₦airaland Forum

HOW BOKO HARAM KILLED OVER SOLDIERS IN METELE ATTACK - SURVIVOR

A Nigerian soldier who survived the deadly attack on a military base in the northern part of Borno State on Monday said they suffered a heavy casualty due to lack of adequate weapons.

The soldier, who managed to escape the attack alongside other injured troops, said at least 70 soldiers died in the attack.

He said the corpses of the slain Nigerian soldiers are yet to be evacuated, days after Boko Haram took advantage of their lack of munitions, and dealt them a devastating defeat.

The attack at Metele village in Guzamala local government area of the state happened on Monday evening.

PREMIUM TIMES broke the story on Tuesday detailing how rampaging Boko Haram insurgents overran a Nigerian Army battalion in Borno State on Sunday, killing the unit’s commander and dozens of soldiers.

Military sources told PREMIUM TIMES that large cache of arms, ammunition, and military equipment were carted away by Boko Haram fighters during the attack on 157 Task Force Battalion in Metele, Guzamala Local Government Area, at about 6:00 p.m.

Security analysts described the attack as a huge setback for government forces trying to push terrorists further out of Nigeria’s north-eastern flank.

The attack came amidst rising fears for the fate of the troops from the base, which has suffered several attacks in recent past.

PREMIUM TIMES reported on Monday that there were efforts being made to evacuate corpses of the fallen soldiers on Tuesday morning.

But according to some of the soldiers who survived the attack, the move to evacuate the littering corpses was thwarted by the Boko Haram fighters who held their ground and forced the soldiers to abandon the mission.



How Metele was attacked
According to the soldier who survived the attack, their location was invaded after Boko Haram allegedly issued a threat letter last Friday that it would soon take over four strategic military locations around the Lake Chad region.

PREMIUM TIMES has not been able to see or confirm any copy of the threat letter mentioned by the military sources.

“The attack came at about 6pm on Monday evening”, said the soldier.

“When the soldier on top of the observation post alerted that a large number of Boko Haram fighters were advancing, we all got alarmed as we took cover and waited within the base in Metele.

“The fight did not last for more than 45 minutes; but it was bloody because the Boko Haram fighters had more armament advantage that the soldiers.

“When we realised the fight would be against us, we decided to retreat from the camp, but it was rather too late. The camp was surrounded with barbed wire, and the enemy fire was coming from the direction of the entrance. We were like surrounded.

“One of the drivers of the gun trucks decided to push through the barbed wire so that other vehicles could follow and escape, but the truck got stuck, that was how many of our soldiers in other vehicles and those on foot were massacred.

“Those that managed to escape with injuries made it on foot through Cross-Kauwa to Monguno where they boarded commercial vehicles, some even sat in the booth of the Golf cars to get to Maiduguri.

“The Boko Haram made away with about seven gun trucks of the Nigeria army.

The senior non-commissioned military source said no fewer than 70 soldiers were killed while many others who were outgunned by the Boko Haram fighters had to flee.



The soldier, who claimed to have made it to Maiduguri on foot after escaping the heated battle, said an attempt to return to the battlefield to evacuate the bodies of the fallen heroes was thwarted by another attack from the insurgents.

The soldier, who pleaded strict anonymity in this report, informed PREMIUM TIMES that troops in the field are still facing serious challenges of inadequate ammunition and motivation.

The soldier said the deployed team that went to evacuate the bodies of the soldiers could only pick about five corpses before they suffered yet another ambush attack from Boko Haram fighters, forcing them to abandon the mission and fled.

“Up till yesterday, Wednesday, the evacuation of the corpses have not been completed, to the best of my knowledge,” he said.

The source said troops have been recording death of many soldiers almost on a daily basis as Boko Haram sustained attacks on military formations.

“We need the world to hear how we are being sent to slaughter as though our lives don’t matter,” he said.

It could be recalled that on August 12, a group of soldiers stationed at the Maiduguri International Airport staged what seemed a mutiny following a protest over military authority’s move to redeploy them to the frontline.

The soldiers insisted that the redeployment would put them in danger following the fact that those deployed earlier suffered serious casualty due to inadequate arms and ammunition.

The military command in Maiduguri dispelled the claims of the soldiers and some of the revolting soldiers were later court-martialled.

The source to this report said despite the protest and the subsequent court-martial, some of the soldiers that were deployed still suffered the fate that befell their colleagues.

“Some few weeks ago, about 75 of us from our own unit here in Maiduguri were deployed to the front line and it took the grace of God for about 40 of us to return alive.

“When we returned and gave our complaint, we were asked to go back again to Metele, an area near Kangarwa forest, and we have been there for about three weeks now fighting a defensive battle.



“We beg the Nigerian media to help us by echoing out our muffled voices. The children of poor Nigerians have been turned into chicken meant for easy sacrifices by our commanders.

