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| Africa Subsaharan |
| Fighting Boko Haram Is Not The Army's Job — Gen. Usman |
| 2014-06-26 |
| [Osun Defender] General Yakubu Usman (rtd) was the chairman of the Northern States Governors' Forum committee on insecurity. The retired general who contested the Bauchi South Senatorial seat in 2011 and lost in this interview speaks on the ongoing insurgency in the north saying it is not the presumed job of the military to confront the bad boys. Excerpts: Given your military background, do you think that the security forces in the country are doing their best in tackling the problem of insurgency in the Northeast? You see when you talk of the military first and foremost, we have to be very clear on what the role of the military is. Their number one constitutional responsibility is to defend the territorial integrity of Nigeria against external forces, therefore any other role given to them is secondary. This clearly indicates that the role the military is performing now is a secondary one. They are just supporting the civil force to bring insurgency under control and by right, it should have been the responsibility of the civil force like the police and Department for State security Service but since the insurgency has grown beyond the power of civilian forces, the military was called in. There are a lot of interventions here and there because the military is not operating independently and even though we are aware that military is not operating independently, they are under a constituted authority and the environment within which they operate is not a conducive one. Be that as it may, you will agree with me that the military has achieved quite a lot even though their achievements may not be 100% okay. If the military had not intervened in this insecurity crisis, only God knows what would have been happening in the Northeast by now. These snuffies were attacking so many local governments in the north, but the military has now intervened as the attacks are now minimized compared to before. For instance, Maiduguri was a no go area before but now you can go to Maiduguri because life has come back to the streets and the snuffies have been pushed out to a restricted area around Sambisa forest. So if the Boko Haram ... not to be confused with Procol Harum, Harum Scarum, possibly to be confused with Helter Skelter. The Nigerian version of al-Qaeda and the Taliban rolled together and flavored with a smigeon of distinctly Subsaharan ignorance and brutality... boys come into the city, it is a hit and run affair compared to the situation in the past where they would hit and remain. So given the environment and the situation they are operating, they have achieved a lot but they can definitely do better because there are areas that need improvements. |
| Posted by:Fred |
| #5 A favorite bit of snark from days gone by: "If General McClellan isn't going to use his army, I'd like to borrow it for a time." -- Abraham Lincoln |
| Posted by: SteveS 2014-06-26 18:23 |
| #4 That's so true Borg, but he fell in love with his army. Worst things I guess. The Army of Northern Virginia on the other hand fell in love with their Generals. |
| Posted by: Shipman 2014-06-26 17:12 |
| #3 Remember, McClellan organized a first rate Army of the Potomac - a disciplined force that Grant would use to win the war. |
| Posted by: borgboy 2014-06-26 17:01 |
| #2 If not the Army, Who? |
| Posted by: Redeck Jim 2014-06-26 16:41 |
| #1 General Yakubu Usman McClellan |
| Posted by: Snusort Spomose2148 2014-06-26 16:28 |