Military chiefs aiding B’Haram, soldier alleges

A soldier has claimed that he witnessed
incidents that suggested some military chiefs
work with Boko Haram insurgents in the
North-East.
The soldier told the Voice of America Hausa
Service how his military unit in Borno State
was ambushed by Boko Haram members.
He said the commander of a nearby military
unit in Bama recently sought assistance from
his unit in carrying out a raid.
The soldier, who did not give his name, said
when the two military units joined up, they
were given different uniforms. The Bama unit
commander, according to him, gave his own
troops green uniforms while his unit
received tan "desert camouflage" uniforms.
When the troops reached the battle area, the
soldier said the commander of the better-
equipped Bama unit suddenly withdrew his
forces, leaving the remaining troops to fend
for themselves against Boko Haram fighters.
Speaking in Hausa, he said, "We had only light
arms and our men were being picked off one
after the other."
The soldier also said he recognised some of
the Boko Haram fighters as his former
military trainers in Kontagora, a town near
Abuja.
"We realised that some of them were actually
mercenaries from the Nigerian army… hired
to fight us," he said.
The soldier also claimed that many of his
colleagues were deserting the army because
of their frustrations with what he said was the
politicisation of the fight against the militants.
He said, "I swear by Allah, there are soldiers
who are coming out of the forest after they
were abandoned; several of them dropped
their weapons and just went home.
"There were more than 20 of them from this
battalion in Kwanduga. Even me that is talking
to you now, I am preparing to leave. I just
want to tell the world so that they will know
what is happening. These people are doing
this secretly."
He also claimed that there was a deliberate
attempt to further impoverish the North
preparatory to the 2015 general elections.
•10,000 soldiers not in Maiduguri
The soldier dismissed claims that there were
up to 10,000 troops in Maiduguri.
The soldier added, "I swear, even now, there
are boys in the forest where we are coming
out from.
"They (Army) keep saying they are sending
soldiers, it's a lie. They claim that there are
10,000 soldiers in Maiduguri but it is a lie. If
we have 10,000 soldiers, Boko Haram would
have ended. How many members does Boko
Haram have?"
When one of our correspondents contacted
the Director of Defence Information, Maj.Gen
Chris Olukolade, he said he did not believe
that the person who granted the interview to
VOA was a soldier of the Nigerian Army.
He said that the person claiming to be a
soldier could be an insurgent trying to create
a false impression to promote the activities of
Boko Haram.
The defence spokesman said, "The person
that granted that interview on the VOA ; we
believe he is not a soldier, he could just be
one of those simulated on the other side to
give some false impression to support the
insurgents."
•Soldier fighting for B'Haram killed
But the soldier's claim seemed to have been
corroborated as a lance corporal has been
killed by the Special Forces during an
encounter with insurgents in Borno State.
It was learnt on Sunday that the military high
command was investigating soldiers
suspected to be involved in conducts that
could compromise national security.
The lance corporal was said to have been
killed while assisting in the training of Boko
Haram fighters.
Investigations revealed that the soldier was
'competent' and trusted enough to be a
trainer of Special Forces at the Nigerian Army
Training Centre, Kontagora.
It was learnt that one of the soldiers who took
part in the operation recognised the body of
the lance corporal who dressed in military
camouflage.
The soldier was said to have called the
attention of his commander to his discovery
that one of the corpses was that of a soldier
well known to him as a trainer of special
forces in Kotangora.
It was learnt that the commander ordered a
search on the body of the lance corporal
and a current pass permitting him to leave
his location at the training centre in
Kontagora was found on him.
A security source said, "A soldier who trains
Special Forces at the Nigerian Army Training
Centre in Kontagora, Niger State, was among
those who were killed.
"The man was not among the Special Forces;
he was obviously leading the attack for the
insurgents but he got killed.
"It was one of the soldiers that identified him
as somebody from his unit in Kotangora.
"The soldier called attention to the man's
corpse and when the commander said he
should be searched, they recovered a current
pass authorising him to leave Kotangora and
his Army identity card from him."
However, Olukolade said that he would not
want to comment on the killing of the lance
corporal.
He stated that the military had zero
tolerance for people fighting on the side of
the insurgents.
Meanwhile the death toll in Saturday's attack
on Yar-Galadima in Maru Local Government
Area of Zamfara State has risen to 105.
The Emir of Dansadau, Alhaji Husseini Adamu
made this known on Sunday at the emirate
council.
The herdsmen who wore camouflage uniform
were said to have stormed a special security
meeting of vigilante members in the
community.
It was gathered that they arrived the village
in more than 100 motorcycles and operated
for over three hours without any response
from the police and other security forces.
A source said in the village said, "The gunmen
overpowered the vigilante members. They
used knives to slaughter some and shot
others.
"As I speak with you over 100 dead bodies
were recovered and I believe some would
be found in nearby bushes."
About 40 of the victims were also buried on
Sunday. Their burial, according to eyewitness
took place at about 4pm.
Among those who attended the burial were
the state Governor, Abdullaziz Yari; his
deputy Ibrahim Wakkala; the Assistant
Inspector-General of Police, Zone 10, Alhaji
Mamman Sule; and the state Police
Commissioner, Alhaji Ibrahim Bichi.
At the burial, the governor condemned the
attack on the villagers, saying those behind
it would not go unpunished.
Although he noted that the security meeting
of the vigilante group was held illegally,Yari
vowed that anybody or group linked with
the murder of "these innocent people will
face the music."
Yari wondered how the killings happened in
broad daylight without any help from
security forces.