The Maimalari Barracks incident

The Nigerian military, which has been under fire for some time now over its failure to stop the Boko Haram insurgency, recently came under public scrutiny again following reports of what was initially described as mutiny in the newly established 7th Division of the Nigerian Army in Maiduguri, Borno State. The incident, in which angry soldiers reportedly shot into the air during the visit of the General Officer Commanding (GOC), Major-General Ahmadu Mohammed, to the Maimalari Barracks, was triggered by the earlier killing of four soldiers by Boko Haram insurgents in the Chibok area of the state, allegedly following misleading directives from military authorities. The soldiers apparently also had other grouses that had piled up over time.
The Maimalari Barracks incident, whatever name the military or the Federal Government chooses to call it, is disturbing and embarrassing. Discipline is a hallmark of the military anywhere in the world, and Nigeria should not be an exception.
We, therefore, unequivocally recommend a painstaking investigation of the incident to determine what actually happened. The investigation will shed more light on the running of that army formation, and the general military administration that elicited such an untoward action from the concerned soldiers. Such a probe should expose the remote and immediate causes of the incident.
It is important to stress that what happened at Maimalari is suggestive of bottled up emotions and pent up anger among the soldiers of the 7th Division of the Nigerian Army. This is a very unhealthy and dangerous situation. A detailed probe of the causes of the disaffection that led the rank and file to shoot into the air in the presence of their GOC is a must. Although the Army has said what happenend was not mutiny, its implication is ominous and worrisome, no matter how much the military authorities try to make light of it. At a time when Nigeria is battling the worst case of insecurity since independence, having disgruntled troops is dangerous and self-defeating. In the face of rampaging terrorism, the nation cannot afford to have uncommitted or disloyal soldiers.
Some soldiers involved in the campaign against Boko Haram have reportedly   complained about avoidable exposure to ambushes by insurgents due to uncoordinated and misleading information; poor welfare such as getting only one meal per day; obsolete equipment and limited arms and ammunition to fight insurgents. There is also the troubling allegation of short-payment of accrued allowances, and non-rotation of troops leading to diminishing returns.
These are serious allegations that should not be swept under the carpet of bureaucracy. All forms of corruption must be stopped and whoever is caught trifling with soldiers’ allowances should be dealt with. In addition, all those found culpable in the act of gross indiscipline should be punished.
The Nigerian military is involved in a very serious counter-insurgency operation and it is necessary that we keep the morale of the soldiers and others involved in the assignment up. There is no doubt that they are involved in a very difficult assignment, and the military authorities must prioritise their welfare. They must ensure that they have the necessary equipment to carry out their assignment. It is also important to avoid the kind of misleading information that could lead to heavy casualties among them
Above all, their operations must be properly funded. We must do everything possible to avoid the kind of incident in Maimalari. We cannot afford to have a mutiny of soldiers or anything close to it in our present circumstances. Therefore, any act that is tantamount to such should be guarded against and punished wherever a semblance of it is noticed to serve as a deterrent. Mutiny, under Section 37 of the Nigerian Army Act (Laws of the Federation of Nigeria) is punishable by death or any other punishment provided by the Act.
We must, therefore, never leave room for mutiny, which, under Subsection 3 of Section 37 of the Nigerian Army Act, is definable in terms of a combination between two or more persons subject to service law, … (a) to overthrow or resist lawful authority in any of the armed forces or any forces cooperating therewith, or in any part of any of the said forces….”
The decision to change the General Officer Commanding (GOC) of the 7th Division of the Nigerian Army, or any army formation for that matter, because of disaffection in the Division, is like ignoring leprosy and concentrating on eczema. We need to face up to the real issues especially in matters relating to national security, and tackle the challenges head on.
Blaming the media for reporting the incident and accusing journalists of exaggerating reports of demonstrations in military barracks will not solve the problem at hand. While we accept that reporters must be circumspect in their reportage of security issues, it is pertinent that the Nigerian military address, once and for all, all the complaints of their troops.
We must examine the causes of disaffection in the system and resolve them to ensure that this ugly incident does not rear its head again. We need total cooperation and absolute commitment of our military if we are to win the war against terrorism.