.
The committee invited the Service Chiefs including Minimah, the Chief of Defence Staff, Air Chief Marshal Alex Badeh, Chief of Naval Staff, Rear Admiral Usman Jibrin, the Inspector General of Police, Suleiman Abba, Director General, Directorate of State Security (DSS) Mr. Ekpeyong Ita as well as Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshal Adeola Amos, to brief its members on the security situation in the affected states.
But only Minimah appeared. The Chairman of the Committee, Senator George Thompson Sekibo, briefed the Army Chief, describing the agenda of the parley as very loaded.
He noted that while politicians were busy scheming for the 2015 election, insurgents were on the other hand having a field day especially in the North East.
He informed the army chief that Nigerians were getting impatient, not only with the military but also with the government and those who represent them at various levels.
He said: “I believe that we are trying our best but is our best the best we can offer? What is happening is becoming increasingly difficult to explain to Nigerians. We want to be told what is happening. The insurgents are having a field day.
“We are aware that the government is releasing funds to you because you have not complained. We also approved $1billion for the president to purchase arms and ammunition to fight Boko Haram. We are aware that your budget is being released to you. If you have difficulties you should tell us.
“The increase in insurgency, the way and manner the insurgents are taking areas, is getting worrisome. We want to know what is happening. We also want to know the issue of the reported ceasefire. We want to know whether there was actually any ceasefire.
“We want to know whether there was a dialogue, the stage of the dialogue if any because few days after the announcement of the ceasefire, the insurgents struck and have continued to strike.
“At the last meeting we were told that the insurgents have captured seven local government areas. The CDS confirmed that and asked that they should be given some time to liberate the captured areas.
“We want to know where we are. We are approaching election year, are we going to conduct election in the North East under the dire security challenge? These are our concerns and the concerns of Nigerians.”
Responding, Minimah said he came to meet with the Senate Committee on Defence and would want the press to leave.
The army chief said that security matters were never discussed on the pages of newspapers. But a member of the Committee, Senator Babafemi Ojudu, intervened by reminding Minimah that the press was an important stakeholder in the fight against insurgency.
Ojudu also told the army chief that Nigerians were interested in knowing how the security agencies were prosecuting the fight against insurgency. But Minimah stood his ground.
Another member of the committee, Senator Abdul Ningi, attempted to persuade Minimah to reassure Nigerians on what the military was doing to win the war against insurgency. Here too, Minimah refused to comply.
Before reporters were reluctantly asked to leave the venue of the meeting by Sekibo, it was obvious that the lawmakers were not happy that Minimah refused to tell Nigerians through the press how the war against Boko Haram was progressing. Sekibo promised to brief the press after the closed door meeting.
After about two and half hours of the meeting, Sekibo said: “You (reporters) were here with us when we started at about 1:00 p.m. Now it is about two and half hours. We have deliberated on the security issues affecting our country and the chief of army staff has also responded on all the issues that were raised before him.
“As a committee, we have come to find out or have an opinion that the Nigeria Army is doing well. There are areas where we may have setbacks because this insurgency is not a conventional warfare.
“Because it is not conventional, few mistakes might come here and there and the issue is that they will be corrected.
“We are also assured that within a very short period, some of the territories that were taken by the insurgents will be taken back for the country.
“We are assured to inform our constituents that it will not go worse than what we have now. We believe from the charge we have given to them from tomorrow and perhaps the nearest couple of weeks, we are going to have better results.
“When a man is in a tunnel, when you are getting close to the end of the tunnel, you will always see light but at the middle of the tunnel, it is always very dark. I think this is our dark hours and I believe that as we are going towards the end of the tunnel, we are going to see light and the military will be able to salvage Nigeria from this problem.”
On his part, Minimah said: “We had a setback in Bassa that resulted in loss of territories up to Mubi. Although it is painful, we are working very hard to retake those territories.
“And very soon we will reclaim those territories and indeed other territories that the insurgents have taken.
“I want to continue to rekindle the confidence of Nigerians and particularly the ordinary Nigerians who have suffered the pain of this insurgency, that the Nigeria Army will continue to do its best and strive to win this war and reclaim the lost territories,” he said.
Besides, Catholic bishops under the aegis of the Catholic Bishops Conference of Nigeria (CBCN) yesterday held a closed door meeting with President Goodluck Jonathan at the Presidential Villa, Abuja on how to find an immediate stop to the insecurity.
They demanded to be included in the provision of relief materials to the internally displaced persons (IDPs) in the various refugee camps. They said that the distribution of relief materials by the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) had fallen short of the expectations of the Catholics.
In an interview with State House correspondents after the meeting, the President of CBCN, Bishop Ignatius Kaigama, expressed deep concern about the aim and philosophy of the Boko Haram, which he said were aimed at wiping out Christians from the country.
Also on the delegation were the Metropolitan Archbishop of Abuja, John Cardinal Onaiyekan, and Bishop of Sokoto Catholic Diocese, Dr. Mathew Hassan Kukah. There were also Ministers of Works, Mike Onolememen, Federal Capital Territory Minister of State, Olajumoke Akinjide and her counterpart in Education, Prof. Viola Onwuliri.
On their discussion with the president, Kaigama, who doubles as the Catholic Bishop of Jos said: “We had some concerns about the situation of security in the nation as well as political developments. So in general terms we shared with him in a conversation and discussion.
