Shekau’s ‘caliphate’: Before the invasion of Abuja…

The video vividly captured the blitzkrieg-like assault of the sect’s ‘troops’ on the defensive parameter of the Nigerian troops – if at all it could be called that- which swiftly melted before the sustained assault and the repeated chants of “Allahu-Akhbar!” And as they occupied the town, including what remained of its army garrison, a […]

The video vividly captured the blitzkrieg-like assault of the sect’s ‘troops’ on the defensive parameter of the Nigerian troops – if at all it could be called that- which swiftly melted before the sustained assault and the repeated chants of “Allahu-Akhbar!” And as they occupied the town, including what remained of its army garrison, a few pathetic facts were beyond denial for their brutal reality.
The Boko Haram forces moved about with so much bravado and appeared totally fearless. They also seemed to have momentum on their side. One thing that could also not be denied was the absolute absence of resistance in any from the Nigerian forces if at all they existed in the town.
Besides the mountains of captured military hardware and ammunition, provisions and military vehicles, the only other semblance of Nigerian military presence in Gwoza captured in the video was those of a few Nigerian troops fleeing onto the hills at the fringes of the town like scared rabbits, and to me that was the most painful image of it all!
Just like the captive school kids from Chibok, whose current fate can only be imagined, the fleeing soldiers were on their own in that critical moment of their lives. Since the Boko Haram insurgency started years ago, I had frequently warned of the risk of allowing the sect to completely demystify our security forces, yet I never imagined that I would live to see the day they were so resoundingly humiliated like I saw in the video clip.
Unless we are dishonest with ourselves we can hardly deny the fact that the Boko Haram sect now has maximum contempt for the officers and men of the Nigerian armed forces and the reasons for that are not far-fetched. Even as I write this, reports credited to the BBC indicate that some 480 Nigerian servicemen have fled to Cameroun even though the Nigerian military brass has promptly denied the report.
But whether the report proves to be correct or not, the brutal reality at the moment is that the Nigerian military forces have never been so low in public esteem. The military has self-destructed, perhaps irredeemably in the eyes of Nigerians who once lived in awe of the same institution.
Fresh from reports of its partiality in the conduct of elections and the unacceptable conduct of its men on the streets of Lagos, we are confronted with reports of mutineers in its ranks, and with spouses of servicemen barricading military barracks to prevent the deployment of their husbands unless they were provided with better armaments!
Even without Boko Haram, the joint services have never had it this bad. And if I were a starving teenager from the North-East on the fringes of existence, then Shekau, with his new ‘caliphate’, definitely offers a better outlet from self-pity and hopelessness. Somehow, in their crazy ways, the Boko Haram is able to offer those hopeless youths some measure of self-importance.   
The sect may not offer them living wages, but it is obvious from the video that they appear well-fed and highly motivated unlike our sulking troops whose grouse is beginning to become evident with each passing day in the conflict. And Shekau is also able to give his fighters what they previously lacked because of their social status – fresh brides! Yet, as worrisome as the situation is presently, the only certainty is that it is certain to get worse before things begin to get better and the big question is when?
Today, the only thing that will stop the Boko Haram sect from rapidly expanding its ‘caliphate’ towards Abuja is the radical overhaul of the entire armed forces beyond the pedestrian measures being presently contemplated. Even with the best equipment in the world, no army can perform miracles if it was made up of misfits or recruits who have no business being anywhere near the military barracks.
A long conversation with a retired military officer taught me that much. And what I learnt easily explained most of the problems presently confronting the Nigerian Armed Forces. The military has obviously suffered from the erosion of professionalism long before the onset of the insurgency, which has apparently exposed its inherent weaknesses.
Like every state institution in Nigeria, the patronage system has also taken its toll on the quality of recruitment into both the officer corps and the rank and file of the military. In most instances only well-connected individuals are recruited with the attendant negative effect on discipline and professionalism in the services.
But soldering has being a noble profession for centuries. It is not the typical space for people looking for a job because it is far from an ordinary profession. In the world’s finest armies, people join the military to uphold the names and dignities of their regiments. Some quick examples are the Cossacks of the old Soviet Union and the Burmese Ghurkhas. Soldiers from such regiments with rich traditions cannot be seen fleeing from battlefields, except in the case of tactical withdrawals.
For the Nigerian military to be able to halt Shekau’s match to the Atlantic Ocean with his warped Islamic ideology, it must do more than import modern equipment that are sure to be abandoned on the battlefields for Boko Haram to enrich its arsenal.
The Nigerian government must shield the military from political interference, re-equip and restore moral to enthrone professionalism. It must do away with patronage in recruitments into the services and also work to rid it of monumental corruption.
We cannot expect the soldiers deployed to fight Boko Haram to give their all when they know a few months pretending to fight oil piracy in the Niger Delta could make them fabulously rich beyond their wildest imaginations.
For Shekau to realise his folly, we must also summon the courage to confront those facts.