How Division In The Army Is Hindering The War Against Boko Haram In Borno

In addition to corruption, inadequate armament, low morale and possible collusion with the enemy, the growing rift between officers and non-commissioned officers (NCOs) in Battalion 101 of 7Division based in Maiduguri, has been identified as one of the factors that has hindered the country’s counter-terrorism efforts in the North-east, THISDAY has learnt.

According to findings, the mistrust between officers and the NCOs is so bad that it has served to weaken the country’s offensive against Boko Haram terrorists.

Investigations have revealed that the rift has seen the parties setting each other up and helped to expose senior officers in the army currently being investigated and face court martial, contrary to the repeated denials by the Defence Headquaters and Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), Air Chief Marshal Alex Badeh, that no officer is being tried in the military.

Whereas the soldiers have accused their commanders of colluding with the enemy, the officers have blamed the soldiers for deliberately refusing to fight and pushing their colleagues to their deaths.

A senior officer in the Nigerian Army who spoke to THISDAY on the issue said his fellow commissioned officers have maintained that rather than the insurgency, it is acts of cowardice, indiscipline and desertion from duty on the part of soldiers that constitute the greatest danger in the ongoing fight against terrorism in the country.

He disclosed that the troublesome Battalion 101 of 7Division, which recently mutinied against their General Officer Commanding (GOC), was made up of lily-livered soldiers whose frame of mind was not conditioned to engage terrorists in a battle.

He revealed that the pervasive rot had become so frightening that the military authorities are considering a comprehensive overhaul of both their recruitment system and more importantly, re-orientation of personnel on the professional calling of soldiers in the armed forces.

According to another top military source, the military authorities have been trying to deal with rising cases of sabotage within their ranks and soldiers refusing to fight or desertion in the heat of battle but were taken aback by the recent acts of mutiny in Maiduguri.

Worried by the ugly development, the military has traced the remote and immediate causes of this alarming trend to three major factors, including the overbearing influence of the elite during recruitment process such that candidates without a passion for the profession are being recruited into the armed forces.

It was revealed that most political figures, traditional rulers and influential personalities under the erroneous notion that the military is a money-making establishment rather than war-fighting profession put enormous pressure on the services to recruit their candidates who are not suitable for the job.

“What we have today is frightening. This is not an issue of morale or motivation but outright cases of cowardice with soldiers refusing to fight. They even beat up their officers and commanders and before you know it they will start calling their political godfathers who will in turn start making demoralising comments and talking about morale.

“It has been difficult getting them to imbibe the discipline required of soldiers. For example, the attitude exhibited by this battalion has been unheard of in the annals of the Nigerian Army whereby you will send a soldier on assignment, and he dictates to you where, when and how he will go, as well as the type of weapon he must be given before going.

“Those who complain of weapons and other issues are all excuses born out of fear and cowardice, not issues of motivation and morale,” the source said.

However, the soldiers have attributed the woeful performance of the military in the North-east to the army officers, whom they accused of selling information, equipment and military uniforms in exchange of Boko Haram members.  

Soldiers, who spoke to THISDAY, lamented the maltreatment of their colleagues, pointing to the poor allowances they are paid and poor feeding, saying: “They treat us like slaves.”

“What kind of cowardice are they talking about when they are the problem? Our big men and our generals are the problem. If all the money that is being sent to them is well utilised, why can't we fight them (Boko Haram)?

“Look at other countries how they treat their soldiers. Since I joined this army, it was only once that I was supplied a uniform, which was during the passing out from training.

“Any uniform they bring, they will divert it and sell to Boko Haram, while those of us in the army don't even have any. It’s amongst the officers who use all these things to make money, while we other ranks are suffering.

“That is why we felt they are just using us to die for nothing and immediately you die, they freeze your account and after three months they will send your family out of the barracks. 

“All those generals are using us as slaves to make money. They are not paying us all the allowance due to us, which is N45,000. What they do is to keep N30,000 and say they are using N15,000 to cook food for us.
“But how could you use that to prepare food for so many soldiers.

Besides, look at the food they give us, in fact sometimes it's better to starve than to even eat the food and when you eventually eat it, it is sickening. Some soldiers end up with stomach pain, while others fall ill. The remaining N30,000 they don't even pay as and when due,” the soldiers revealed.