Boko Haram: Reps want recruitment of additional 100,000 soldiers

The House of Representatives is calling on military authorities to recruit additional 100,000 soldiers to make up for the shortfall in manpower that has overstretched the military in its fight against insecurity in the country.

It also called on the Nigerian Army to recall retired officers and men and keep them on reserve for use when needed, in line with the Armed Forces Act, Part VII Section 25, provided they are physically fit and not above 50 years of age.

The call was part of a recommendation by the House Committee on Army which investigated the Auno attacks that occurred in February when Boko Haram attacked and killed commuters stranded at a checkpoint on their way to Maiduguri.

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Chairman, House Committee on Army, Abdulrazak Namdaz (APC, Adamawa), who presented the report before the House, said the commuters were not given any security cover or protection by soldiers deployed to secure Maiduguri-Damaturu highway.

Giving a synopsis of the report, Namdaz said it was found out during their investigation of the incidence in Auno, that the commuters became stranded at Auno village after failing to adhere to the curfew imposed in the area, hence becoming easy targets for Boko Haram attack.

“If the commuters had adhered strictly to the curfew timing, they would not have been stopped at the gate by soldiers and subsequently attacked by Boko Haram insurgents.

“In the same vein, if the soldiers had provided security cover or protection to the stranded commuters, they would have saved them from the insurgents’ attack or helped reduce its severity.

“The insurgents (or at least some of them) would have even been killed or captured, and the casualty figure on the part of the commuters significantly reduced.

“This is because the Army does not have enough personnel to hold ground for a long time after defeating Boko Haram in some villages, hence it resorts to collapsing the thinly held and sparsely resourced troops’ locations to form Super Camps.

“With a massive recruitment of new soldiers, there would be no need for Super Camps,” he said.