A Tribute To The Hard Working Chief Of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. TY Buratai

When PMB took over power, he made it clear that, the pains of Nigerians, traumatized and blitzed by awful threatening insecurity will surely be taken head on by his govt. He further buoyed by a conviction in his capacity to salvage a battered and sick nation by setting out a reformation and redemption mission.

Equally, having known fully well that, BHT was not the only security issue bedeviling our country. The spate of kidnappings, armed robberies, herdsmen/farmers clashes, cattle rustlings all help to add to the general air of insecurity in our land. With this, Mr President said and I quote “we are going to erect and maintain an efficient, disciplined people friendly and well compensated sy forces within an over all security architecture.”

The putcsh in the leadership echelon of the Nigerian Armed Forces or Service Chiefs and the annointment of fresh hands to pilot the affairs of these security agenies was PMB’s first response to the daunting insecurity challenges bedevilling Nigeria. And for me, the president did not make mistake by his choice of appointments bcoz the results has worked impressively.

The NA, with its innate premium status in the security apparatus of Nigeria, as elsewhere, had the appointment of a thorough bred, patriotic, loyal, rugged and dogged very senior officer in person of Lt. Gen. TY Buratai as the COAS and in him, PMB sighted performace, so he spiced and Burdened him with an additional appointment as ldr of the counter-insurgency campaigns in Nigeria.

The COAS in my own perception is perceived by many as a war oracle and brilliant strategist and tactician akin to the Chinese war Lord and strategist, Gen. Sun Tzu. So, the COAS had the unenviable responsibility of co-ordinating the other arms of the military and civil security to deliver on his assignment.

His herculean task was to anchor a fruitful war aganst terrorists and insurgents, much as other local armed criminal gangs. He was mandated to blow the trumpet of defeat loud enough to restore the peace and dignity of Nigerians, violently snatched from them.

The consecretion of the COAS by the Presidency as the chief executioner of the rights of Nigerians to a peaceful and secured life, insulated from disguised or direct acts of terrorism on the citizenry has rewarded abandantly. His shadows in the counter-insurgency campaigns has proved overtime that the one right of President Buhari to confer on the COAS this national appointment and onerous service to his fatherland can never be faulted even by the worst cynics in the world.

He has etched his name in gold through dignified conduct, exemplary leadership and splendor in performance, noticeable in the endearing or rare victories against manifold acts of terrorism and insurgencies in Nigeria.

In fact, pugnacious Nigerians were disarmed in the very few weeks, the COAS marshaled out NA troops on the rescue mission of his country by confronting BHT in the hills, caves and mountains of the NE. The positive results poured in breathless torrents, as troops started edging against insurgents from the onset and in the first weeks of 2015. This was after he relocated the military Command Center to Maiduiguri, the epicenter of the terrorists atrocious outings in the NE as soon as he was appointed.

Firstly, troops halted the reckless siege of BHT on Abuja, seat of Nigeria’s capital (FCT). Bombs could no longer detonate day or night on public buildings, security offices, motor parks, shopping malls, mkts, schls, in traffic gridlocks and every other conceivable destination. Troops stretched to terminate similar BHT in other big cities in Northern Nigeria, like Kano, Kaduna, Bauchi, Kogi, and Gombe States respectively among others.

More calculatively was the troops reversal of the spread of BHT appendages to some Southern states like Lagos and Osun. The sustained surveilliance of own troops on terrorists movements, detonated their bombs before reaching targets to explode; dislodged dozens of them who scurried out of these cities and towns to places in the NE they assumed were safer abodes to hide and convalesce to execute their heinous crimes against humanity.

In an apparaisal of the voyage of peace in Nigeria, PMB revealed in his Independence Day speech in 2015 that, our gallant armed forces under new leadership of the able COAS have taken the battle to the insurgents, and severely weakened their logistical and infrastructural capabilities. That BHT are being scattered and are on the run.

The President also added that, BHT are resorting to shameless attks on soft tgts such as IDPs camps is indicative of their cowardice and desperation.

