Soldier Reveals Military Chiefs Work With Boko Haram

A soldier has claimed that he witnessed incidents that suggested some military chiefs work with Boko Haram insurgents in the North-East.

Speaking with the Voice of America Hausa Service, the soldier revealed how his military unit in Borno State was ambushed by Boko Haram members.

According to the soldier who pleaded anonymity, the commander of a nearby military unit in Bama recently sought assistance from his unit in carrying out a raid. When the two military units joined up, they were given different uniforms. The Bama unit commander, gave his own troops green uniforms while his unit received tan “desert camouflage” uniforms. When they got to the battle area, the soldier said the commander of the Bama unit suddenly withdrew his forces, leaving the remaining troops to fend for themselves against Boko Haram fighters.

The soldier added that he recognised some of the Boko Haram fighters as his former military trainers in Kontagora, a town near Abuja and that  there was a deliberate attempt to further impoverish the North preparatory to the 2015  general elections.

The soldier also dismissed claims that there were up to 10,000 troops in Maiduguri.

“They (Army) keep saying they are sending soldiers, it’s a lie. They claim that there are 10,000 soldiers in Maiduguri but  it is a lie. If we have 10,000 soldiers, Boko Haram would have ended.  How many members does Boko Haram have?”

However, when the Director of Defence Information, Maj.Gen Chris Olukolade was contacted, he said he did not believe that the person who granted the interview to VOA was a soldier of the Nigerian Army but he could be an insurgent trying to create a false impression to promote the activities of Boko Haram.

Meanwhile, a lance corporal was killed by the Special Forces during an  encounter with  insurgents in Borno State. He was said to have been killed while assisting in the training of Boko Haram fighters.

It was learnt that one of the soldiers who took part in the operation recognised the body of the lance corporal  who dressed in military camouflage.

The soldier  was said to have called the attention of his commander to his discovery that one of the corpses was that of a soldier well known to him as a trainer of special forces in Kotangora. The commander then ordered a search on the body of the  lance corporal  and a current pass permitting  him  to leave his location at the   training centre in  Kontagora was found on him.