The report of the declaration of an Islamic Caliphate by the Boko Haram group in Nigeria after the invasion and takeover of Gwoza in Borno State has been denied by the Nigerian Defence Headquarters. The military had responded: ‘Any group of terrorists laying claim to any portion of the country will not be allowed to get away with the expression of delusion and crime. … Operations to secure that area from the activities of the bandits are still ongoing.’ But it must be said that this response from the Defence Headquarters came more than a week ago and yet it could not be said that the military had succeeded in reclaiming Gwoza and other towns from the insurgents since then. The reality, therefore, is that the Boko Haram group is still in control of Gwoza and is thus exercising authority over the town and all those there in opposition to the sovereign claim of Nigeria.
It is to be realised that the former Emir of Gwoza was killed by the insurgents during an ambush and his son that became Emir thereafter was fortunate to have been able to escape with his life during the latest invasion of the town by the insurgents. The Emir today has fled the town and there is no symbol of Nigerian authority remaining in the town to give credence to the denial of the existence of an Islamic caliphate there by the Boko Haram group. It is not likely that the Emir or any other person from the town would set great store by the insistence of the Nigerian military that no portion of the sovereign territory of Nigeria has been ceded or lost to the Boko Haram group. Indeed, beyond the claim of the military about an ongoing operation, not many Nigerians are aware that the Nigerian military is engaging the insurgents in more than the usual cat-and-mouse operation that has not progressed in any concrete sense. It is significant that such operation by the military has not even succeeded in recovering from the insurgents the over 200 girls they kidnapped months back.
This underlines why we are concerned that the military has not made much progress in reclaiming the towns overtaken by the insurgents even as the insurgents are showing more sophistication in the way they are confronting the Nigerian military and claiming successes. And evidently, the Boko Haram group has transformed from its initial guerilla tactics, as a group engaged in guerilla warfare would not be seeking to seize and take over territories. This would mean that the Nigerian military would also need to change the current strategy of combating the group to face the new reality of its (Boko Haram) readiness to frontally challenge, defy and oppose the sovereign powers of Nigeria. With the Boko Haram group declaring an Islamic caliphate, it should be clear to Nigerian authorities that the country is facing a real war situation and this should guide their reaction. Some Nigerians are now living under the authorities of the Boko Haram and the only way their citizenship could be restored would be for the insurgents to be flushed out of where they are controlling now.
A full scale operation has to be instituted by the Nigerian military in response to this declaration of an Islamic caliphate. The advantage of the Nigerian military in air operations has to be brought speedily into bold relief in order to be able to smoke out the insurgents from all their hiding points. We expect all Nigerians also to be fully mobilised toward this cause by the authorities as it is clear that all efforts have to be harnessed to roll back the insurgents and achieve victory over them. And there is need for all to realise that having a portion of the Nigerian territory under the control of insurgents threatens the overall peace and political existence of the country and thus requires the alertness, effort and support of all Nigerians to prevent the actualisation of the dismemberment of the country through the setting up of an Islamic caliphate.
