- The suicide bomb at the University of Maiduguri calls for a new strategy
Despite the diligence, commitment, patriotism and professionalism exhibited by the Nigerian military in recovering vast territory in the North East from the control of the Boko Haram terrorist sect, systemically vanquishing its offensive efficacy and, finally, capturing and neutralising the organisation’s last redoubt, Camp Zairo, in the dreaded Sambisa Forest, Borno State, terror still poses a significant threat in the region.
Yes, Boko Haram’s days of perverse bravado characterised by long convoys of armed vehicles moving seemingly without any opposition across the North East, the spectre of sections of Nigeria’s otherwise highly proficient military fleeing from the insurgents, frontal attacks on fortified military formations as well as mass abduction of large numbers of innocent people, including women and children, as exemplified by the Chibok girls saga, is over.
But Boko Haram’s loss of organisational coherence as a result of the relentless onslaught of the Nigerian military has led to an evident shift in strategy by the terrorist group. The new tactics employed by the insurgents is that of arbitrary and haphazard suicide bombings often undertaken by children, mostly female bombers and aimed at, soft easily vulnerable targets. This new phase in the war against terror was demonstrated, once again, by the suicide bomb attack at dawn on the Senior Staff Quarters of the University of Maiduguri, (UNIMAID) on Monday, resulting in the death of five persons, including Professor Aliyu Usman Mani of the Department of Veterinary Medicine, and the two suicide bombers.
While one of the suicide bombers, aged seven, was gunned down by an alert mobile police officer, the other, aged about 12 years old, detonated the explosives on her person at the senior staff quarters mosque, taking her own life as well as three others, including Professor Mani, and injuring at least 15 other persons. Maiduguri and its environs have witnessed no less than a dozen such suicide bombings over the last few months. The purpose of these sporadic suicide bombings is obviously to boost the understandably sagging morale of retreating Boko Haram members, demoralise the Nigerian military and populace as well as create the false impression that Boko Haram remains a potent force.
A report by the United Nation’s Children’s Fund (UNICEF) in April, last year, noted that there had been an increase in child suicide bombings by Boko Haram from four attacks in 2014 to no less than 44 by January 2016. Noting that the change in tactics by Boko Haram reflects its loss of territory in Nigeria, UNICEF also observed that one in five of the suicide attacks was carried out by children, with three quarters of the suicide bombers being girls. The children used in these attacks are themselves victims of the mindlessness and unfathomable wickedness of the terrorists. The child suicide bombers are not only indoctrinated, they are drugged and clearly not in their right senses.
The Nigerian military’s commendable successes against Boko Haram must not be allowed to lead to complacency. It is important that the military adjusts to the new tactics of Boko Haram. The emphasis now must be on sharpening capacity in the area of penetrating communities and gathering information and critical intelligence that can result in proactive action to check suicide bombings before they occur. Vulnerable targets, including educational institutions, recreational facilities, worship centres, markets and other crowded spaces must be put under close scrutiny, including being equipped with sophisticated surveillance cameras.
It is also critical that the ruling elite in the north particularly learn from its past mistakes and rise up to its responsibility of checking the widespread poverty in the region, which is the result, largely of bad, visionless and corrupt governance. A more robust economy that creates prosperity, generates jobs on a massive scale and helps to accelerate mass education among the youths will make the region less vulnerable to the antics of anarchists who exploit religion to fulfill their blood lust.
