The witches in William Shakespeare’s play “Macbeth” say the key character or protagonist Macbeth “has murdered sleep” and “shall sleep no more”. This is after he murders King Duncan in a plot to become king himself. The killing sears his conscience so deep that he cannot sleep at night. His troubled mind and unpopularity, after ascending the thrown, lead to his eventual death. So also has Kuoma community in Ughelli South local government area, Delta state. It is literally on fire from the burning wrath of soldiers of the Nigerian Army, out to avenge a commanding officer, two majors and 12 troops killed by armed youth of the area last Thursday, March 14.
A news report from the area said the soldiers went to OKuoma to negotiate a truce between the community and Okoloba. On their way, they were ambushed by armed youth and killed in the most savage manner and their headless bodies thrown in the community’s creeks. Thereafter, the villagers fled for fear of a reprisal by the army, which came duly on Monday. Pictures of blazing buildings and other structures have been trending on social media ever since. The killers must have known what the consequence of their evil act would be; that’s why the community has been abandoned. Recall what the army did in 1990 in Odi, Bayelsa state and 2001 in Zaki Biam in Benue State. The military always must avenge their own killed in unprovoked attacks.
The Army’s strong-armed response would appear to have been sanctioned at the very top of the political leadership. President Bola Tinubu, Monday, condemned the killing of the army personnel, saying it was an attack on the country as a whole and those that did it were the nation’s enemies. He ordered that the killers be fished out and made to face the law. Delta governor Sheriff O. described the killings as “something the state hadn’t bargained for,” pledging that his government would do its very best to track down the murderers. The leadership of the Senate demanded “a thorough investigation” and asked the federal government to pay compensations for the fallen officers and soldiers.
Compensation, perhaps, isn’t where to start interrogating the incident. How much can you give to compensate for a life you have taken? Has it been cheapened to a matter of naira and kobo? Justice is what to ask for. And a probe is where to begin. How did the officers and men of the 181 amphibious battalion become involved in a feud between two neighbours? A report we heard said a “highly connected” member of Okoloba community asked for the help of the army to rescue a kinsman believed to have been kidnapped by the youth of Okuoma. A spokesman for Defence Headquarters, quoting the Chief of Defence Staff General Christopher Musa, said the troops, led by a Lt.-Col A.H. Ali, were on a “peace mission” to the Okuoma creek community. This suggests the army high command authorized the expedition. If so, what kind of inquiry is being asked here and what outcome should we expect from one?
One thing, however, we already know. The military is getting too involved with too many security issues including minor feuds between neighbours. This over exposure comes with a lot of expected risks that are avoidable. The Constitution defines clearly the roles of the respective internal security agencies and to the military it says to defend and secure the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Nigeria as an independent nation. Yes, in the absence of an external threat, the military may be called upon to render help during severe emergencies like fires, floods and epidemics. These are things that don’t happen every now and then. There is a good reason for this. Getting them involved in routine law and order matters is distracting; it also exposes them to the tar of politics. Any big moneyed politician can pick up the telephone, call an army officer and ask for “help” to settle a political score with an adversary. This is what may have happened in the Delta killings. Political manipulation erodes professionalism. This is one thing the army cannot and mustn’t allow. The inquiry into the Okuoma killings should examine how much damage politics has done to professionalism in armed forces and how to reverse it. It was Odi, then Zaki Biam and now Okuoma. It should stop here.
