FEMI TAIWO: HOW TO ERASE BOKO HARAM IN 6 MONTHS OR LESS (1)

STRATEGY WITH FEMI TAIWO ON MONDAY

Oluwafemi Michael Taiwo, PhD

Michael is a first class chemical engineering graduate of Obafemi Awolowo University, Nigeria, and a PhD holder in same discipline from the University of Arkansas, United States.

Boko Haram (BH) is Nigeria’s plague. Like a virus, it destroys its host while spreading death and disaster. BH used to be just another symptom of a diseased leadership but now, it has morphed into a much worse monster: it has become the symbol of a failing nation. It has wasted thousands, and the end appears nowhere in sight. The embarrassing inability of the President to quench this uncontrollable fire reveals, more than anything else, how clueless he is and how unfortunate the country has been to be cursed with such a figure. The first responsibility of the government is the security of the people. Failure to contain and wipe out BH is the best evidence that Aso Rock is vacant. On the basis of his performance on BH alone, there is enough ground for impeaching the President.

I have digressed. This article is neither about  the President nor his administration; there is plenty of time for that later as the election year approaches. This article is about how I would deal with the BH scourge were I given the task. I ask you to follow me on my high-level plan and judge if it is doable. Since I am not given this assignment, I hope those that are read my words and use it to put a quick end to this prolonged horror show.

There are three things I would do simultaneously:

1. 1.      Live among the Locals

The first thing the army is doing wrong in the North East is that they have barracks where all of them stay. It is very tempting to want to retreat behind high walls the enemy cannot breach and there’s something to be said for staying in a relatively peaceful headquarters where plans can be hatched. But the reason they are there is not to keep themselves safe but to keep other people safe  and you cannot do that in seclusion.

More importantly, by living with the locals, you become familiar with them and they are more likely to tell you what you really want to know: who the terrorists are, where they stay and who is funding them. Information is the currency of war and you obtain it by grafting yourself in the society’s fabric.

Also, by living among the locals, you send a message of “we are in this together” – a shared destiny. This makes it easier for you to win their minds. It must be noted that what BH is fighting for really is to win the hearts and minds of the people, to convince people of their way as the best way.  By staying with the local population, you have the chance to re-orient them away from the destructive teachings and propagandas of the terrorists.

Moreover, it is a maxim of war that you should give the enemy no target to attack. By interweaving the army with the indigenes and spreading them out (but still well connected by modern communications technologies), the enemy will not know where to strike. Everywhere will look to him like barracks and the people will start gaining more confidence in you than in the terrorists. If you can pull this off, if you can live with the people and let them see you as their friend and rescuer, the rest is easy. Look, the people of that area know who the perpetrators are. They are just too scared to talk.

(Continued next week)

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EDITOR’S NOTE: Although this essay by our columnist is best situated within the purview of politics, and we have maintained this is not a political blog, it is nevertheless published because it is still about management of a macro-situation. Management – corporate and national – is one of our key themes on this portal.