A serving Nigerian Soldier who doesn’t want his name in print has cried
out that they are being slaughtered on daily basis by Boko Haram. This
call is coming even at a time the President of Nigeria claimed he has
triumphed over Boko Haram. Of recent, there have been increased bombings
and murder by the dreaded Islamic terrorists group but the government
of Nigeria is doing everything they could to suppress or conceal the
news. The serving Nigerian Soldier who shared the experience of what
Nigerian troops is passing through has termed the onslaught against them
‘very regrettable’. He noted that while they are giving it everything
they have and the government is taking their sacrifices and death for
granted; the Soldiers might one day turn against their commanders.
Book Haram menace played a major role in bastardizing Jonathan’s
government and with Buhari being fingered as the man behind the bloody
campaign against Jonathan, it was believed that giving him power would
arrest the situation. As a man that ordered Northerners to react against
the outcome of the 2011 election he said was rigged, the reaction
spilled into post election violence that claimed hundreds of lives. That
was where Boko Haram became a threat and from then till this moment was
chronicle of bloodshed.
Stopping Boko Haram became the primary objective of Buhari’s
administration and he has become obsessed with that. Buhari is doing
everything possible to make sure that Boko Haram is stopped but it has
persevered. Releasing prisoners at random, giving unofficial amnesty and
promising direct recruitment into Nigerian military were least of the
measures to curb Boko Haram. Knowing that terrorism anchored by
extremists hardly goes and to please his backers, he dishonestly
approaches everything about Boko Haram.
We have heard about technical defeat, and we have heard about remnants
of Boko Haram, there is desperation to conceal or suppress the
activities of Boko Haram. All these are lies or efforts to curb or
suppress the reality; Boko Harma is very much with us and carrying on
its activities. Buhari has gone on to demand appreciation for defeating
Boko Haram while bombs still go off every day and killing people. Using
the press to conceal the onslaught against Nigerians and serving
Soldiers is lack of respect to human existence.
The serving Soldier who explained what they are passing through said
that there is a serious war raging in the North and that the only
victory recorded so far is the clampdown on the press to stop reporting
everything. Recall that Buhari had called on Nigerian press to help in
the fight against terrorism and claimed that reports that are against
Nigeria or the military always boost the morale of the terrorists. The
Soldier also frowned at the various reports that there is no town under
the control of Boko Haram; saying that there are no-go areas for them as
they are the territory of Boko Harma.
“I want to tell you that we are being killed on a daily basis; Boko
Haram is on top of the situation here. This is an Islamic Jihad movement
and they are supported by Muslims; they might not tell you on the pages
of newspapers but we on ground, fighting the battle will tell you what
is going on. The more we are killed is the more they reinforce; ask your
brothers in the force and you will notice that personnel are being
shifted to the North regularly, but kept out of the news.” He said and
continued.
“Our comrades die every day, Boko Haram is not just a group but a
region, and they are much that you can’t kill all of them. They come
like locust and you kill the ones you can kill and others kill you; boys
are hiding or beating the war front, nobody wants to go there again. We
are killed in scores on daily basis and the frustrating thing is, they
don’t allow the press to come close; the men of the press have limits.
When I try to communicate with them and tell them what is going on, they
always ask for evidence and I began to wonder what is happening".
Having been caught by corruption, Nigerian press has lost credibility.
“If nobody says what is going on here, the government would relax
because the people are not complaining. The government always says that
they have conquered but that is blunt lie as we are still here and
losing our men like flies. There is no truth whatsoever as Boko Haram
still control territories and kill us. We are not well taken care of,
only supply of bullet is sufficient, what about our feeding, salaries
and when we die, they keep our death secret. Bury most of us anywhere
they like and accuse us of retreating without order. The world must know
what is going on, we are being slaughtered on a daily basis and the
press is not allowed to report or come close to where we are” he said.
By Ifeanyi Chijioke
Editor/Publisher: Chinwe Korie
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