Throwing the baby with the bath water

In May this year, during the heat of the so called ‘mutiny’ by soldiers of the Nigerian army against Major General Ahmadu Mohammed, we took the pains of analyzing the issue in this column, pointing out details and facts that the Nigerian military caucus and the Federal Government are otherwise sweeping underneath the carpet in a piece titled ‘mutiny; just a matter of time’.
I have always wondered what kind of mentality is enshrined in the military constitution. I had always argued that the military always thinks in the reverse, otherwise how would you describe a situation where a person protest an injustice and he will be put to death because of that?
In order to avoid over flogging the issue, we would just refer to our previous article on the subject matter, picking excerpts from the previous analysis and another opinion from a Nigerian.
The article stated categorically that ‘When one reflect on the Nigerian military of years ago, the present one seems to look more like Boys Scouts. Perhaps it is because we assume that every military man should be of the pedigree of people like Generals Muhammadu Buhari, Yakubu Gowon and Murtala Muhammed, Aguiyi Ironsi, Tunde Idiagbon and the likes. Perhaps we rate them based on the slim and fit physique, discipline, honesty, patriotism, accountability and bravery; and that is why they fail.
The Nigerian military of today, boasts of pot-bellied officers and men. Officers with more money than the institutions they are heading.
But because in the military no questions are asked and Nigeria currently runs the most corrupt government in history, these officers acquire wealth and property way above their means with impunity. When the Governor Kashim Shettima, declared that Boko Haram is better armed and motivated than the Nigerian military, so many people did not take him seriously. The top military officials and presidency denied the claim saying that the Nigerian military is one of the best equipped in Africa and that in 2014, the federal government made budgetary provision in excess of N1 trillion for the military and other security agencies, an amount which is about 22 per cent of our entire national budget for this year. Yet, they still cannot defeat a handful of insurgents.
The way the Nigerian military officers are living big, way above their means, is one of the reasons Nigerians believe that the current insurgency is indeed a red flag operation. They live in big houses, buy/build choice properties, both them and members of their family drive exotic cars, travel abroad for vacation, etc. This is something that should be questioned because there cannot be such flamboyance on one hand, and lack of weaponry to fight Boko Haram on the other amidst such huge budgetary provisions for security.
The superior military officers live like billionaires, while the men can hardly feed their families; whereas it is the men that do all the work and take all the risks. The recent mutiny is actually an explosion of pent up grievances because it did not begin with the commanding officer in question. He just consolidated on what his predecessors had been doing before he got there; he was just the scape- goat.
And the commanding officers were just carrying over what happens in their various offices.  Corruption in the Nigerian military did not begin with the Boko Haram insurgency, and may certainly not die with t; which makes mutiny a time bomb just waiting to explode. Unless and until corruption is checked and the corrupt officers brought to book, this is just the beginning. After all, soldiers are not wood.
Mr. Doyin Osojipe also stated that ‘Issues of  military politics, the ‘small boys welfare and corruption and the claim that the Nigerian military were not doing well enough must be looked into with a view to reposition the armed forces for effective service delivery.
Now the reality has come to play as the news making headlines on soldiers’ mutiny in Borno flood the media. ‘The Small boys’ are obviously tired of being pushed in the Sambisa Forest without proper motivation and equipment to fight the dreaded gunmen. Let it be said here that the soldiers are also human; the sight of their dead friends did not only infuriate them, but the fact that they were less cared for, less motivated, yet on a no-going-back duty to defend the nation with their lives might have been the cause of their resistance.
Instead of the tribunal to look deeper than the purported mutiny and search deep to discover the reasons and instigations behind it, it just sent these men to the gallows. Men who swore to protect and preserve Nigeria; men who gave their all to live up to this obligation; men who gave up their lives, comfort, families and convenience to serve the Country callously sentenced without much as a though as to the series of allegation leveled against their superiors.
It is rather difficult to believe that in the face of the ongoing onslaught against men of the Nigerian military (not officers) by the insurgents, the force will also blatantly execute its own men for spurious reasons. The Nigerian military is throwing away the baby with the dirty bath water. But, will it solve the problems and stop the situation from exploding? Only time will tell.
Yes, the law is the law, and it must be upheld. But if the law will permit corruption in the military, embezzlement of the welfare of its men, self-centeredness amongst men in the Armed Force, lack of patriotism, non challenge and greed, then the LAW IS REALLY AN ASS’.