Angered by the death of 12 of their colleagues in a Boko Haram ambush, some soldiers, Wednesday, opened fire on the vehicle of the General Officer Commanding (GOC) 7 Division of the Nigerian Army, Major General Ahmadu Mohammed, reliable security sources have told PREMIUM TIMES.
The military has however claimed the incident was an ‘unfounded rumour’ and narrated its own version of events.
“The fact of the matter is that troops on patrol around Chibok were ambushed by insurgents yesterday. Troops engaged the insurgents in a fierce combat and extricated themselves from the ambush killing several insurgents.
Four soldiers however lost their lives during the ambush.
“On evacuation of the remains of the fallen troops, the General Officer Commanding addressed the troops who registered their anger about the incident by firing into the air,” military spokesperson, Chris Olukolade, a Major General, said in a statement.
The military’s version of events contrasts with what reliable sources in the military in Borno told PREMIUM TIMES.
The 7 Division, recently formed, is located in Maiduguri, the capital of the troubled Borno State.
PREMIUM TIMES learnt that the aggrieved soldiers blamed the death of their colleagues on the military hierarchy in the division.
Sources said the dead soldiers and the survivors were ambushed while on a special operation in Kalabalge Local Government Area where locals had on Tuesday morning killed about 150 insurgents and arrested 10 others.
After the operation, during which some military equipment were recovered from the insurgents, the soldiers who had arrived the council, were asked to return to Maiduguri.
The soldiers reportedly pleaded with their superiors to pass the night and return to Maiduguri the next morning, as the night trip would be too risky.
Their request was allegedly turned down and the troop had to drive in the night back to Maiduguri.
But half way through their journey, they ran into a Boko Haram ambush and 12 of them got killed while some others were injured, sources said.
This development angered the soldiers who felt their superiors, including the GOC, had deliberately allowed them drive at night to be slaughtered by the Boko Haram.
“Those commanding the troop declined their request to pass the night in one of the villages on the grounds that the top ranks at the headquarters of the 7 Division would not be pleased if they don’t go back to Maiduguri that night,” said a ranking soldier, who insisted not being quoted in this report.
The officer added that “when the corpses of the slain soldiers were brought to Maimalari barracks in the morning, the GOC had to go there to address the troops. As soon as they spotted the vehicle of the GOC driving into the barracks, some of the vexed soldiers suddenly started shooting at the approaching vehicle; it took an extra effort by the GOC’s driver to retreat back and luckily helped the GOC survive by the whiskers.”
Another top security personnel in Maiduguri who spoke to selected journalists off the record said, “The action of the soldiers was misplaced and unprofessional because, the time of the day does not determine when soldiers or troop should move from one point to the other.
“Perhaps the officers that insisted that the troops should return back to Maiduguri at that time may have considered the nocturnal trip as the best; but no one plans for ambush; It was unfortunate, and the GOC should not have been the one to blame, because they are not directly under his command.
“Thank God the GOC is hale and hearty, nothing happened to him.”
In his statement, Mr. Olukolade said “the situation has since been brought under control as there is calm in the cantonment and all normal operational activities are ongoing. “
“Meanwhile, the 7 Division of the Nigerian Army is to institute a military board of inquiry into the circumstances surrounding the conduct of soldiers who fired some shots,” he added, a confirmation that the soldiers’ actions were unprofessional.
The Nigerian soldiers battling the Boko Haram in Borno, Yobe, and Adamawa are believed to be under-equipped and are usually overrun by better-armed insurgents.
In many of the attacks on villages and towns by the Boko Haram, residents confirmed that the soldiers present would initially try to confront the insurgents, but would run away when they see they are faced with superior weaponry.
Basic equipment like communication gadgets, night vision goggles, etc. are either unavailable or not provided to the soldiers, many of who are believed to have low morale.
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