This heralded a new phase in the counter-insurgency operations as the COAS concentrated his energy and forces to rescue the NE states of Borno, Yobe and Adamawa held captive by terrorists. U recall that before his appointment, terrorists had overrun and established their insignia of administration in no fewer than 14 x LGAs in the NE. Insurgents also, controlled parts of nearly 8 x other LGAs.

Nigerians mourned as they saw terrorists desecrate the sacred territorial integrity and sovereignty of Nigeria by annexing large swaths of territories they declared their version of farcical “Islamic Caliphate.” the COAS each time he visits the theater, do led troops, condescending frim his high horse (office) to personally jumps into the trenches to rout out BHT.

Painstakingly and gradually, he rescued all Nigerian territories illegally appropriated by terrorists and reunited them with the Nigerian federation. Meanwhile, in the midst of the territorial rescue mission, the COAS also through his troops secured the release of over 20,000 other Nigerians silently held captive by the insurgents in various detention caves.

Troops were equally instrumental to the release of over 100 x Chibok school girls, abducted by terrorists in Apr 14, an act which provoked National and Int’l outrage. It is also on record that, about 110 of the abducted girls have regained freedom at various times, courtesy of the counter-insurgency OPs by NA soldiers.

Some Nigerians may still be in doubt about the role of the NA soldiers in securing freedom for the Chibok school girls but for the first time in the history of the BHT counter offensives, insurgents, among them, top BHT commanders surrendered in droves to the NA troops. This was after they could no longer sustain the heat of troop’s superior fire power in the trenches. The many times remnants of insurgents bade retreat and resurfaced, the NA soldiers matched them fire for fire.

The capture of Sambisa forest like I did mention in my earlier report which was terrorists’ most secured abode signified the defeat of terrorism in Nigeria, which magnified wide acclaim from the Int’l community, incl world renowned ldrs, like fmr US President, Mr. Barack Obama, fmr UN Sec Gen, Mr. Ban Ki-Moon and hordes of others. Nigeria has been receiving standing ovations from around the world for its successful defeat of terrorism.

Nonetheless, the exploits of the COAS in leading troops in assisting civil security maintain security sanity from local armed criminal gangs which orchestrated violent local conflicts is decorative, to say the least. Separatists’ agitations in the SE posed no lesser headache than BHT. The violent militancy in the Niger Delta, where splinter militant sects threatened to unlawfully declare a republic within a republic in Nigeria pepped up and exacerbated tensions and insecurity the region.

Elsewhere in the NW, rampaging armed bandits and cattle rustlers’ sacked communities, mkt, killed, maimed and freely carted away livestock and foodstuff. NA soldiers in many occasions ended the siege on innocent and law abiding citizens, by restoring peace and tranquility.

The violence perpetrated by suspected herdsmen in the Middle Belt also got a dosage of the COAS sedative. The ethno-religious crisis in Kaduna south only subsided when the COAS intervened. Also worthy of note too, anywhere NA troops berthed on special assignments, they broke new grounds of beneficial friendship, with indelible footprints in the host communities. They executed Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) projects in water, roads, electricity and health to a loud applause all through the assistance of the COAS.

Unreservedly therefore, the COAS has effectively checkmated the wild and violent tendencies of deviant sects and with the ongoing clearance OPs in the NE by troops, the awaiting final dirge of BHT in the NE and Nigeria to permanently enthrone the air of peace, development and prosperity in the country is not negotiable.

The COAS has dissolved the bizarre rights of extremists and terrorists to strike with reckless abandon and demonstrated in a thousand ways that Nigerians have a million rights to peace and security.

Having mentioned all the above stated achievement so far by the able COAS, one will not be surprised by some disgruntled element of sabtours and sycophants are carrying fake and unnecessary write up all just to distract or discredit all this progress so far stated but I thank God that the COAS remain focus as ever before. His achievements was equally noticed by the Brasillian military who also bestowed on him the highest military honour in the country during his visit to that country. May God bless the COAS with more appointments and wisdom to run the NA. This is another of my little take on the man of the moment, the able COAS.

Ugochukwu Felix