Nigerian Civil Defence Ambushed by 250 Boko Haram But Repels Attackers
By Mike Odeh James and Ekani Olikita
(Kaduna) Security experts are raising questions about the Nigerian security force readiness after a broad daylight attack Monday afternoon near the border between Niger and Kaduna States.
Nigeria’s Civil Defence Corps fought their way out of a bloody ambush by Boko Haram terrorists Monday afternoon, killing 50 of the attackers while losing 10 of their own.
The nation’s National Grid has collapsed ten times this year alone as a result of persistent attacks on its installations by terrorists and armed bandits, resulting to nationwide total blackout, a situation that necessitated the setting up of the Security Monitoring Team by Commandant General (CG) of NSCD, Dr Ahmed Abubakar Audi.
The incident happened on Monday, November 18, 2024 when the Monitoring Team in charge of the National Grid Installation near Shiroro County, Niger State, came under heavy attack by 200 to 250 riflemen of the feared terror group. The attack venue was along Farin-Kasa road, Chikun county in Kaduna, which shares a boundary with Niger State. Boko Haram terrorists have operated a staging area in Shiroro since 2021.
Babawale Afolabi, the National Public Relations Officer of NSCDC in Abuja on Wednesday evening confirmed to TruthNigeria in a telephone chat that the team succeeded in repelling the attack, killing 50 of the terrorists, but 7 Members of the police convoy were declared missing. Three members of the NSCDC unit reportedly were killed.
Nigerian Army Strength Numbers Questioned
Security analyst David Onyilokwu Idah expressed concerns regarding the high number of Boko Haram members involved in the attack.
“How can the many members of Boko Haram be operating in that area, it simply means that Nigerian Government needs to upgrade the numerical strength of the Armed forces,” Idah told TruthNigeria.
“For now, Nigeria’s military strength currently stands at approximately 230,000 personnel, serving a population of around 230 million, resulting in a ratio of about 1 military personnel to 8,200 citizens,” Idah went on to say.
“If Nigeria wants to come out of its military quagmire, it would need to recruit at least 12,000 men and women into the Army, Navy and Air force every six months, and the country needs help from countries like the USA and Israel which have vast experiences in fighting Al Qaeda terror groups, Hamas and Hezbollah,” Idah added.
Report of Federal Police Spokesman
“The incident occurred at about 15.40 hours when the convoy of the special monitoring squad comprising of 9 officers and 71 of other ranks, drawn from the Commandant General Special Intelligence Squad (CG SIS) operatives, FCT and Kaduna State commands, were ambushed at Farin-Kasa area of Chikun LGA in Kaduna State on while crossing from the Shiroro axis after the surveillance and monitoring oversight of the installations,” spokesman Afolabi said.
“The combined team which embarked on patrol of the National Grid Installation from Shiroro along some flash points and vulnerable areas,” Afolabi said. “However, unknown to them, over 200 armed Boko Haram elements had laid an ambush on a vengeful mission against security operatives who they claimed had been giving them problems. From the top of a hill located at Farin-Kasa, they opened fire upon sighting the convoy of the NSCDC monitoring team using different sophisticated weapons,” according to the NSCDC statement.
“The combined NSCDC operatives repelled the attack and successfully neutralised over 50 of the terrorists in the crossfire.”
Afolabi added that, seven operatives of the NSCDC were currently missing in action after the gun battle, assuring that efforts were underway to locate them in the bush.
Security Expert Speaks
“Approximately 250 Boko Haram members, divided into three groups, orchestrated the ambush. However, only one group engaged with the Civil Defence personnel,” according to retired Navy Captain Umar Bakori, a respected security analyst.
Bakori highlighted the inadequate equipment and mobilization of the Defence Members, noting that some personnel arrived on tricycles, indicating insufficient resources and under-strength units.
Mike Odeh James and Ekani Olikita are Conflict Reporters with TruthNigeria.
