Why is there such an unprecedented proliferation of flashpoints in Nigeria at this time? It is clear that the State has lost the monopoly of violence which has always been the primary means of suppressing dissent
For a start, terrorists, criminally minded elements and other nob-state actors have been able to access arms from the anarchical continuum stretching from Sudan through the CAR, into Chad, Niger, Mali, Burkina Faso and Libya.
In the Gulf of Guinea, arms for oil barter trade by illegal Bunkering syndicates and regional emancipators alike contributed to the expansion of the cache of illegally held weapons within
Seeing that the overlordship of the FG has been successfully challenged by non-state actors and with perceptions of its monopoly of violence demystified, more groups with a plethora of motives have become emboldened.and risen to challenge the authority of the FG
In effect, IF Niger Delta militants and BH+ISWAP did not emerge to challenge the FG's monopoly of violence, we might never have come to this point. As it stands, the proliferation of armed groups looks set to continue unless effective political solutions are formulated
Summarily, the relative peace which Nigeria enjoyed in the 1970s on account of perceptions of an all-powerful State - an impression spawned by its victory in the civil war, cannot now be replicated cos that notion has conclusively been voided by the events of 2006-21.
It is time to aim for solutions which are able to prevent the recourse to arms by non-state actors for conflicts are sure to beget even more conflicts.
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COMING UP: Against the backdrop of many inaccurate renditions in the local and foreign media about the life and times of General DOMKAT YAH BALI (1940 - 2020), we shall lay down the most precise and militarily accurate profile of the man that you have read thus far, later TODAY
1a. General Domkat Bali commenced his cadet preparatory training as a member of the Course 3 cohort of the Nigerian Military Training College, Kaduna, in April 1961(this is contrary to a report by a foreign medium which suggested that he began training at Sandhurst in April 1961)
1b. Some of his course mates in the NMTC Course 3 cohort were Lt Gen MI Wushishi, Maj Gen Geoffrey Ejiga, Colonel Ibrahim Taiwo, Brigadier Abbas Wali, Colonel ADS Wya et al. Most of Bali's mates trained at MONS. Only four made the cut for Sandhurst (Bali, Wya and two others)
Comparing the Capabilities of #NORINCO Armoured Fire Support Vehicles(Tank Destroyers) Fielded In Nigeria's Neighbourhood: The ST1 of the Nigerian Army vs The WMA 301 Assaulter of the Armies of Chad and Cameroon.
Both types being closely matched,Who got the better deal overall?
First of all, kudos to the manufacturers for the aesthetics of these fine vehicles. Let us now look at these vehicles from the perspectives of power plants, maneouvreability, gunnery etc
The vehicle to the left is the 8-wheeled ST1 such as is fielded by Nigeria. It is a similar chassis to the VN-1 Infantry Fighting Vehicle while to the right is the WMA 301 fielded by Chad and Cameroon, a 6-wheeler whose chassis is similar to that of the WZ-551 APC
30 Years Ago Today, An Abortive Attempt Was Made To Dislodge The Babangida-led FMG From Power. It Was Profound Mayhem In Lagos
On the hustings at the Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria, Lagos was an armoured corps officer of the NDA's Regular Course 12 intake, Major Gideon Gwaza Orkar. He was the public face of the coup but not it's organisational or intellectual engine room.
Orkar had some coursemates who would later attain positions of great significance in national life such as Gen Andrew Azazi, Colonel Sambo Dasuki and Colonel Lucky Mike Torey
30 December 1983: At this time 36 years ago, President Shehu Shagari was settling into State House (Aguda House), Abuja, for his final night as President. The overthrow of his government would be completed over the course of the next twelve hours of darkness
In the hours preceding Shagari's arrival in Abuja from Logos where he had earlier attended Friday prayers at Obalende, Lt Col Tunde Ogbeha, Nigeria's defence adviser in Harare and a significant actor in the coup plot, tried to secure the non-violent capitulation of Aguda House
Ogbeha, among other peripheral actors drawn from the ranks of his mates, was one of three principal actors drawn from the Regular Course 3 cohort, Lt Colonels all, who partook in the coup. The others were Lt Cols David Mark and Sabi Aliyu, the Guards Battalion Commander in Lagos