•Those who bought substandard arms for our soldiers must be punished
GIVEN the increasing exposure of the Goodluck Jonathan administration’s scandalously counter-productive approach to the anti-terror war, it is no longer debatable that the previous government didn’t do enough to checkmate the terrorists. Or, put more pointedly, the Jonathan government ironically did enough to ensure the prolongation of the war.
According to the latest revelations by the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the former president’s administration purchased substandard weapons to fight the war against Boko Haram. Mohammed’s eye-opener was in response to Jonathan’s reported claim that the Muhammadu Buhari presidency appeared to be winning the terror war because of the weapons allegedly bought by his administration, which were delivered after he had left office.
In a statement issued to put the record straight, Mohammed said: “The weapons, munitions and equipment which the former president said he bought were refurbished and lacked the basic components and spare parts. Additionally, the ammunition bought for both high calibre and small weapons have mostly expired, are incompatible with weapons and grossly inadequate.” He added: “It is pertinent to state that the ammunition he was referring to were back loaded because they explode within the barrel when fired, thus leading to deaths and injuries among soldiers.”
Considering that Mohammed attributed these findings to an investigative panel, this does not look like a ruling party, or an incumbent government, unjustifiably seeking to rubbish the opposition, or a previous government.
The picture by Mohammed shed more light on the absurdity of an ill-equipped national army struggling to overcome a mere militia. He further said: “The situation was so pathetic that soldiers were often transported in Civilian JTF vehicles, civilian vehicles, trailers and water tankers when going to the theatres of operation. That explains why troops remained largely static and were unable to effectively deploy to completely rout the Boko Haram terrorists in all their known enclaves.”
Of course, official corruption had a hand in the Jonathan administration’s paradoxical terror-friendly activities. The global village now knows for sure that public funds meant for fighting and winning the terror war, running into billions, were rerouted by powerful individuals in the discredited Jonathan presidency. The corruption-spiced narrative is still unfolding, with former National Security Adviser Sambo Dasuki right in the middle of the mess.
Unsurprisingly, and in reinforcement of public knowledge, Mohammed highlighted the unmistakable connection between the mess of corruption and the messiness of poorly armed soldiers facing reportedly better armed terrorists. He said: “It is also clear, as has been shown so far by the outcome of the panel probing past arms deals, that the purchase of substandard weapons apparently resulted from the massive corruption that enveloped the deals, the kind of horrifying graft that saw the purchase of refurbished choppers that lacked rotors, or fighter jets that could not be deployed to the theatre of war because they were not up to par.”
Lamentably, the consequences of the weakening of state-capacity by the Jonathan administration are tragically visible. According to Mohammed, “The high level of casualties sustained by our gallant soldiers was most unprecedented and cannot be compared to any known military operations in recent times, all because of the terrible state of affairs suffered by the military under the Jonathan administration.”
It is relevant to note that 70 soldiers were convicted and sentenced to death by two court-martials for demanding weapons to fight the insurgents. Although their mutiny-related death sentences have been commuted to imprisonment, it is condemnable that the injustice still stands.
The unserious manner in which the Jonathan presidency handled the insurgency is too serious to be treated lightly. By its conduct, the administration proved to be below standard.
The Buhari government cannot afford to gloss over these findings, so that others, like Jonathan, do not try to rewrite the true narrative. The guilty deserve to be punished.
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