“We just wanted to remind him of things he already knew, there was nothing we said that was new, we just wanted to lay emphasis and we wanted him to know we are concerned.”
While he agreed that the president was already doing his bit, based on the briefing he gave the group, he believed that a lot still needed to be done to satisfy the Catholics.
His words: “The president has assured us that he is on top of the situation. They are reviewing strategies and all that and by the grace of God this terrorism that we are witnessing will soon be a thing of the past. This is the assurance we are coming away with.
“But we feel that things are not right. Territorially our land is being taken away, the people we look after are displaced, their homes, their villages, towns are captured and they are internally displaced being refugees in their own land. We thought this is not right. We have families that are just stranded. We thought that the president should know.
“As Catholics, we have laid a good structure for relief and taking care of such a situation. We want the government to collaborate with us. We have what we call the Catholic Peace and Justice, Commission (JCPC) through which we respond whenever there is an emergency. We know how to technically do registration of displaced people.
“The little funds we gather we buy clothings and materials and are able to reach out very effectively, you would almost say scientifically because every victim gets something. So we are telling government that we are aware of the wonderful efforts they are making, the relief they give through NEMA and other agencies. But the effectiveness of the distribution is our concern.
“We are here with long years of experience. As a Catholic church, we don’t discriminate. In fact, 90% of the people we give relief to are not Christians or even Catholics, so we should be brought on board. We should combine the skill of registering adequately displaced people and then knowing the right approach to give them relief so that they can feel the impact. What is being done now is not effective and that is the truth.”
Asked if the bishops believed that Boko Haram activities were targeted against Christians, the cleric said it was a not a new development as the terrorists’ agenda was very clear – that of destroying what according to them is not authentic Islam.
“The Christians fall into that category and so we are the major target just like the government is a target, the Christians are a major target, other Nigerians are also targets, but we suffer more.
“For instance the Bishop of Maiduguri will tell you how many of his parishes have all been destroyed. His minor seminary, his convent and clinics where sisters work, have all been destroyed. Then the priests are on the run, reverend sisters have all abandoned their homes, they are all on the run.
“In Yola you find that many people are distressed and displaced. While we admit that some Muslims are also targeted we want to believe that the principal aim and concern of Boko Haram is to eliminate Christianity and pave the way for the total Islamisation of the country.”
Meanwhile, northern leaders said yesterday that the military had failed in its responsibility to protect Nigerians against Boko Haram insurgency.
They urged the Federal Government to immediately direct all its reserve forces, comprising retired military personnel to support the fight against the terrorists in the country.
The northern elders, under the aegis of the Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) met in Kaduna to discuss the increasing wave of the Boko Haram insurgency and other national issues.
They said that it was time for government to act fast in order to save the nation from terrorist activities which had adversely affected the economy of the North East.
In a statement after the joint meeting of ACF Board of Trustee (BoT) and National Executive Council (NEC), chaired by the BoT Chairman, Alhaji Adamu Fika, the elders said that “the joint meeting deliberated with great pains on the continually deteriorating security situation in the country, especially in the north.”
They said that “the Federal Government should seriously address the increasing violence.”
The statement, signed by the Secretary General of ACF, Col. John Paul Ubah (rtd) noted that the recent Boko Haram insurgency had continued to increase the loss of lives and property, “with the aged, men, women and children, being dislocated and made refugees in their own country and neighbouring countries, and who largely remained uncared for.”
The statement added: “The Federal Government should bring an end to this unnecessary wanton destruction of lives and property. The government should be advised to seriously consider the possibilities of using available trained and battle-tested reservoir of manpower of the retired armed forces and other security agencies to participate in bringing to an end this current menace of wanton destruction.”
The ACF reminded the government “of its responsibilities of ensuring the security of lives and property and the wellbeing of the citizenry.”
Other issues deliberated upon by the Arewa elders included northern unity, just as they agreed on meeting with other northern interests on a continual basis to forge a common cause.
The local hunters recovered five Armoured Personnel Carriers (APC) from the insurgents, who have defied the military. Mubi was captured by the terrorists two weeks ago after allegedly chasing federal troops into Cameroun.
A local hunter, James Tutu, said yesterday that over 75 insurgents were killed in Maiha by his colleagues. Hundreds of others were wounded and arrested.
Sources disclosed that the hunters recaptured the 234 Army Battalion abandoned by the soldiers, as well as other strategic security formations in the area which the insurgents captured when they seized Mubi.
The local hunters uprooted the flags hoisted by the insurgents and replaced them with those of Nigeria.
A resident, Alhaji Abu Aminu, said the palace of the Emir of Mubi which had been converted to the headquarters of the insurgents had been taken over by the hunters.
The Governor of Adamawa Sate Bala Ngillari who confirmed the development in Yola said that “the insurgents have been flushed out of Mubi and are on the run.”
Ngillari said that the success recorded in the fight against the Boko Haram insurgents was the work of God, noting: “God is in this business of security in Adamawa State. You know in the last one week or so, the government has decided to be working with the vigilance group ‘Yan Baka’, local hunters and civilian JTF. They have been working hand in hand with our security forces.”
The governor said that following the success recorded, the insurgents had been completely routed from Mubi and were fleeing towards Askira.
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