Boko Haram: Reasons for Military, NGOs fall out
The Nigerian military authorities have been at loggerheads with some international Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) providing humanitarian assistance to victims of the Boko Haram insurgency in the North-East.
The Nigerian Army, through the Theatre Command of Operation Lafiya Dole, in a statement on September 19, accused Action Against Hunger (AAH) of aiding Boko Haram members and therefore directed the NGO to immediately leave Borno State.
Army spokesman in Maiduguri, Col. Ado Isa, in a statement titled ‘Sabotage of the Counter-Insurgency Operations in the North-East’, described AAH as “persona non grata”. “The Theatre Command Operation Lafiya Dole (TC – OPLD) has observed with utter disappointment and concern the notorious activities of some Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) working in the North East (NE) Nigeria.
“The subversive actions of the NGO, Action Against Hunger (AAH), has persisted despite several warnings to desist from aiding and abetting terrorists and their atrocities. “The TC – OPLD has on many occasions raised alarm over the unwholesome practices of some NGOs and expressed same position during meetings with the NGOs operating in the North East theatre of operation,” Col. Isa said.
“The command has obtained several credible intelligences indicating AAH as one of those NGOs operating in the NE that is notorious in supplying food and drugs to the criminals in the area,” he added.
Responding to the allegation, AAH called on authorities to allow it continue to “deliver neutral, impartial and independent humanitarian aid to millions of people in Borno State by providing basic services to the most vulnerable, especially women and children. “On Wednesday, September 18, Action Against Hunger was ordered by Nigerian army to close its main office in Maiduguri, Borno State, North-eastern Nigeria,” said a statement obtained from AAH’s website.
“This decision, without notice and without any explanation, jeopardizes the assistance Action Against Hunger provides to the most vulnerable people in Borno State and halts, with immediate effect, the assistance Action Against Hunger provides to millions of people in Maiduguri, Monguno, and Damasak. “Action Against Hunger calls on the competent authorities to let us continue our work in the region.
“We do not have further comments at this stage,” the statement added.
It was gathered that thousands of people still live in Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) camps in parts of Borno, with some humanitarian agencies complementing efforts of the federal and Borno State governments in providing basics for them. This is not the first time In the past three years, three charity organizations have been fingered by the military for one offence or the other, alleging that their operations “jeopardize the fight against the insurgents”.
The military had in August 2017 raided a United Nations (UN) compound in Maiduguri, “in search for Boko Haram sect members.” And in December 2018, the military briefly suspended UNICEF from operating in Borno, accusing the non-profit organisation of “training and deploying spies who support the insurgents and their sympathisers.” Three days after, UNICEF was banned from operating in the North-East. Thereafter, Amnesty International (AI) was also asked to close its offices, with the military saying it had “credible evidence the organization is working hard to destabilize the country.”
Read Also:
Worried by the unsavoury relationship between the military and humanitarian agencies, Barr. Aminu Aliyu who also runs a local NGO said something urgent must be done to stem the rising mutual suspicion. “The Boko Haram insurgency is over 10 years now…And I think there is no single agency that will end the crisis by confronting the terrorists alone,” he said. “What I want to add is that whenever there is war, there would be military in the frontlines; and you will also have NGOs tending to humanitarian issues. “In the event any NGO violated the rules of engagement, or the conventions guiding their operations, such an NGO should be charged to court. It is not about asking them to park their things and go because such decisions could affect the whole operations,” he said.
The military had reversed itself in some instances by allowing some of the NGOs to continue with their work after wide condemnations. “I think if really an NGO is aiding and abetting activities of terrorists, such organization or group should be penalized,” Barr. Aliyu further said. A resident of Maiduguri who does not want his name in print, said, “Both the military and aid groups were attracted to this region by same cause, the 10-year-long Boko Haram crises which left over 100,000 people dead and over two million displaced from their homes. “Both had partnered very well in the past to properly serve survivors of the conflict, that relationship should be restored.
“The aid agencies need military escorts to deliver their humanitarian services to places outside the city, while the military would seek collaboration with the agencies to help those innocent people it liberated from Boko Haram militants,” he added. On why the relationship deteriorated, he said, “both have their lows…Sometimes the military high command is not happy with the way the NGOs are sending reports to their headquarters abroad; they see them as spies. “And on the other hand, the NGOs tend to expose some of the excesses of the military; the way they are carrying out the operation and, in some instances, when they refused to act when there is the need to act,” he said.
It was gathered that AAH has been working in Nigeria since 2010. From 2014 to 2015, the international NGO doubled the volume of their operations in response to the crisis, meeting the humanitarian needs of 2.1 million people with health and nutrition programmes; clean water and sanitation to reduce malnutrition and disease; emergency cash transfers to help displaced people purchase food or meet other urgent needs; and longer-term food security initiatives.
In 2016, AAH scaled up its programme in Nigeria even further, again doubling the volume of their operations to meet rising needs, despite an extremely challenging environment. The sacking of the NGO came few months after six of its workers were kidnapped by the Boko Haram while on their way to some communities bordering the Lake Chad area in northern Borno.
It was gathered in July this year reviewed a short video clip that went viral on social media, showing a woman alongside five men appealing to their employer – AAH and other relevant authorities to help rescue them from their abductors. It was then confirmed by another volunteer working for AAH at an IDP camp in Maiduguri, that the six people showed in the purported Boko Haram video were real volunteers working for the Borno-based aid group.
Source: Daily Trust
