RE: MY TAKE ON THE BOKO HARAM
PRISONERS-CHIBOK GIRLS SWAP DEAL


We woke up,Thursday (13/10/2016), to the chants of the release of some of the 'abducted' #ChibokGirls,in exchange for four (some say,five) of arrested top #BokoHaram commanders. And ever since then,every media platform-- electronic, print,televised, and what have you-- has been awash with the news. Ostensibly, Nigerians,Nigeria, and her friends have been thrown into somewhat,a celebratory mood.

While the presidential spokesman, Garba Shehu,confirmed a deal was brokered between Aso Rock and the militant Islamist group,by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and the government of Switzerland, the honourable Minister for Information has denied that some Boko Haram kingpins were exchanged for the schoolgirls. Nevertheless, a local source, privy to the developments, granted Daily Trust newspaper correspondent(s),an interview. Excerpts:
The girls were brought to Kumshe,which is
15km(nine miles) from Banki where a
military base is stationed ,in ICRC
vehicles.

The four Boko Haram militants were
brought to Banki from Maiduguri in a
military helicopter from where they were
driven to Kumshe in ICRC vehicles.

Ergo,it is disheartening to note that, nobody, but a handful of online commenters;and of particular mention-- Yinka Odumakin,has deemed it necessary to see the whole event from the viewpoint of the lethal implications,the release of the Boko Haram high-ranking commanders may pose to national security, and indisputably-- the unhealthy precedent,this whole issue has attempted to set. Rather,the polity has been plunged into a premature jubilation (if I may describe it): also,kudos-giving campaign(s)-- sort of, launched, by (mostly) political jobbers and of course,sycophants, in honour of the administration.

I shall,quickly,take us through an excerpt from Odumakin's statement:
I think it will be criminal to release the
girls in exchange for the Boko Haram
members who have been terrorising the
nation all over the place. It will be a
shame to release these criminals in
exchange for those innocent girls who
have committed no crime.


Some,may, however differ with me,on my expression of reservations about the swap. But, that isn't the point. The points are as follows:

* Should the government have negotiated with
a terror group,at all?
But again,if the government must go into
negotiations, why not those that would seek
an end to the seven-year-old insurrection:that
has claimed,at least 20,000 innocent lives,and
displaced about 2.6 million persons? In my
modest opinion, negotiating an end to the
uprising would engender not only the release
of the 'abducted' schoolgirls,and other
oblivious abductees,but also a peaceful
environment on which economic prosperity
anchors.
*What stops the authorities from revealing the
identities of the released--4?
What,then,becomes of the released
commanders?
*What does the Swiss government stand to
gain in all of this? Or was is it that,some
tranche(s) of our common wealth,stolen ,then
stashed by our past leaders,in their country,
was/were used to finance the deal?
*What message(s) are we signalling to the
world, most importantly,our allies-- Benin,Chad,
Cameroon, Niger,the US,France,Germany, the
UK,and Belarus,amongst others-- in the
campaign against terror?!
*The prisoners' release; what does it spell--
booster or derailer-- to the espirit de corps,of
our loyal,gallant troops in the frontline?

Until the above posers are satisfactorily responded to;then the release of the top commanders,in my humble submission, is a show of shame,nonetheless,tantamount to a dance of macabre on the graves of our slain soldiers and civilians, alike. Bizarre! It shows, in other terms, our collective insensitivity to the plights of women whose husbands and sons were slaughtered-- like ram;right in their presence. Gory! If public opinions were sampled before the commencement of the negotiations, my dear #Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie might have described the proposition a "simply unrealistic pep-rally nonsense"!

Howbeit, I should like to know if some discerning minds share my opinion, that in the course of the negotiations,the dreaded terror group would make it abundantly explicit, the cadre(or even,pinpointedly,those elements) they wanted released. If my guess is not out of place,then the following analysis/analogy suffices:

We can't shy away from the reality that,the ragtag group is an army in its own right. Now, let's liken this infamous army (of mindless soldiers) to what obtains in the conventional army: I bet,the rank of those released commanders, averagely,should be lieutenant- colonel. And,in the military,a lt-col. commands a battalion; made up of 300 to 800 soldiers. Plus,a lt-col. always serves as the recruitment officer,for soldiers (of the non-commissined cadre) in each state of the federation. Need I say more? Could this intervention be more subtle? Well, I leave my audience to read in-between the lines.

On a parting note,it matters,not; whether/not the receipt of this intervention will be acknowledged by the those who have the powers to right the wrongs. What does matter actually,however, is that we've decided not to fold our arms,and pretend all is/has(been) well. And,as such, we are immuned from opprobrium,ignominy, and,posterity will at least, not cast aspersions upon us or our souls!

ADENIRAN,A. Olaitan; a juvenile public affairs
analyst and does freelance writing. Certified and commended by ADEBAYO ,Gbotemi Qudus AKA MR.BAYO ..

let me go and read the story ayam coming back

Ok

hmm

Who told you they were swapped? Kindly confirm your news before giving Niherians

Whether or not, our joy shoukd be the release of the girls.. ...who cares if they die in prison

Its Simple,release The Boko Haram Kingpins, Release Our 21 Girls, Capture The Kingpins Again, Swap For Another 21, Capture Again, Swap And Swap And Swap Till The Last Chibok Girl Is Freed,then Kill The Commanders


Lolz