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. Worse still, government
officials in the North East states of Yobe, Borno and
Adamawa collaborate with the terrorists and take
bribes from them, thereby, hindering the fight
against the terrorists. 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.”
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