Boko Haram: America not Nigeria’s friend, says Gowon

A former Head of State, Gen. Yakubu Gowon (retd.), has taken a swipe
at the United States on its refusal to sell arms to Nigeria to fight
the insurgency by the Islamic group, Boko Haram.
Gowon, in an interview withSUNDAY PUNCH, criticised the US for not
selling military hardware to Nigeria, saying if the US was truly a
diplomatic friend to Nigeria, it should do everything possible to keep
the corporate existence of Nigeria.
This, according to him, includes assisting Nigeria to fight aggression
from any quarter.
The US had on November 12, 2014, defended its refusal to sell cobra
helicopters to Nigeria, saying the Federal Government was free to buy
fighter jets from any other country.
The State Department's spokeswoman, Jen Psaki, said, "Nigeria has
purchased helicopters that originated in countries other than the US
and nothing in our decision prevents Nigeria from obtaining weapons
and equipment from other sources,"
Psaki had reacted to the allegation by the Nigerian Ambassador to the
US, Prof. Adebowale Adefuye, that Washington declined to sell arms to
Nigeria.
Adefuye had told members of the Council on Foreign Relations on
November 10 that Washington was not doing enough to assist Nigeria in
combating the Boko Haram insurgency in North-East geopolitical zone of
the country.
He said, "The U.S. government has up till today refused to grant
Nigeria's request to purchase lethal equipment that would have brought
down the terrorists within a short time on the basis of the
allegations that Nigeria's defence forces have been violating human
rights of Boko Haram suspects when captured or arrested.
"We find it difficult to understand how and why, in spite of the U.S.
presence in Nigeria, with their sophisticated military technology,
Boko Haram should be expanding and becoming more deadly."
But Psaki had stated that the US refused to sell the helicopters to
Nigeria due to concerns about the ability of the military to use and
maintain them.
The cobra is a combat aircraft with the ability to climb at the rate
of 8.2metres per second. It is equipped with a 20 mm M197 3-barrelled
Gatling cannon in the A/A49E-7 turret (750 rounds ammo capacity).
The spokeswoman also said there were ongoing concerns about Nigerian
military's protection of civilians when conducting military
operations, adding that these had been discussed with the Nigerian
authorities.
Gowon, while speaking to one of our correspondents, however, alleged
that the US did same to the Nigerian government during the Civil War,
when it refused to sell fighter jets to Nigeria to stop Biafra's
bomber jets.
As the military Head of State, Gowon had prosecuted the Nigerian civil
war, aka Biafran War, which began on July 6, 1967 and ended on January
15, 1970.
The war was declared after an attempted secession by the Eastern
Region of the country, which declared itself the 'Republic of Biafra.'
Gowon said, "The same thing happened during the Civil War. The
Americas refused to sell arms to us. I wanted them to help me with
some modest aircraft so that I could chase out Ojukwu's (Col. Odumegwu
Ojukwu) B52 or B56 as they called it. That was all I wanted; not to
shoot it down but to chase it away so that it does not drop bombs and
kill innocent people.
"But the Americans refused to help us and they even refused to sell
arms and ammunitions and the spare parts of the equipment that we got
from them. And at the same time, they (America) were shipping aircraft
and loads of arms and ammunition to Zaire. What sort of friends are
they?
"You call them your friends and they say that they are helping us to
fight terror. We don't want their people (Americans) to come and fight
the war (against Boko Haram) for us but, at least, we need the
equipment.
"During my time (as Head of State), I had to go to the Russians to get
the equipment we wanted in order to prosecute that war. If they cannot
help us, they should allow us to go elsewhere and get what we want to
ensure that we deal with this particular problem."
A former Military Governor of Kaduna State, Col. Abubakar Umar
(retd.), corroborated Gowon, while decrying that Western allies, who
were paying much attention to the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria in
the Middle East, "have decided to turn a blind eye to what is
happening in Nigeria."
He pointed out that Boko Haram is to Nigeria what ISIS is to the
Middle East, saying they both threaten global peace and security.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs also backed Adefuye's position on arms
purchase from the US.
The Director, Public Communication Division, Foreign Affairs, Mr.
Ahmedu Ogbole-Ode, said the Nigerian ambassador had said it all on the
relationship between Nigeria and America.
"Our ambassador to the US has spoken. He did not send himself there,
so there is nothing more for me to add," he said.
The US, however, said despite its insistence on not selling arms to
Nigeria, it was committed to helping the country address the threat
posed by Boko Haram and other violent extremist organisations.
The Press Attache, US Embassy, Abuja, Sean McIntosh, in his response
toSUNDAY PUNCH's enquiry on why the US avoids supporting Nigeria
internal wars, said his country had been working and continued to work
with Nigerian authorities to provide assistance with humanitarian
programmes, intelligence and strategic communications.
When asked to also explain the US policy that states America's
non-committal posture to Nigeria and to name other West African
countries affected by the policy, McIntosh said the US had continued
to advise the Federal Government to adopt a comprehensive approach to
violent extremists.
He said such approach emphasises respect for human rights including
the freedom of religion, prioritises civilian security, and responds
to the needs of victimised communities.
McIntosh listed the assistance rendered to Nigeria by the US to
include the provision of $19m for the vulnerable and conflict-affected
households in Nigeria by the American government in 2014.
He said, "More than $7m from the US Agency for International
Development's Office of Foreign Disaster Assistance supports health,
water and sanitation services; the delivery of emergency relief
supplies and protection activities for women and children in
north-eastern Nigeria.
"USAID/Food for Peace has provided nearly $7m in emergency food
assistance and the US Department of State has provided more than $5m
to fund protection activities in affected areas.
"In addition, the US government provided more than $54m in
humanitarian assistance in Cameroon, Chad and Niger, targeting refugee
populations from neighbouring countries, including Nigeria."
The American embassy spokesman explained that the USAID was also in
the process of starting two new programmes that would address critical
educational needs for both boys and girls in northern Nigeria.
These, according to McIntosh, include a 'crisis response' programme to
be funded with about $20m to $30m. He said the programme would reach
out with basic education to internally-displaced persons and others
affected by the violence in the north-east, including Bauchi, Gombe,
and Adamawa states.
"The programmes also include a 'flagship' five-year education
programme that will strengthen systems to provide greater access and
learning (increasing reading skills) for primary school children,
principally in Sokoto and Bauchi, and other states of the North as
conditions allow," he explained.
McIntosh stated that two additional large USAID projects focused on
maternal and child health and democracy and governance are
geographically co-located in Bauchi and Sokoto states in an effort to
maximise their developmental impact. He added that expansion into
additional post-conflict states would be considered as conditions and
resources allow.

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