As Service Chiefs Relocate to Borno

A recent directive by President Bola Tinubu for the Service Chiefs to relocate to Maiduguri to take charge of security should not be treated like the late President Muhammadu Buhari’s order to a former Inspector General of Police to relocate to Benue State and Tinubu’s previous directive to the defence and military chiefs to relocate to Sokoto State, Ejiofor Alike writes

President Bola Tinubu’s recent directive to service chiefs to relocate to Maiduguri, the Borno State capital, to take charge of security was another commendable attempt by the president to ensure that the Nigerian military wins the war against insurgency in the North-east.

Reacting to the multiple bomb attacks that led to the loss of over 20 lives and left more than 100 persons injured in Maiduguri, shortly before embarking on the historic State visit to the United Kingdom, Tinubu said Nigeria would not succumb to fear.

He said: “The Monday attacks were desperate acts of the evil-minded terrorist groups. Our gallant military and civilian task forces will curtail and put them down.

“Just last weekend, during a security meeting with leaders of security and intelligence agencies, I approved additional equipment and operational support to enhance their capabilities. This effort is already in progress.

“Additionally, I have directed security chiefs to move to Maiduguri to take charge of the situation. I have also directed the emergency agencies to provide proper care for the injured. There is no place in Nigeria where terrorists will find safety. We will locate them, confront them, and completely defeat them. Nigeria will not succumb to fear.”

The security situation in the North-east, particularly in Borno State has worsened in recent weeks as about four explosives were said to have been detonated simultaneously at different locations in Maiduguri, the state capital, last Monday.

The explosive devices were said to have been detonated by suspected Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) and Boko Haram terrorists.

Before these multiple bomb blasts, the Nigerian military had reportedly lost at least three commanding officers in charge of forward operations bases following coordinated assaults by Boko Haram and ISWAP at different locations within seven days in the state.

Seven senior officers and about 40 soldiers were reportedly killed within the last three months in the state.

The deteriorating security situation has fuelled the need for the military authorities to overhaul the North-east Operation HADIN KAI (OPHK) in Maiduguri, which is leading the anti-insurgency operations.

Tinubu’s decision for the security chiefs to move to Maiduguri to take charge of the situation is a welcome development.

However, this is not the first time Tinubu directed the military and defence chiefs to relocate to a war zone but the previous orders were ineffective as the only objective was never realised.    

In September 2024, President Tinubu had ordered the Minister of State for Defence, Mr. Bello Matawalle and the military chiefs to relocate to Sokoto State as part of the president’s efforts to rid the state and the entire North-west of rampant terrorism.

Tinubu’s order came amid an embarrassing video clip that circulated online showing how a jubilant terrorism kingpin, Bello Turji, and his armed bandits were celebrating victory over the Nigerian Army after burning down two military Mines Resistant Armour Personnel (MRAP) vehicles stuck in the mud.

Following the president’s order, Matawalle was seen landing at the Sultan Abubakar International Airport Sokoto, clad in military camouflage, and accompanied by the then Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), General Christopher Musa (now Minister of Defence), and the Chief of Defence Intelligence, Lt. Gen. Emmanuel Undiandeye, among other senior officers.

Addressing soldiers at the 8 Division Headquarters in Sokoto, Matawalle explained: “We are here in Sokoto State on the instructions of President Tinubu, who directed the Ministry of Defence with all its artillery to come to Sokoto and review the operations, especially that of Operations Hadarin Daji.

“Nigeria is not a banana republic; Nigeria is a country governed by the Constitution, and you all know Mr President knows the problem of the North, and that is why he appoints his security team from the North, including myself and the defence minister (Muhammad Badaru),” Matawalle said.

He added that the president was intentional about their appointment because he knows the region’s security challenges.

“The president carefully selected northerners and appointed them into key positions. Look at me: I am from Zamfara State, and the Chief of Defence Staff is from Kaduna State. The Minister of Defence, Badaru, is from Jigawa State; the National Security Adviser is from Adamawa State while the Minister of State for Police Affairs is also from the North.

“So, he carefully selected us because he knows our problem is insecurity. So, we are here to flush out those bandits that have been terrorising our region,” he said

However, despite the relocation of the military chiefs to Sokoto, and Tinubu’s commendable efforts in appointing northerners into key security positions, bandits have continued to have a field day in the state and the entire North-west.

In January 2018, the late President Muhammadu Buhari also ordered the then Inspector General of Police (IG), Ibrahim Idris, to immediately relocate to Benue State, following the tension in the state arising from the renewed killings of residents by suspected herdsmen.

Buhari had mandated the police boss to immediately restore law and order, prevent further loss of lives and forestall the crisis from escalating and spreading in the state.

The then Force Public Relations Officer, Jimoh Moshood, a Chief Superintendent of Police, had told the grieving people of Benue State and other Nigerians that the IG was moving into the state with additional five units of Police Mobile Force (PMF), making a total of 10 units of PMF deployed in the state which was in addition to other police formations on the ground in the state before the crisis.

According to a statement issued by Moshood, more units of the Police Special Forces, Counter Terrorism Units, and Conventional Policemen were already being deployed to the state to comply in totality with the presidential order.

Despite these deployments, Benue State has remained a killing field with many residents now living in IDP camps.

The IG reportedly returned to Abuja barely two days after his purported relocation to Benue State.

Therefore, the people of Borno State should not celebrate Tinubu’s directive to the military chiefs but should demand concrete results.

 President Tinubu should give timelines and targets to the military chiefs that relocated to Borno State and also demand verifiable results of their efforts.

The military authorities should also reorganise the North-east Operation HADIN KAI (OPHK) in Maiduguri, and inject fresh hands to take charge of the war against insurgency.