Nigerian
Muslim clerics living in the border towns of Cameroon and Nigeria are
recruiting Boko Haram members in their mosques, the government of Cameroon has
alleged.
Governors of these states
also capitalise on their civilian fears to berate the army and the federal
government.
These
allegations were published in a report, yesterday, by US-based online military
news agency, StrategyPage.
The magazine explains that the army wants
governors in the affected states removed because “many officials in those
states are cooperating with Boko Haram (to avoid attack) and are taking bribes
from the Islamic terrorists.
“Some of
these officials are covering themselves in case Boko Haram should gain power
and the governors are often just responding to civilian fears of army
misconduct,” it noted.
The
magazine said: “Cameroon is also concerned about pro-Boko Haram clerics from
Nigeria quietly preaching and recruiting for Boko Haram in Cameroon mosques.
“Islamic
conservative clergy are not unusual on either side of the border, but those who
do not denounce Boko Haram are suspected of quietly recruiting young men to
join the “jihad” (struggle) and fight (and often die) in Nigeria.
These
preachers have to recruit quietly because otherwise police in Cameroon will
arrest and deport them, sometimes after a vigorous interrogation.
Evidence of
this recruiting is showing up when some of the recruits return from Nigeria
with tales of disillusionment and adversity while with Boko Haram,” the report
said.
The
magazine said that the Cameroonian government is “being criticized because
recent claims of large (over 5,000 weapons) arms seizures near the Nigerian
border could not be verified by reporters. Civilians living in villages near
where the government said the seizures took place said they saw nothing.
The
government responded that the smugglers operated in remote areas and avoided
civilians as well as security forces.
There are also concerns that even if
weapons were seized they would, as often happens, be sold back to black market
arms dealers so that government officials could keep the cash.”
On the
military, the report said: “Residents of those three states have justifiable
complaints about the army, in particular the casual attitude of the military
towards the safety of civilians and their property.
“The army
is also unreliable when it comes to sharing information on casualties.
Thus
Boko Haram related deaths so far this year are believed to be (based on local
reports) at least 1,500, which is 50 per cent more than what the army reports.
Boko Haram related deaths from 2010 to 2013 were about 3,600, so the violence
is not declining.
“The
government has been saying, for several years, that Boko Haram would be crushed
within a year and never happens. More insightful observers point out that the
problem is mainly one of corruption and poverty, as well as the appeal of
Islamic radicalism as a magical cure. All of Nigeria suffers from corruption.
“Poverty
is more prevalent in the Muslim north, in part because of climate. That’s
because the semi-desert Sahel region south of the Sahara Desert is found in the
north. Another problem is the more conservative nature of Islamic populations
and the lower education levels.”
SOURCE: http://www.vanguardngr.com
0 comments:
Post a Comment