Television Nigerian

By David Abu

Lieutenant General Tukur Yusufu Buratai is a man and soldier with a large heart. As Nigeria’s Chief of Army Staff (COAS) and leader of the counter-insurgency operations in the country, Gen. Buratai is confronting adversaries of Nigeria on many fronts and in more invisible ways than known in public space.

The Army Chief is leading Nigerian troops in extinguishing Boko Haram terrorism on the battlefield in the Northeast; troops have fought to a standstill the venom of militancy and crude oil theft in the Niger Delta; it is battling armed banditry and cattle rustling in the Northwest and its operations have tamed to near dissipation the tempo of farmers/herders crises in the North Central.

The Nigerian Military has been the saving grace in quenching the cruel and violent separatism movements in the Southeast, anchored by the Nnamdi Kanu- led IPOB and its nest of killer merchants, armed vandals/looters of businesses, armed robbers and kidnappers.

But apart from these visible and manifold wars against Nigeria, prosecuted by the military, they are also fighting other silent resistance or frustration wars against the State. There are enemies of Nigeria within who have continued to plot to weaken or diminish the potency of the Nigerian military’s intervention in the prevailing or potential insecurity upheavals assailing in the country.

For these categories of Nigerians, who are mostly opposition politicians, all their plots and energies are concentrated on waning the spirit and power of the military in tackling these wars. So, they launch attacks on the institution of the Nigerian Army with frivolous allegations. There is nothing cheerful in their eyes insofar as they are not permitted to thrive in their evil designs against Nigeria.

And these antagonistic forces have not relented in their evil machinations. The latest plot is the irritable, consistent and stiff opposition to the decision of the FGN under President Muhammadu Buhari in lunching a military exercise across Nigeria code named “Operation Python Dance III” (OPDIII).

This is the operation that cleansed Southeastern region of armed criminals masquerading as separatism agitators; it restored peace and security in the region because the Nigerian military did a thorough and professional job of assisting regular security agencies in dusting out these armed criminals from their dens or hideout.

Today, the people are happier because they live in communities, villages and cities purged of violence, killings, armed robbery, kidnappings and allied crimes which were freely perpetrated by these cursed and criminal souls. The Christmas and yuletide have been celebrated freely without wailings of attacks and deaths in the region peculiar to these times.

It is not strange today that some negligible Nigerians are protesting and kicking against the launch of OPDIII all over Nigeria to cleanse the nation of armed criminals. These are politicians suspected of amassing dangerous weapons in preparation to disrupt the next general elections beginning in February 2019.

And those who fear most and protesting loudest against OPDIII are opposition politicians, actively backed by their conspiratorial cronies. They want a free terrain where they can foist electoral violence and robbery on Nigeria and quickly turn around to blame President Buhari for “incompetence” to secure Nigerians.

These arch enemies of Nigeria know exactly why they are protesting against OPDIII. And they have not concealed the target of what they want to achieve. They argue feebly and implausibly that President Buhari should rather send the troops to combat Boko Haram terrorism.

But who has told the adversaries the territories in the Northeast have no troops? Before now, when Boko Haram insurgency was at its peak (and that Buhari battled insurgents in the Northeast), did it prevent him from deploying troops to tackle other emergent insurrections all over the country simultaneously? These Nigerians should stop spurring imprudent sentiments about a purely military exercise by playing to the gallery.

For avoidance of doubts, Operation Python Dance III in the wisdom of the FGN is conceived to be conducted as a military exercise by the Nigerian Army to provide additional support for the Police and other security agencies during the 2019 general elections. No one can deny that Nigeria has an unsavoury history of electoral violence and frauds, perpetrated by dubious politicians. OPDIII is meant to checkmate these realities.

The exercise remains one of the most successful military drills in the country. Again, it has successfully chased out criminal elements from the Southeast and some parts of the South-south. With exception of the Southwest, every other region in the country has felt its positive impact. It is a positive and incontestable record in public domain.

