Nigeria: The Nation With Two Armies

 

Nigeria is a country of paradoxical existence. It has two armies: one official, the other, a shadowy force of armed bandits and terrorists. The official Nigerian Army is tasked with defending the country against internal and external aggressions or threats, whilst the other army, comprised of Boko Haram, bandits, extremist Islamic Fulani jihadists, and other terrorist groups, seeks to destabilize and terrorize the defenceless citizens. The irony, however, lies in the fact that the same government that funds the Nigerian Army also gives consent to political hegemons of Northern Nigeria to fund Boko Haram, including other terrorist groups, unleashing a reign of terror, and deadly paradox that has ravaged the nation. 

The Nigerian government's complicity in funding and supporting terrorism is a well-known secret across the world. Government officials and daring politicians have been actively involved in providing financial and logistical support to Boko Haram and other terrorist groups for about 20 years, receiving multi-million dollars ransom payments for the release of hostages, and even negotiate with them instead of killing them. When terrorists are captured by the Nigerian Army during engagements, the government officials and the politicians funding them quickly ensure that they are released and exonerated from blames without being tried by the applicable law of the land. Not only that, they are granted amnesty, sent abroad, and rehabilitated. Presidents Muhammadu Buhari and Bola Ahmed Tinubu respectively said that the terrorists have "repented of their sins, and therefore are forgiven." They are released, granted amnesty, and integrated into the system, after killing thousands of people and making over two million rural dwellers homeless in Plateau and Benue States. By so doing, the Nigerian government and its jihadist political gladiators have not only legitimized terrorism and banditry, and rewarded good for evil, they have also directly or indirectly encouraged others to resort to arms to earn a robust living. The Nigerian government never does anything big or small to compensate the families who lost their loved ones and bread winners. It doesn't matter anything to the government provided that the victims are Christians. This duplicity has enabled these terrorists to expand their horizons of operations, perpetrate violence, and cause untold havocs on innocent civilians. 

Meanwhile, the Nigerian Army is deployed to fight against these same terrorist groups, often with inadequate weapons, resources, and support. Besides, the terrorist groups unexpectedly have enough and far more lethal weapons than the Nigerian Army. The military is forced to contend with a hydra-headed ferocious enemy, as new groups emerge to replace those that are defeated. In each operation against the terrorists, the government and its agents (the Northern Nigerian politicians) dictate the winner by putting one in a position of advantage over the other. The government's hypocrisy is stark, as it claims to be fighting terrorism while simultaneously funding and supporting it clandestinely. The consequences of this duplicity are devastating. Thousands of lives have been lost. Over two million rural dwellers are displaced. The economy is in shambles, and the country's reputation is largely tarnished. The humanitarian crisis is spiraling out of control, with millions of Nigerians facing food insecurity, poverty and privations, social immobility, and epidemics.

The complicity of government's officials in terrorism has created a culture of impunity, where terrorist groups operate with relative ease. They are not afraid at all because they trust their godfathers and comrades-in-roguery in the State Houses backing them up. Nigerian citizens have since lost faith in the government because every single citizen of this country knows that it is the government and Northern Nigerian politicians that are strongly supporting terrorism and tormenting the citizens. The Nigerian government runs with the hares and hunt with the hounds. They are hypocrites! They compromise national security for the acquisition of dollars stained with blood. The international community has already taken notice of Nigerian government's duplicity and ineptitude in terrorism control. The UN, US, EU, and other countries, are sanctioning individuals and entities accused of perpetrating and supporting terrorism, and there are growing calls for greater accountability and transparency. 

In conclusion, the Nigerian government of Bola Ahmed Tinubu is trapped in a vicious cycle of hypocrisy and complicity, funding and supporting the very terrorist groups it claims to be fighting. The Nigerian governments and their greedy Northern Nigerian politicians train thousands of men and equip them with more dangerous and sophisticated weapons than the ones used by the Nigerian Army. The fresh trainee insurgents are trained by Commandants from the Nigerian Army. Both Armies belong to the same country --- Nigeria. One is used by Nigerian government during daylight, whilst the other is used by the same government for nocturnal activities --- killings, kidnappings, and burning of Christian Churches with worshippers trapped inside, and displacements of rural dwellers. The Nigerian government aids and abets the kidnapping of hundreds of girls. The terrorists take them to the forests and subject them to forced sexuality daily. There are several hundreds of girls in the forests today with the bandits across the Northern Nigeria. The Government sends its representative (known to it) to negotiate with them in the forests. This negotiation usually ends with demands of several millions of dollars from the government to effect the release of the hostages. The government pays the ransoms and victims are released. If the government pays ransom to terrorists in State A, terrorists in State B will strike immediately. Government will be put under pressure to pay another ransom for the release of the abducted victims in State B, too. Like an endless decimal, it continues to occur from year to year without abatement. 

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