FEMI TAIWO: HOW TO ERASE BOKO HARAM IN 6 MONTHS OR LESS (III) – CASE STUDIES IN HISTORY
STRATEGY WITH FEMI TAIWO ON MONDAY
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.
Many Nigerians think Boko Haram is an unsolvable problem because they have loomed larger than life. BH is not motivated by money like the oil thieves and militants in the South; their grievance is ideological in nature – which makes them belong to the class of insurgents and terrorists that we will look at below.
Other countries have been here before. And by studying their successes and failures, we can craft our own strategy.
Case Study 1: The Irish Republican Army vs. British Government
Period: Early 20th century
Location: Europe
The Anglo-Irish War of 1919-21 was the first modern guerilla war. This was an Irish fight for independence from the British. Michael Collins led the Irish Republican Army (IRA) and was a master strategist. He conducted a highly effective insurgent struggle against the British government. He was eventually able to force the British to a negotiation table. They still didn’t get their independence but they fared much better after the deal.
I said earlier that “Live Among the Locals” is one of the ways to quickly bring about the demise of BH. Well, the British soldiers did live in Ireland but they lived in exclusive quarters just like our own soldiers too in the North East. Despite being in Ireland for over 800 years, the British soldiers never understood the country they were in, its people or their culture. This led them to consistently underestimate the enemy and what should have been a quick decisive victory for them turned into a much dragged out battle that only ended with a compromise.
Case Study 2: Front de Libération Nationale vs. French Government
Period: Middle of the 20th century
Location: Africa
This is another war of independence. It was fought in Algeria against the French. The FLN was formed from smaller groups to wrest the control of Algiers from France. Their tactics increasingly grew dark and they killed and bombed at will. Anyone suspected of helping the French became a target. The French soldiers were able to curb this disorder by capturing a few of the terrorists based on intelligence from the locals. Once a terrorist is nabbed, they quickly squeezed information out of him to capture the others…and eventually were able to get to the source. Crush the terrorist and publicize your victory. The Nigerian army has to start really partnering with the locals to get the right actionable intelligence.
Case Study 3: United States in Iraq
Period: Early 21st century
Location: Asia
After 10 bloody years, the United States Army is coming back home from Iraq with its tail between its legs. Like the British Army a hundred years ago, a superpower has been outwitted by a smaller band of determined warriors using unconventional tactics. It is instructive to note that the US suffered from the same problem as the British a century earlier: they failed to understand the country they were in. The people of Iraq don’t see them as liberators, they see them as invaders. And you cannot win an irregular war without the full cooperation of the indigenes.
Conclusion
I have looked at three cases that took place at different periods in different continents to show the universality and the timelessness of the strategy I propose to erase Boko Haram. I hope some people currently tasked with this onerous assignment will take note and apply.
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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.
On all the three strategies that you have proposed, the govt has failed woefully. If BH so much love women and are in serious need of them, can the govt not lure them with spies as prostitutes? Come on, I believe govt can do better than they are doing. Rather, after every attack, GEJ and his cohorts prefer to look helpless, like an innocently raped girl that deserve nothing but sympathy. I hope they read this piece to realise that wars are won on strategies. Nothing more. Lovely piece from a thinking mind. Lol.
You are correct. Prostitutes make very good spies. That was how the Northern Vietnam Army was able to get a lot of their info during the Vietnam war and it was the major reason the United States failed in winning decisively despite their overall military power. The US soldiers just couldn’t zip up both thier pants and their mouths!