THE attempt by the erstwhile Goodluck Jonathan administration to do a deal with the Boko Haram terrorist group on the release of the kidnapped Chibok schoolgirls ended in fiasco and national disgrace. It is against this background that President Muhammdu Buhari’s expressed readiness to dialogue with the terrorists with a view to exchanging Boko Haram suspects in government custody with the 219 abducted schoolgirls should be handled with care.
The President disclosed his readiness for such a deal in Kenya, where he attended the sixth Tokyo International Conference of African Development (TICADVI). He has, in recent months, been under intense pressure from home and abroad to fulfill his promise of securing the freedom of the girls. His only condition for the exchange is that he would only negotiate with the bona fide leaders of Boko Haram who know the whereabouts of the girls.
We agree with the President’s condition for the dialogue because, as it is said, once bitten twice shy. Nigeria must not have a repeat of the botched “deal” of 2014. The girls have spent well over two years in captivity and Nigerians are becoming restive over the failure of the government to rescue them.
The anxiety to secure the release of the girls is understandable. It is probably one of the reasons the Jonathan administration fell into the trap of charlatans, who made the Federal Government believe, and declare, in 2014 that a deal had been struck. The then Nigerian Chief of Defence Staff, Air Chief Marshall Alex Badeh, had then declared: “…I wish to inform this audience that a ceasefire agreement has been concluded between the Federal Government of Nigeria and Boko Haram. I have accordingly directed the service chiefs to ensure immediate compliance with this development in the field.”
There was no other way to translate or interpret this order than that the negotiation with Boko Haram had reached an advanced stage. It also led the Principal Secretary of President Goodluck Jonathan, Alhaji Hassan Tukur, to make several trips to Ndjamena to perfect the deal and there lease of the girls. All these efforts ended in smoke as conmen were later found to have only taken Nigeria for a ride. It was a stunning intelligence failure on the part of the Department of State Service (DSS) and the Directorate of Military Intelligence (DMI).
President Buhari’s willingness to bargain for these girls is appropriate. It is heartbreaking seeing the girls’ parents and their supporters sitting on the bare floor in a protest in front of the presidential mansion. He should get the “BringBackOurGirls#” (BBOG) group to his side, take more time to explain why the swap must be done dispassionately, and only after ascertaining the identity and genuineness of Boko Haram’s representatives There must also be adequate demonstration of goodwill and confidence-building on both sides for any meaningful negotiation to take place. The BBOG campaign should not be discouraged, disrespected or mistreated by any arm of the security services. The talk about a military rescue should be discouraged.
Mrs. Aisha Wakil’s connections should be explored. This is the lady popularly referred to as “Mama Boko Haram.” Her accounts of an earlier attempt to secure the release of the Chibok girls corroborated the account of Dr. Stephen Davis, the Australian, who said he had led the effort but gave it up when the terrorists couldn’t make up their minds, and their leadership was seen to be fragmented.
Nigerians and all men of goodwill all over the world are expecting these negotiations to be done purposefully, expeditiously and adroitly with no room for hankypanky. If the government has any leverage to hasten the process, it should apply it, but it should continue to express willingness to swap the girls provided the Boko Haram negotiators can demonstrate that the sect has the girls and is genuinely ready to release them on reasonable grounds.