Not too long ago, Monguno town in Borno State played host to President Muhammadu Buhari and Vice Professor Yemi Osibanjo with regard to the 2018 Army Day Celebration. According to the Chief of Army Staff, General Tukur Buratai, the choice of Monguno for the 2018 event was intended to celebrate the achievements of the army in its combat efficiency, civil-military relations and its efforts in research, development and technological attainments.
Speaking on the occasion, President Buhari commended the armed forces for keeping Nigeria safe and united as a nation, pointing out, however, that there were still some challenges. According to the President, ”There are pockets of violence in several states; some deliberately instigated by disgruntled politicians who have lost all arguments and are desperate to cause mayhem as a way of seeking relevance. We shall fish them out and punish, according to the provision of the law,” adding, “We have worked tirelessly to ensure and preserve the dignity and sanctity of life.”
President Buhari who reiterated once more, that no religion or culture permits killing, reassured the nation that his administration would not relent in its efforts to ensure the release of the remaining kidnapped Chibok schoolgirls and Leah Sharibu of the Dapchi secondary school. He similarly assured that the issue of farmers and herdsmen clashes was being tackled and that, all those found culpable would be brought to justice.
Speaking in the same vein, Governor Kashim Shettima of Borno state commended President Buhari for his total resolve to bring Boko Haram to its knees. According to him, “Thank God; we have come to the end of insurgency. Suicide attack is a sign of weakness, not strength.”
The Minister of Defence, Brigadier-General Mansur Dan Ali (retd) gave a pat on the back to the Army for establishing a motorcycle battalion to enhance mobility and provide security in areas unfavorable to vehicular movements, as well the Air Force for setting up repaid response groups in the six geographical zones of the country.
The Chief of Defence Staff, General Gabriel Olonisakin pointed out that the military operations in the Northeast were moving from engagements of a combat nature to humanitarian and civilian support services, to assist victims of insurgency to return to their communities.
During the celebration, there was exhibition of various commodities and foodstuffs to show that Monguno, like some other liberated towns in Borno, was gradually shaking off the shackles of the insurgency, as life was gradually returning to normalcy for the affected communities.
In the war of insurgency, the military has discharged its obligation faithfully, diligently and gave the nation “an initial enthusiasm” which must not be overstretched or swallowed the necessity to move forward in the insurgency war which must be total and involve all the stakeholders. In short, the initial enthusiasm of the military successes should not be followed by “a chronic inertia,” by the people. The military has its limits in the application of weapons in this war. There is equally the need to complement it with political, religious and other options working together and in synergy for the overall success of this war.
But, really, the solution to this war of insurgency rests on the commitment and involvement of all the stakeholders, both military and civilian. It is completely erroneous to be of the view that once the military liquidation of the terrorist is achieved, all is over. This is not true from the history of the military in war or military in governance. In the ongoing war against the insurgency, the Nigerian military has witnessed deaths, blood and sorrows. The Nigerian military has degraded and decimated Boko Haram and technically defeated the sect.
Camp Zairo, the terrorists’ headquarters at Sambisa forest, is now the keep of the Nigerian soldiers, as the insurgents have been sent packing. All the local government headquarters or areas hitherto held by the terrorists have been liberated, leaving them in complete disarray. Ironically, Monguno, which some years back was sacked by the insurgents who made the Nigerian soldiers flee, is now the centre of the 2018 Army Day celebration where the army displayed its military strength, capacity and capability before President Muhammadu Buhari and Vice President Yemi
Osinbajo.
Writing on “Military in Governance”, based on case studies from Latin America, an author, Liewen, noted that the military is not an instrument of social change. Chidi Amuta in The Post Express of June 2, 1997, restated this extreme position in literature: “If there is any legacy that real soldiers in the strict prosecution of the professional campaign are supposed to leave behind, it is a legacy of orphans, widows and devastation,” those asking soldiers to build cities, bridges, repair shattered lives, restore lost glories while still wearing uniforms may not have the matter through.”
Amuta went further, “In the world of General Abacha or indeed every proper soldier, reality is summed up in the image of the battlefield, a world in which there
are two categories of people, enemy or friend.” He added, “Beauty consists in ruins, what Shakespeare called architecture of ruins, a landscape of shattered homesteads, severed limbs, tattered lives, ravaged farmlands and looted
barns.”
* Izekor, a journalist and public affairs analyst, is Member, Board of Advisers of The Point.