That South-South which has respite from militancy, kidnappings of oil workers, crude oil theft, blowing up of oil pipelines and facilities is mainly facilitated by similar exercises in the region conducted by the Nigerian Army. This success story has been replicated across all troubled regions of Nigeria.

So, no sane or upright Nigerian can dispute the validity or civility of the exercise and it’s far-reaching impacts. Soldiers who handle these special assignments are highly skilled, disciplined and professional officers and men of the Nigerian Army.

Gen. Buratai has a reputation of a no- nonsense Army officer. He has devoted time and energy in the last three years to persistently dissuade soldiers and officers of the Army from meddling into the political affairs of the country. Buratai’s leadership of the Nigerian Army has demonstrated to Nigerians repeatedly that even in very difficult times, the Army is handy to complement the roles traditionally assigned to regular security.

Today’s Nigeria Army is more zealous to see Nigeria’s democracy flourishes and the democratic/electoral process is insulated from every violent entanglement. It explains why Gen. Buaratai penalized Army officers indicted for professional misconduct and connivance to rig the 2015 governorship elections in Ekiti state.

Gen. Buratai had the option to play the card of comradeship by shielding his own; but he rather exposed them. In Nigeria’s recent history, there is no Army which has completely subordinated itself to the democratic process and governance or to civil authorities like the Army led by Gen. Buratai.

Why then are some people afraid of Operation Python Dance III? If OPDIII succeeded in the past, there is no cogent reason for anybody to doubt them now, except those who have their mindset fixated on rigging the 2019 ballot, and have armed political thugs and criminals. But they must be flushed out before the election. Nigerians want peace while exercising their civic responsibility.

No one has reason or anything to fear. But politicians who have not campaigned or sold out their manifestoes to the masses to earn support, but are amassing weapons to intimidate voters, cause violence, kidnap opponents, kill and rig the elections should naturally be haunted by the phobia of Python Dance III.

Outside this clan of politicians with a passion for violence, Nigerians know OPDIII will assist greatly. Nigerians are aware OPDIII will not allow anyone to intimidate voters on election day. It will not allow anyone to kidnap his opponents or unlawfully cage rival camps within the period in the braggadocios display of jungle might.

Certainly, its bad investment for architects of ballot snatching, whose thugs most times overwhelm and even kidnap the police or civil defence officers on election duty.

They are scared that with OPDIII, this is impossible and one can imagine the pains and frustrations in them. So, anyone who stands by the path of truth should fear not, Operation Python Dance III.

Abu PhD is a fellow of the Centre for International and Strategic Studies, Abuja.

By Amos Badeh

Let me begin by extending my heart-felt sympathy to the family of former Chief of Defence Staff, Air Chief Marshal Alex Badeh (rtd), who was in December 2018 gunned down by the bullets of suspected assassins on the Keffi-Kaduna road while returning from his farm. I also commiserate with the Nigerian Air Force (NAF) and Nigerians over the unfortunate and sad demise of the former Air Chief, a brilliant officer.

Ordinarily, the death of anyone is sad enough regardless of the circumstance leading to his death. It is not supposed to become part of public polemics, discourse or analysis. But we are in partisan era and the proclivity to politicize every matter or incident and even, twist its facts is very prevalent especially by members of the opposition PDP in the country.

In PDP’s reaction to the assassination of Alex Badeh, very inciting innuendos have been adopted to point accusing fingers at the FGN led by President Muhammadu Buhari as responsible for the brutal murder of the Air Chief. PDP has dropped a masked hint that it knows the killers of Badeh even before security agencies could conduct investigations to unravel the truth.

PDP’s National Publicity Secretary and Director, Media & Publicity, PDP Presidential Campaign Organization, Mr. Kola Ologbondiyan excitedly trumpeted that the death of the Alex Badeh occurred, just weeks before he was scheduled to open his defence, in the N3.9 billion alleged fraud preferred against him by the FGN. It is insinuated unambiguously that the government could have been responsible for his assassination.

