By Charles Kumolu, Deputy Editor

Penultimate Saturday’s multiple suicide bombings in Borno State, which left no fewer than 30 dead, has provoked fundamental questions on Nigeria’s war against insurgency.

While there is no dispute that the military has degraded the capabilities of ISWAP and Boko Haram to carry out such an attack, the latest incident left many puzzles in its wake.

Dissecting the attacks, which could rightly be described as the return of suicide bombers, a former Chief of Training, Operations and Plans at the Defence Headquarters (DHQ), General Ishola Williams, retd, pinpoints possible loopholes the bombers may have exploited. He also speaks on why insurgency appears unending in Borno State.

With the return of suicide bombers, could this be a change of strategy after Boko Haram purported defeat? How far can they go?

I don’t think we have ever won the war on Boko Haram. What we see is the recycling of insurgency. They take a break; after sometime, when they see some weaknesses on the part of the intelligence system, they return with their attacks. There is something people haven’t bothered to notice. Boko Haram and ISWAP don’t do what they do in Nigeria in Chad, Cameroon or in Niger. Why? Is it because their intelligence system is better than our own? And Boko Haram leader, before he died, told Chadians to stop attacking them and that they were not interested in attacking Chad. He said they were interested in attacking Borno State and Nigeria. It means they are afraid of the Chadian army, but they are not afraid of the Nigerian army. Why? Senator Jimoh Ibrahim said he has seen many guns around him from his mobile phone. He said the military should change its tactics. And he is correct. If we have been fighting Boko Haram for the past 15 years and we have not defeated them, does it not make enough sense for you to change your tactics? It is only a stupid person who does the same thing without succeeding and he refuses to change his tactics. Something is wrong. What we continue to do is to buy sophisticated equipment that we don’t need to fight insurgency. It is a waste of money. We need to change our operational approach and the tactics. We need appropriate equipment and structure to do that.

Who are suicide bombers, and who fits into that description?

Why is it that the communities in Borno cannot go after Boko Haram that sends the suicide bombers? Why is it that Kanuri people cannot go against them? Why can’t they take a cue from what Amotekun is doing in the South-West? People are now familiar with Amotekun and they are supporting them, and they are succeeding. Ebubeagu can do the same thing in the South-East, but the region has a problem. It is because the Independent People of Biafra, IPoB, is fighting their own battle for either better treatment from the authorities or secession.

What messages are suicide bombers sending to government and society?

If government says it doesn’t know what to do about insurgency, that’s a lie. Over the years, people have made suggestions about what Jimoh Ibrahim said and about what Senator Ndume said. Chief Anyaoku made a statement recently, which I found profound. He said at his age, he doesn’t understand a country where people do not take advice or dialogue with you when they have an idea. If you have a country like that, with government turning deaf ears to ideas, what does that say? How can government succeed when they listen to their voice alone? Sometimes I think there seems to be a conspiracy by some people who do not want the insecurity in the North to end. Look at what is happening in the South-East where Ohanaeze, governors and members of the National Assembly from the region have come together to put a stop to what IPoB is doing by asking government to release Nnamdi Kanu to them. They said if he is released, insecurity in the region will stop. Have you seen Kanuri people do that? Have you seen the entire Borno speaking against Boko Haram? Sometimes we don’t think strategically in this country. There must be a deliberate reason not to do so. If the Kanuri people want Boko Haram and ISWAP insurgency to end, it will end.

Why would anybody want to die in such a gruesome manner because of religion?

That is why I say the whole thing seems to be like a conspiracy. At some point, it was suggested that government treats them the way Niger Delta people were pacified. They were given a commission. What happened afterwards? Now, some people are saying they should be given a different ministry. Even the Niger Delta Ministry and Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC, what are they doing? Kleptocracy. What impacts have they made?

In terms of eradication, how can suicide bombing and insurgency be eradicated? The Chinese told us that if you are an insurgent, you are like a fish. If the river is polluted you cannot survive. It brings us to what I said earlier that if Kanuri people say they want the end of Boko Haram and ISWAP, it will stop, because they will pollute the river for insurgency not to thrive. Therefore, no matter what the military does, it may not end because the Borno people are not ready to see the end. The Sultan of Sokoto recently said insurgency in Northern Nigeria will continue for years. It is because he has seen the unwillingness to bring it to an end. We know what the answers are. With seriousness, it can be stopped in six months.

Does it mean government knows what to do and it is not doing it?

We always believe government doesn’t know what to do. Who is government? It is on you and me. They have families and friends they interact with. We may not know them, but they take our messages to those people who are part of the governance system. Sometimes, those people suffer what we suffer. What those in governance do is to help those in their families not to suffer. And if they want to extend it, they extend it to their ethnic groups. The problem is that all of us are not complaining. And since we are not complaining, why should government change? There is no revolution in the world that has been led by the poor. It belongs to the middle class. At the end of the day, if you have a revolution that is leaderless like the EndSars, there won’t be results. The point is that we need to rethink leadership. How do you educate the followership and electorate to make sure they choose people with character and integrity? Character and integrity cut across all sectors. If we have them, the country will change. If those who benefit from the faulty system keep quiet, how can the country change? A senator once said they are corrupt that the man in the streets is also corrupt. One also said people can abuse them as being corrupt, but they don’t know the number of people who come to them daily, asking for favour. We are running away from the challenge, and as long as we continue to run away from the challenge, we will continue to watch Nigeria suffer. Nigerians are so comfortable with their situation. I walk around the streets of Lagos and haven’t seen anyone drop dead. Even beggars in Lagos look fresh. The fundamental issue is that we have to choose the right people at all levels of leadership. Above all, the intelligence system must be 90 per cent good.

You talked about the South-East governors and NASS members from the region making an effort to get Kanu released, do you think the move was the right step?

The governors need to realise that if Nigeria is going to progress, they have to be active. How is government going to keep Kanu? What is the benefit of keeping him in jail? What does Nigeria gain from keeping him in jail? There is no benefit at all. I support the move by Ohanaeze, NASS members and governors. He is only one person. Let him be released and let’s see the wonders he is going to perform. If these people are sure of containing him, government should release him. Why don’t you go and catch Simon Ekpa in Finland or those who are contributing money abroad? I don’t see any reason government is keeping him. Those supporting Nnamdi Kanu should also question themselves. To me, he is a nobody. Government is just making a hero out of him.