“We are being killed on daily basis as if our lives don’t matter. Of course as soldiers we signed to lay down our lives in defence of this country, but certainly not in the manner we are being presented for slaughter without dignity. A soldier should die fitting and not being chased or overpowered.

“Our morale has been dampened so badly – not only because we are not given our due allowances; but for the fact that we have been outgunned by the Boko Haram.

“The situation has gone so bad that it has gotten to a stage that soldiers would be rushing to pack up their camps and flee upon hearing the news that Boko Haram fighters are advancing.

“We have suddenly lost our spirit of launching attacks because of lack of resources to prosecute the battle. Many of us are ready to do our best, but there has been no requisite support from those sending us out there.

“As I am talking to you now, we have about 70 corpses of soldiers littering the battleground in Metele and when we went to evacuate them on Monday, the Boko Haram gunmen came out in large numbers from all angles – so we had to abandon the corpses after just picking five of them. We left most of the corpses there as I am talking to you now.

“The media need to give this clear picture to the world – Nigerians need to know what we are facing here in the battlefield. Only some of us that escaped managed to get to Maiduguri on Tuesday, but many others are yet to surface.

“The fact of the matter is that we still have a very large number of Boko Haram terrorists out there. As far as the Nigerian army is concerned, it will take more than ten years to chase out Boko Haram from our hinterlands, without the help of foreign forces.

“We can only brag that we can defeat them; but in reality, we lack the capacity to do so, given the kind of approach we accord to prosecuting the war.”

Metele is, for now, regarded as one of the strongholds of Boko Haram in the northern part of Borno State.

It could be recalled that it was in Metele that about 18 Nigeria soldiers were killed and about 151 soldiers and six officered were declared missing when insurgents raided an outpost of 157 Battalion on October 8.

The military had reported that it had killed at least 76 Boko Haram fighters in Metele while giving seven soldiers dead and 16 injured as the official figures of casualties recorded during the attack no troops’ location.

The military, both at the army headquarters, Abuja and at the theatre command in Maiduguri, have not responded to text messages sent to them by PREMIUM TIMES for this report.



https://www.premiumtimesng.com/regional/nnorth-east/296967-how-boko-haram-killed-over-70-soldiers-in-metele-attack-survivor.html

Afamed:
I expected someone like you to justify the Otuoke fisherman by re editing the history anyway.

Read the story.
It's self explanatory

Afamed:
Only God knows who award GEJ with PhD without thesis. The Otuoke has been trying hard to re - write history

Lol, you what's your highest qualifications?
Did you even read the story?
I guess you're among those he described in the book as ""those who are incapable of comprehending this elevated thought.."

bilulu:
ur statement shows how shallow minded u n most Nigerians re.... we tend to believe Wat we hear first. with his explanation u can't still understand wat he meant reason u re were u re now.... can u also google or check ur dictionary the meaning of orphan before displaying ur stupidity

I wonder oo

THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN GEJ AND PMB FIGHT AGAINST CORRUPTION

GEJ:
My administration supported the institutional development of secure systems and mechanisms to curb corruption in public service and plug revenue leakages. We spearheaded the development of the:
1) Treasury Single Account (TSA),
2) Integrated Personnel and Payroll Information System (IPPIS)
3) Bank verification Number (BVN),"


PMB
Believes in arrest, detention, media trials yet no convictions

abc115:
Mr Jonathan... Stealing is Corruption

Did you read the story?
Jonathan described your type as "those who are incapable of comprehending this elevated thought.."

YOU CAN BE CORRUPT WITHOUT STEALING A DIME

Godluck Jonathan, former President, says it is possible for an individual to be corrupt without stealing a kobo.

Jonathan said this in his book, ‘My Transition Hours’, while trying to explain the difference between ‘corruption’ and ‘stealing’, which, according to him, led to “false claims” that he said “stealing is not corruption”.

“Immediately after the 2011 elections, my administration was repeatedly accused of being corrupt,” Jonathan said in the chapter 5 of the book, titled ‘Corruption And The Blame Game’.

“Despite the blackmail, I remained committed to combating corruption in a systemic way, knowing it was endemic. We vigorously devised and implemented a thorough and strategic plan to fight corruption, using technology, albeit within the context of the rule of law and due process.”

Jonathan went on to explain his ideas about corruption, but only after he had denied ever saying ‘stealing is not corruption’.

“Before I go deeper into this, let me address a false narrative my detractors have used to besmirch my name. They claim that I once said that ‘stealing is not corruption’. This is not true. Following the constant stigmatization of Nigerians as corrupt, I invited the leadership of the legislature and judiciary to a meeting.