Other PDP apologists like former Aviation Minister, Chief Femi Fani Kayode (FFK) also scribbled a lengthy, but meaningless treatise also reinforcing the extrapolation that Alex Badeh could possibly have been murdered to by government to cover up some “hot” revelations of the arms probe case against him in court. I couldn’t get the nexus as preached by PDP minions and prophets.

Alex Badeh is standing trial over alleged corruption, which was committed under the expired government of the PDP. So, how could the ‘dreary” facts in the custody of Badeh implicate President Buhari to the extent of seeking to terminate the life of the former CDS?

There is no plausible connection in this bemusing theory; outside its propaganda value played in public domain against the incumbent government by PDP over the Air Chief’s assassination.

But PDP is pushing this veiled narrative with gusto and venom in its illusion to weaken the rival camp. I cannot expect anything less from an association and assemblage of unconscionable men.

So, PDP has become both a political party and criminal investigators of high profile crimes. Therefore, they are also offering possible “clues” to high profile assassinations. The party has usurped the official responsibilities of the Police; the DSS and other arms of security agencies.

The manner PDP members celebrate the unfortunate deaths of Nigerians, with stylish the comments is indication that there is something beneath the coating. Its not mere coincidence to me listening to them vomit such implicating gibberish each time a tragedy or dark clouds hovers on Nigeria. The message the party and its members are circulating clearly is that they are happier when Nigeria boils or mourns.

These vituperations from the PDP’s supposed leaders over any calamity which bedevils Nigeria at any time is not strange. It gives me the impression that these band of power mongers plot and knows the target of what they want to achieve.

Last December, the 2019 PDP’s Presidential candidate, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar came to the fore with what the demigods in his party have been perpetrating against Nigeria. It was like an exam “expo.” Atiku shamelessly declared that herdsmen killings would continue if Nigerians fail to vote out President Buhari or the APC government in 2019.

What such outbursts means to a lot of Nigerians is open to varying dimensions of interpretations. But what I have not found sufficient grounds to dispute is its bad intentions. What followed Atiku’s repulsive comments were the resurgence of the herdsmen attacks or armed banditry attacks in Zamfara, Katsina, Plateau, Kaduna, Adamawa, Taraba, Benue and scores of other states.

The PDP presidential candidate’s utterances blends with the renewed actions of enemies of Nigeria or the killers, who have sworn an oath to make the country ungovernable for President Buhari. It is designed to portray him as incompetent and helpless in order to bargain for 2019 electoral victory in favour of PDP. No leader who truly loves his country would speak in the manner Atiku articulated no matter the persuasion.

There is every need for all Nigerians to begin to ask the PDP some basic questions. As discernible from their dispositions’, its clear they work behind the scenes and know why Nigerians cannot have respite from herdsmen terrorists, kidnappers, assassinations, armed banditry, armed robbers terrorizing us on our highways; the other façades of killings and violence across the land.

The PDP knows why Nigeria cannot have peace from union strikes. If President Buhari decides to increase the pay of civil servants by introducing a new national minimum wage, I find it difficult to reconcile NLC’s threats of industrial action to compel its implementation.

The same national leadership of NLC has not called for strike to enforce full payment of the old minimum wage in states that have refused to adopt or opted for strikes to compel State Governors indebted to workers and pensioners by months of unpaid salaries to do so. When I analyzed and rationalized these actions, it told me clearly that PDP is the shadows behind every restiveness in Nigeria.

An African adage says, if the owl, (the evil bird) cries at dawn and a little baby dies at break of day, you do not need to search far for the killer, (paraphrased). PDP leaders and members know exactly what is happening to Nigeria; I have every reason to believe they are the veiled instigators and sponsors of the violence, attacks, carnages and massacres of innocent and defenseless Nigerians for political reasons.

And lastly, since the PDP knows the killers of Alex Badeh, let them be bold enough to publish the identities of the assassins and their sponsors. Anyone who is sure of his facts or armed with the truth does not hide his mouth to speak. I challenge PDP to redeem its name now or stop speaking in parables and allow security agents do their job.

Badeh wrote from Mubi, Adamwawa State.