Secrets Reporters
Following the news on Wednesday that the dreaded Boko Haram attacked Maiduguri, Borno State but were repelled by the Nigerian Army, information reaching Secrets Reporters is that the soldiers merely played to the gallery as there was no such attack, rather all the guns fired which was heard by the residents was from the Army Barracks.
According to CUPS, a non governmental organisation, the whole alarm was all fraud to cover up their lapses. We present to you the facts behind the bombing.
The Nigerian military’s narrative:
On Wednesday night (13/05/2015), the Boko Haram insurgents made a ferocious attempt to invade the city of Maiduguri and attack the Giwa Barracks, but were met by a stiff resistance from gallant soldiers of the 7 Division of Nigeria Army, who chased away hundreds of the insurgents and engaged them at the outskirts of Kayamla village, which is located 20 kilometers away from Maiduguri. Following this encounter a 24 hour curfew was imposed on Maiduguri, the state capital to restore peace. This was confirmed by the Army spokesman of the 7 Division, Colonel Tukur Gusau.
CUPS investigation:
A very reliable source with senior military connections told CUPS that the rumour of an impending attack on Maiduguri was started at the Giwa military Barracks around 5:30 pm on Wednesday by the soldiers themselves because Boko Haram terrorists were seen in Kayamla village an hour or so earlier. Because of low morale, lack of discipline, lack of proper training and management, and obsolete command and control structure in the Barracks, this rumour spread rapidly like wild fire. Suddenly without instruction and careful coordination from the military hierarchy, some frightened soldiers started evacuating their families out of the Barracks for fear of being attacked and killed by the terrorists. When civilians living around the Barracks inquired as to why the soldiers were running away with their families, they were simply told that the soldiers and their families were relocating to Maimalari Barracks. This absurd and confusing situation led to thousands of families living around the Barracks to flee their homes without knowing the reasons why they had to flee.
According to a CUPS informant who spoke o us on the phone, they saw soldiers running helter-skelter, so who are they to stay behind? The mass exodus of both soldiers and civilians continued until around 6:30 pm, when suddenly the state capital was rocked with sporadic gunshots and bombardment emanating from the Giwa Barracks. The informant told CUPS that bullets were shot in all directions by soldiers. Meanwhile there were no Boko Haram terrorists to be seen. This scary situation led to more people fleeing. The stray rockets and bullets fired by the soldiers hit and damaged several properties. A local CUPS member lost two of his car tires to stray bullets, while two students from University of Maiduguri were directly hit and are in hospital receiving treatment. Women, children, sick, and elderly people bore the brunt of this shameful episode. A few pregnant women were seen delivering their babies prematurely by the road sides while trying to flee.
Following the embarrassing realisation by the Nigerian Army that there was no any attempt whatsoever by Boko Haram terrorists to invade Maiduguri yesterday evening, the army regardless went ahead and imposed an unjustifiable curfew on the people of Maiduguri to conveniently cover up their mistake. This brought even more hardship on the people of the city. Those families that left their homes in hurry were not able to return as they risked being shot at by the soldiers on patrol.
In order to vent their anger, frustration, and cover up for this shameful episode, some soldiers from the Giwa Barracks went to Wadiya town in nearby Konduga local government and executed 20 innocent civilians, who they claimed were Boko Haram terrorists. The Nigerian Army Spokesman, Colonel S.K. Usman, lied to the BBC Hausa service this morning that the army were on top of the situation and that Boko Haram terrorists were successfully repelled. However, the army cannot produce a single photo or video footage to show that they have indeed repelled an attack on Giwa Barrack in Maiduguri.