Babangida: Boko Haram can’t survive!
Love him or loathe him, there is no ignoring the fact that Babangida presided over Nigeria’s destiny for eight years. Why he is on my radar today is because at 73, like old wine, he seems to be getting better with age. I refer to his press conference to mark his 73rd birthday where he […]
Love him or loathe him, there is no ignoring the fact that Babangida presided over Nigeria’s destiny for eight years. Why he is on my radar today is because at 73, like old wine, he seems to be getting better with age. I refer to his press conference to mark his 73rd birthday where he fielded questions on a wide range of national issues. I have always maintained that our refusal to collectively confront the evil of terrorism ravaging the land is at the bottom of Boko Haram’s seeming ascendancy. Instead of fighting a common threat our leaders have been spinning irresponsible conspiracy theories about the origin, funding and arming of the terrorist group. Now that it is clear that every Nigerian is a potential victim, it has become even more urgent, indeed imperative, that prominent people like Babangida add their voices and share their perspectives on how we can rid every inch of our land of the vermin.
There are seven former presidents or heads of state alive today. Every one of them ought to be in the public space in these critical times. I agree with Babangida that in the present circumstances it is dangerous for the military to just go and flush out Boko Haram in a no-holds-barred assault for the simple reason that by so doing we may not get the abducted girls back alive. The time to swiftly mount an all-out counter-offensive has since passed. Now we need the expertise of professional soldiers and security experts to chart the proper course of action.
The former head of state re-echoes the frustration of those who have been clamouring for dialogue with the terrorist group towards ending the bloodletting. “You go into negotiation with people you know, people you identify, people you see”, says IBB. “In this case, who do you negotiate with? That is the problem. Surely, I don’t believe government should call Shekau (Boko Haram’s leader) to sit on the table and talk. So who do you talk to? Nobody! If there are identified persons who, for one reason or the other know why they are fighting, they should come out openly, say this is what they want. To be fair to the Federal Government, who do they talk to? Tomorrow, if they come out to say, ‘this is the leadership, this is the structure, these are our grievances, this is what we want’, then they can sit down and talk; but so far, it hasn’t happened.”
As we have argued on these pages before, IBB says Boko Haram insurgency is not the problem of Northern Nigeria alone. Terrorism knows no boundaries. “I did say that the insurgency is the problem of this country, not the problem of any particular group and we should see it as a Nigerian problem and there has to be a Nigerian solution to a Nigerian problem”, says the former military president. Foreign technical help is desirable but the real physical combat has to be the responsibility of the Nigerian security forces. It is puerile to expect that foreign fighters will come to Nigeria to help the country defeat Boko Haram. “What they (foreign governments) are doing is assisting with some assets which we don’t have and that is normal because it happened in the past when the British went to the Falklands”, he says.
As a former commander-in-chief, does he think the Nigerian armed forces have the capacity to defeat Boko Haram? The celebrated coward and incurable optimist that I am, I was impressed by IBB’s answer: “The insurgents know one thing — that they don’t have the strength, they don’t have the power to confront a regular army; that is why they are involved in bombings and suicides. The whole purpose is to strike fear in the minds of the public with the hope that if it continues the people would begin to doubt the capability of government to protect them. They can’t hold the ground and the fact that they resort to breaking up bridges, creating obstacles, shows you that they are not capable of confronting the army. The military has the experience and I know it knows what to do and should win that war.”
He has harsh words for rabble rousers who blow hot air over issues of regional entitlements. While acknowledging that they are dividing Nigerians and spreading hate, he thinks they should just be ignored because in the final analysis they are inconsequential attention-seekers. “Those who are ranting only do it in posh hotels in Abuja. You don’t see them with people. I challenge any one of them to go there and say, ‘I am the leader and I am ready to take you to war’. Nobody is doing that. I would be glad to see any of them either in the creeks or in the forest telling the people to follow him. I want to see them in uniform saying they are ready to lead their followers to the creeks. I think Nigerians should just ignore them.
“We have had history of real leaders. I give credit to Adaka Boro. For example, in 1964 I was a young officer; he had people, he led people and he was a very charismatic person. Now these guys are enjoying the ‘whatever’ and they would sit down and say they would go to war. They should try it and let’s see what happens”.
Babangida thinks the military should not be involved in civil matters such as elections because there is a tendency that they could be corrupted and civilianised. “Equip the police which is supposed to be closer to the people”, he counsels; “train them and they would be able to handle this task.”
The significance of IBB’s intervention, coming a couple of months after General Buhari’s denunciation of Boko Haram’s terrorism, is significant in that it sends signals to the terrorists that they have nowhere to hide. Other prominent political and spiritual leaders should speak up.
Adieu Prof. Ade Ajayi
My condolences to the family of recently deceased Prof. Ade Ajayi, the man who relinquished vice-chancellorship rather than throw his students into the gaping jaws of military sharks. God bless his noble soul.