One of the Nigerian soldiers fighting in the ongoing counter-insurgency operations in the Northeast has expressed sadness over the recent attack on Kuje prison, during which hundreds of inmates including Boko Haram terrorists escaped.
According to him, Nigerian soldiers fighting Boko Haram now consider the terrorists as ‘Government Boys’, stressing that when you capture them, you do not have power to do anything to them.
He said in an exclusive interview with SaharaReporters, “Now there’s confusion in Maiduguri due to the recent jail break at Kuje prison. It will take the live of 6 – 8 soldiers to capture a single Boko-Haram alive face to face.
“And before they take such Boko Haram member to Abuja, he must be a high-profile terrorist. If not, the Boko Haram would be kept in Maiduguri Barracks guard room. But look at what happened, just overnight these people launched an attack, spent over 2 – 3hrs and videoed everything without any military response and they went away free.
“You will catch a Boko Haram in Maiduguri, you will get an order ‘don’t harm him’, and within 24 hours, the person will disappear. And any soldier that tortures them, they will put you into the guardroom and give him IHL, imprisonment with hard labour. They will tell you it is not your duty, your duty is to capture them and you do not have power to do anything to them.
“The sad news now is that, upon the loss of soldiers and equipment, thinking government will do everything to bring these terrorists to book and do the needful. The news we heard is that government has set them free and not only that, they are giving them skill acquisition so that they will be able to fit in into the society. They are saying they have repented.
“Boko Haram who has been terrorising the town, making people homeless, making people lose lives and property. And the government is saying they are being repented. What of the soldiers that ran out of arms that you dismissed? He is now pleading to come back, you said no that they cannot come back again.
“The news of Kuje prison is not a good one, people are not happy about it at all. The soldiers now prefer to capture and kill them, then wait for the consequences.
“We now consider them as ‘Government Boys’, the Boko Haram who only understand minor English will tell you, ‘If you want to kill me, you kill me. If not, when I go, they will leave me’, which is the truth.”
“So, the war is meant for the Generals to enjoy, not for the least of soldiers. You don’t have mind to talk, and when you do, you are in trouble. Even though you leave this country, they will still track you, except you will not use handset. Even our allowance,s they keep slashing from it, including station allowances,” he added.
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