Why it is difficult to tackle Boko Haram

More facts have emerged on why it is becoming increasingly difficult for security operatives to be pro-active in intelligence gathering that would have given them the upper hand over the Boko Haram sect.

Sources close to the service told one of our correspondents that many officers of the Department of State Security were not happy with its leadership on issues bearing on welfare.

Part of their grievances includes non-payment of leave allowance, which they said the authorities claimed had been incorporated into the salaries of the personnel.

The officers also claimed that the leadership of the service had reneged on its promise to pay them what is called “incentive allowance.” This allowance, it was gathered, is usually half of a salary and is paid once in a year. The promise to pay it was reportedly made last December.

Apart from this, it was also alleged that their plain clothes allowance, which was meant to be paid quarterly, was last paid in October 2010. Since then, nothing has been paid to the operatives. Ordinarily, junior officers are to be paid N15,000 while senior officers are to earn N20,000 quarterly.

It was also alleged that the furniture allowances have not been paid to the officers. The operatives are also grumbling about the irregularities in their promotion. For example, those that sat for promotion examination and passed since January and February are yet to be promoted.

One of them said, “It is because of issues like this that we are no longer pro-active. We are now reactive in our operations.

“In the days of the defunct National Security organisation, how many Nigerians know those working in the organisation? Now, everyone knows who works with SSS. We now carry guns like the regular police. We have left our primary duty of gathering information. If you go to our organisation headquarters, you will see patrol vans parked outside just like the ones being used by the police.

“You will see our men carrying arms outside as if we are in war zone. That is not how to go about information gathering. By now, with the activities of the Boko Haram sect, we ought to have our men who will be in all the northern states of the country masquerading as cattle men.”

The spokesperson of the SSS, Marilyn Ogar, did not respond to calls made to her phone to verify these claims.

Another factor said to be militating against intelligence gathering is the infiltration of security organisations by suspected Boko Haram sympathisers. This, it was gathered, had made it more difficult for the security agencies to act decisively on the sect as operational methods were said to be leaked to them.

But the police in their reaction said they had their method of screening applicants into the force that ensured that militants did not infiltrate the organisation.

The Deputy Force Public Relations Officer, Mr. Yemi Ajayi, cited the ongoing recruitment into the Cadet Assistant Superintendent and Cadet Inspector of Police, saying it involved the vetting of applicants by the Divisional Police Officer in their local government areas as well as the traditional ruler and LG chairman.

According to him, the rigorous screening and vetting is to ensure that people with questionable background do not find their way into the police.

“The police are a unifying organisation for the country because you find people from different ethnic groups and cultural backgrounds there. There is no way militants and people with questionable character can find their way into the force with the rigorous screening we have adopted; only people with integrity are in the police,” Ajayi said.

Spokesman for the 81 Division of the Nigerian Army, Lt.Col. Kayode Ogunsanya, also said it was not possible for members of the Boko Haram to infiltrate the army.

He said, “I can’t speak for the whole army. I will give you the number of the director that will talk to you on that. But the Boko Haram penetrating the army won’t be possible.”-punch news