“In attendance were the Senate President and his Deputy, Speaker of the House of Representative and his Deputy; the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), the President of the Court of Appeal, the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court and six States’ Chief Judges from each of the six geopolitical zones. Also invited were heads of two anti-corruption agencies viz, the Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and Chairman of the Independent Corrupt Practice and Other related Offences Commission (ICPC). I presided over the meeting with the Vice President.

“My thinking was that the executive arm of government alone could not effectively eradicate the scourge of corruption, hence the need for that meeting. I personally appealed to them and argued that only an all-inclusive approach could bring about tangible successes in the anti- corruption fight. The judiciary, the legislative and the executive arms of government needed to join forces if were to end the theft of public resources and stop corruption.”

He explained that he proposed that those present at the meeting should work together to curb corruption; ensure that matters of corruption are treated in painstaking and timely manner when presented to the courts, otherwise there would be no effective results; to encourage the parliament to play a fundamental role in passing strong and effective law, as the judiciary can only do little when laws are weak.

“The then Chief Justice of Nigeria, Honourable Justice Dahiru Musdapher, in his contributions acknowledged that he was of the same opinion. He added that because of the perception of corruption in Nigeria he had to isolate all the case files before the Supreme Court having to do with corruption charges,” Jonathan continued on page 45 of the book.

“He said that after reading through those files, he discovered that more than 70% were not corruption cases, per se, but crimes of stealing. The individuals involved were however not charged to court for stealing but rather in preparing the case files, the prosecutors used the term ‘corruption’.

“It was on the strength of his submission that I expounded to say that we should stop calling a spade an agricultural implement. Corruption does not fully capture the act of stealing. A person can indeed be corrupt without stealing a dime. Those who are incapable of comprehending this elevated thought and the mischievous crowd go about claiming till date that I said ‘stealing is not corruption’. They never bothered to even check the context in which I spoke. If you ask many of those clinging to that falsehood and mouthing malicious misrepresentation, to quote where I said it, they will tell you ‘they only heard’.

“Let me categorically state that I never said stealing is good and that people should steal, neither did the CJN. Stealing is stealing and instead of calling it corruption, let us call the thief by his proper name and not use a blanket word like corruption.

“Corruption encompasses many things. According to Transparency International, corruption is defined as the ‘abuse of entrusted power for the private gain’. The Merriam Webster’s dictionary defines stealing as ‘to take without permission or legal right and without intending to return’. If a government minister upon a cabinet dissolution takes a vehicle that he is not entitled to and converts it to personal use, then that is stealing. We must not lump everything together to say stealing is corruption. We must isolate stealing and make it as plain as day because Nigerians hate thieves. I abhor jungle justice, but we have witnessed Nigerians show their hatred for suspected thieves by burning them alive.”

The perception of the Jonathan administration as corrupt played a big role in the victory of the then opposition party at the 2015 presidential election. But Jonathan insisted that this was not so, otherwise his administration would not have “supported the institutional development of secure systems and mechanisms to curb corruption in public service and plug revenue leakages”.

“My administration spearheaded the development of the Treasury Single Account (TSA), the Integrated Personnel and Payroll Information System (IPPIS) and the Bank verification Number (BVN)," he added.


http://saharareporters.com/2018/11/21/person-can-indeed-be-corrupt-without-stealing-dime-says-jonathan

Eniola Akinkuotu, Abuja

Former President Goodluck Jonathan says his successor, President Muhammadu Buhari, not only worsened the level of corruption in Nigeria but also chased away investors by de-marketing Nigeria abroad.


Jonathan added that rather than take Nigeria to the next level, the Buhari administration decided to engage in media trials which also worsened the corruption perception of Nigeria thereby leading to Nigeria’s slip in the Transparency International Corruption Perception Index.

The former President said this in his recently published book titled, ‘My Transition Hours’.

He said, “The sundry accusations by the new administration will appear to have baited the media. Media trials are entertaining but have little or no effect in fighting corruption and improving the economy.

“Since I left office, rather than improve on our TI corruption perception record, the situation has worsened with the nation going 12 places backward, becoming number 148 according to the latest CPI ranking for 2014, from 136 in 2014 when I was President.


“It was bad enough that Boko Haram insurgency continued killing people and ruining businesses but what is worse is when politicians downgrade the economy by de-marketing the country internationally.”

The former President said the Buhari administration failed to realise that foreign investors are always very sensitive to the utterances of the government.

He said in the process of trying to dig a hole for him, the Buhari government ended up digging a hole for the nation.

Jonathan added, “You should never try to slander your political opponent by destroying your country’s economy. Capital flight intensified and companies started laying off staff. In all this, I hope a lesson will be learned. If you embark on digging a hole for your enemy, you better make it shallow because you might end up in the hole yourself.


“How do you attract investors you already repelled through your utterances? Investors are an ultrasensitive lot. Money runs away from unstable societies.”




https://punchng.com/buharis-govt-worsened-corruption-chased-away-investors-jonathan/

Nonsense

It's sad.