Rita, Bob Nesta Marley’s widow, says who feels it knows it but in Nigeria, the reverse is the case! Here, who feels it does not know it and who does not feel it knows it! The lyrics of “Who feels it (Knows it)”, recorded in 1980 but released in 1981 goes thus: “Every man thinks his burden is the heaviest/But, ooh, yea, come on, they know because they feel”. She adds: “I feel it and I know it/If you feel it, you will know it”
That being the case, we expect Professor Babagana Umara Zulum, governor of Borno state, to know the security situation of his state more than a Minister or presidential aide in far-away Abuja. Apart from the fact that Zulum is the man on ground, he is also, according to the Constitution, the chief security officer of his state. For him to come out to raise the alarm that Boko Haram terrorists were gaining ground in his state means he must have got it up to his throat.
The BBC reported Zulum’s security alert thus: “The governor of Nigeria’s Borno state has warned that jihadist group Boko Haram is making a comeback after its fighters staged a series of attacks and seized control of some parts of the northeastern state. Babagana Zulum called for more military assistance for soldiers fighting the insurgency.
The Nigerian government has down played the governor’s fears, saying security in the country has improved in the last 18 months. Borno state has been at the centre of a 15-year insurgency by Boko Haram, which has forced more than two million people to flee their homes and (has) killed more than 40,000 (people)”
Reuters reported the same story thus: “Nigeria’s Islamist group Boko Haram has renewed attacks and kidnappings in northeastern Borno state with little push-back from security forces, suggesting that authorities in the region were losing ground to insurgents, the state’s governor has said. Militants from Boko Haram and its offshoot Islamic State West Africa Province have mainly operated in the northeast region of NIgeria, attacking security forces and civilians and displacing tens of thousands of people. In the last few years, Nigeria’s military had managed to push back against Boko Haram while internal fights with ISWAP further weakened the group.
“Borno State governor Babagana Zulum said Boko Haram had recently upped attacks, dislodging some military formations in several districts and killing civilians and security forces. It is a setback in the fragile state of Borno and the northeast region, Zulum said during a meeting with security forces in Borno state capital, Maiduguri… Zulum added that the ‘renewed Boko Haram attacks and kidnappings in many communities, almost on a daily basis without confrontation, signalled that Borno state is losing ground’
“Nigeria’s military did not immediately respond to a request for comments. Boko Haram, which is based in Borno state, has adapted its tactics over time, including the use of drones for surveillance and attacks, the military said”.
Sahara Reporters relayed the Federal Government’s response to the Zulum alarm thus: “The President Bola Tinubu-led Nigerian Government has responded to comments made by the Borno state governor, Babagana Zulum, suggesting that the state may be losing control to Boko Haram insurgents. The government, through the Minister of Information, Mohammed Idris, disagreed with Zulum’s claim. The minister emphasized that the administration remains committed to combating terrorism and banditry across the nation. He stated: ‘The Tinubu administration is committed to eradicating acts of banditry and terrorism across the country. The success achieved by the security agencies in the last 18 months are an indication that, indeed, Nigeria is gradually returning to normalcy. Government calls on all, especially the sub-national governments, to join hands to ensure (the) rapid eradication of the remaining pockets of criminal elements wherever they may be’
“The Defence Headquarters also reacted, affirming that troops are making significant sacrifices and doing their best to restore peace in Borno and other troubled states. Director of Defence Media Operations… stressed the importance of recognizing the military’s efforts. He also said that the military is sacrificing a lot in the ongoing fight against terrorism.”
Now, let us attempt a content analysis of the various reports. Zulum kicked the ball rolling by raising the alarm. Obviously, both the government and military authorities did not take kindly to what he said. Did he speak in the open when they expected him to have spoken discreetly with the authorities, security being a very sensitive matter? From the tone of the military authorities, it is like their sacrifice in laying down their life fighting Boko Haram was not appreciated enough. Appreciation is good and it must be given so that the soldiers can be further encouraged to do more but having said that, what is their job if not to make sacrifices for the country? Didn’t they sign to lay down their life for their country? So, doing their job, they aren’t doing anyone a favour in the real sense of it.
But when the same military authorities say they are doing their best, that statement is loaded and must be interrogated. Are they getting the requisite arms and ammunitions? Do they have the numbers? Is motivation good? Is the budget committed to the war efforts adequate? Are the authorities putting square pegs in square holes or are we allowing the ubiquitous NIgerian system to undermine esprit in the military? Importantly, is the local population the military is fighting to protect cooperating with the same military or sabotaging their efforts by collaborating with the terrorists? We must also ask: What is the contribution of the state government to the war efforts? If Gov. Zulum is the chief security officer of his state, it should not only be in words but also in action.
I have gone to this length because, looking at the surface, there is absolutely nothing wrong with Zulum’s wake-up call. He made it at a Special Expanded Security Meeting attended by the appropriate military commands and top traditional rulers. Maybe the “offence” was that the media reported it! Maybe, they should have excused the media from the meeting. Seeing the way the military has taken exceptions to the report, it must have interpreted it as an indictment. But the governor did say there was an improvement; grounds were gained but, sadly, they were being lost again and in an alarming fashion. Some will say, when grounds were gained, did the governor call a press conference to salute the military? Is it only now that grounds were being lost that he must raise an alarm?
The Information minister’s response clearly shows that he sees Zulum’s statement as an attack on the “achievements” of the government in the area of pecking back Boko Haram. Yes, there might have been an improvement in the last 18 months in one theatre of the battle, which is Borno state or the northeast, but the situation is not the same in other parts of the country. My native Ondo State is one area where insecurity has reached an alarming stage in the past few months. Can it be true, then, the reports that terrorists fleeing the theatre of war in the North moved in droves southwards? It is trite that when you liberate a territory, you must hold it; otherwise, you may lose it again and be back to square one. And the latter state may be worse than the former because the enemy could come back better armed and more determined than before.
Jesus Christ illustrated this in Matthew 12: 43 – 45 thus: “ When the unclean spirit is gone out of a man, he walketh through dry places, seeking rest, and findeth none. Then he saith, I will return into my house from whence I came out; and when he is come, he findeth it empty, swept, and garnished. Then goeth he, and taketh with himself seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter in and dwell there: and the last state of that man is worse than the first…” Can this be what is happening in Borno state because Zulum reeled out names of locations where military formations had recently been dislodged by the terrorists?
As a peacemaker, hear my conclusion: The military have been heroic; let’s appreciate them. The Tinubu administration has recorded some successes; let’s encourage it to do more. Gov. Zulum was being alive to his responsibilities by raising the alarm; let’s not throw the baby away with the bathwater. We must quickly act to reverse any Boko Haram comeback.
This is one reason why the foot-dragging on state police must stop. With state police, Gov. Zulum will be able to raise his own forces to confront the terrorists and get the job done as he would want it; no longer will he rely solely on the military. Then, he will feel the heat that the military feel. And who feels it, says Rita Marley, knows it! The man who wears the shoe knows where it pinches!
* Former Editor of PUNCH newspapers, Chairman of its Editorial Board and Deputy Editor-in-Chief, BOLAWOLE was also the Managing Director/Editor-in-Chief of The Westerner newsmagazine. He writes the ON THE LORD’S DAY column in the Sunday Tribune and TREASURES column in the New Telegraph newspaper on Wednesdays. He is also a public affairs analyst on radio and television.
